LIT107 CM - African American Poetry

Through reading, writing, and discussion, this course will introduce students to some of the most influential literary and vernacular poetry emerging from the African American cultural context. For the most part, these literary and vernacular works will be considered in relation to the historical moments in which they were produced. This historicized approach will enable class discussions to focus on the way in which black poetics has chronicled, reflected, and contributed to African America’s varied, vexed relation to the American “democratic project.” Attention to history will also lead students into considerations of the intimate connection between the aesthetic choices of African American poets and the evolving legal, economic, and social statuses of black people in America.

Offered: Every other year

Credit: 1

Course Number: LIT 107 CM