ENGL 3070: Native American Literature
This morning at 11:15, the first meeting of ENGL 3070: Native American Literature will get underway. It's a course that I designed and pushed through the hoops to become a regular offering in the Department of English. When my new position as Director of the University Honors and Midway Scholars Programs seriously reduced my teaching schedule, I made sure that I would still be able to teach this course.
I'm certain that a lot of folks would say that a white man like me has no business teaching Native American Literature. I suppose that idea has some validity. But I think that students need exposure to this literature and the ideas that emerge from it, and if nobody more qualified is available to teach it, I'm happy to do so. The subject fascinates me, but I make no claims to extensive knowledge about it. My training, however, allows me to get inside the literature via its literary qualities rathern than my knowledge of tribal cultures. So that's a valid thing, I think.
As I'm getting to know my class this morning, I'll ask each of them what experience(s) they have with "Indian" culture in America. My own experience? I remember playing "Daniel Boone" (the TV show) with my cousins when we were children. I always wanted to be Mingo, the Indian sidekick. Same with the Lone Ranger--call me Tonto. My last year in college before quitting to go to Nashville, my roommate was Cherokee.
So this morning we'll begin a journey in this class through the short stories and poetry in an anthology called Nothing But the Truth. We'll also read four novels between now and December: Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony, A.A. Carr's Eye Killers, Sherman Alexie's Indian Killer and Susan Power's The Grass Dancer.
Through this blog, I'll periodically report on how things are going and what we're learning.
I'm certain that a lot of folks would say that a white man like me has no business teaching Native American Literature. I suppose that idea has some validity. But I think that students need exposure to this literature and the ideas that emerge from it, and if nobody more qualified is available to teach it, I'm happy to do so. The subject fascinates me, but I make no claims to extensive knowledge about it. My training, however, allows me to get inside the literature via its literary qualities rathern than my knowledge of tribal cultures. So that's a valid thing, I think.
As I'm getting to know my class this morning, I'll ask each of them what experience(s) they have with "Indian" culture in America. My own experience? I remember playing "Daniel Boone" (the TV show) with my cousins when we were children. I always wanted to be Mingo, the Indian sidekick. Same with the Lone Ranger--call me Tonto. My last year in college before quitting to go to Nashville, my roommate was Cherokee.
So this morning we'll begin a journey in this class through the short stories and poetry in an anthology called Nothing But the Truth. We'll also read four novels between now and December: Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony, A.A. Carr's Eye Killers, Sherman Alexie's Indian Killer and Susan Power's The Grass Dancer.
Through this blog, I'll periodically report on how things are going and what we're learning.
posted by mac | 6:10 AM
2 Comments:
Sounds like an interesting course Michael... I hope it goes well for you.
Very interesting..I don't think I have ever heard of anyone teaching Native American Literature before. I would be interested in that myself. Hope it goes well!!
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