GOVT177C CM - James Baldwin

James Baldwin was one of the most important writers of the 20th century. He engaged questions of political philosophy and practice through his essays, fiction, oratory, and activism. In this course we will reflect on Baldwin’s answers to fundamental questions about freedom, love, power, democracy, and justice in three major ways. First, we will think about “autobiography as political philosophy” by way of Baldwin’s autobiographical essays and his autobiographical novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain. Second, we will examine Baldwin’s reflections on identity, love, freedom, and power by way of his second novel novel, Giovanni’s Room, and two of his major essay collections: Nobody Knows My Name and The Fire Next Time. In the final part of the class, we will engage Baldwin’s ideas by way of conversations he had with other artists, intellectuals, and activists, including conservatives such as William F. Buckley Jr., fellow activists such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, and feminist thinkers such as Nikki Giovanni and Audre Lorde.

Offered: Occasionally

Credit: 1

Course Number: GOVT177C CM