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Academic Year 2004/2005

Aesthetics and Politics in Latino/a Literature
ENGL 284 SP

Can a poem change the world? How? Ethnic literatures are often read for their manifest historical or social content -- for the ways in which they engage and critique the social contexts in which they are written, or for their real and alleged political effects. This course will analyze how questions of aesthetic form play a fundamental role in the interventions that Latino/a artists seek to make in U. S. culture(s). It will examine such topics as: how the formal elements of a work help to produce its political effects; how a sense of a pan-Latino community is created via literary or linguistic means; how the use of bilingual code-switching and cultural translation enable the various effects of works by Latino/a artists; and how elements such as estrangement, humor, parody, pastiche and resignification contribute to Latino/a cultural expressions. Readings from critical theorists include Jakobson, Benjamin, Bhabha, Butler, Ybarra-Frausto, Stavans, Johnson, Flores, Fusco, and Pérez-Firmat.

MAJOR READINGS

COURSE FORMAT: Lecture/Discussion

REGISTRATION INFORMATION

Level: UGRD    Credit: 1    Gen Ed Area Dept: HA ENGL    Grading Mode: Graded   

Prerequisites: NONE

SECTION 01

Instructor(s): González,Bill Johnson   

Times: ...W.F. 01:10PM-02:30PM;     Location: BTFDA413;

Reserved Seats:    (Total Limit: 25)

SR. major: 10   Jr. major: 10

SR. non-major: 3   Jr. non-major: 2   SO: X   FR: X

Special Attributes:

Last Updated on MAR-21-2005

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