Instructor: Reutter
TR 9:30 AM – 10:50 AM
Recent events — the Covid-19 pandemic, the George Floyd killing, social and racial justice protests, QAnon and the proliferation of conspiracy theories — have made us more aware of just how puzzling and unsettling the world can be. These events have also revealed how little we know about our history and myths (our national DNA), and how adept we can be at ignoring or repressing human behavior that we would rather not confront. As a response, at least in part, to contemporary events, we will read novels and essays that investigate American culture and its myths. Class readings are likely to include works by Kate Chopin, Ernest Hemingway, Toni Morrison, Cormac McCarthy, John Updike, Colson Whitehead, and others. Brief weekly reading quizzes, papers, classroom discussion, exam.