March 2025 - maenglish@lists.qc.cuny.edu

[EnglishMA] Last Day to Withdrawn is 4/1
by William Orchard 31 Mar '25

31 Mar '25

Hello All, I’m writing to remind you that the last day to withdraw with a “W” grade from a class is tomorrow, April 1. If there is a course that you have not been attending or if there is one in which you think you might not pass or finish, you will want to drop by the deadline so that you don’t receive an F or WU grade. Drops can be done on CUNYfirst. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Best, Bill __________________________________________ William Orchard Associate Professor Director, English MA Program Queens College/ CUNY Graduate Center

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[EnglishMA] CFP: Through the Dark--CCNY Grad Student Conference
by William Orchard 23 Mar '25

23 Mar '25

Hello all, I’m passing along a call for papers for CCNY’s graduate student conference. A few students from their program presented at our conference a few weeks ago. It would be great to see some Queens representation at theirs, which takes place on May 9, 2025. The deadline to submit an abstract is 4/18. Conferences are good opportunities to share the work you do in your classes and are things that you can add to your resumes and CVs during your time in the program. Best, Bill CALL FOR PAPERS Annual City College of New York English Graduate Conference Through the Dark Conference Date: May 9th, 2025 Abstract Submission Deadline: April 18th, 2025 [cid:image001.jpg@01DB9C27.FEB2A620] Bertolt Brecht once wrote, “In the dark times / Will there also be singing? / Yes, there will also be singing. / About the dark times.” Today, as we witness the rise of far-right governments, the erosion of democratic norms, and the assault on basic human rights across the world, Brecht’s words resonate with renewed urgency. These are dark times, but they are not unprecedented. Literature has long documented moments of oppression and resistance, offering both cautionary tales and a window into imagined—and not imagined—ways of fighting back. In the spirit of Brecht, we seek to create a space for critical dialogue, collective reflection, and hope. Let us sing, and write, about the dark times, not only of being in them but also of moving beyond them. For the 2025 CCNY English Graduate Conference, we invite papers that think with and through darkness. We welcome submissions that engage with both the theme of resistance and beyond. How can literary texts help us understand the current political and social moment? How can they inspire us to imagine new ways of confronting the challenges we face today? Darkness, of course, invites broader resonances, such as the Gothic, the unconscious, ecological disaster, and more. We look forward to work spanning a variety of contexts, genres, and periods. This year’s conference will feature keynote speaker Dr. Kandice Chuh, a professor of English at the CUNY Graduate Center. An acclaimed scholar, she is the author of The Difference Aesthetics Makes: On the Humanities “After Man” (2019) and Imagine Otherwise: On Asian Americanist Critique (2003). Possible proposal topics include, but are not limited to: Resistance * Writing as resistance and rebellion * Narratives of survival and revolution * The aesthetics of dissent Utopia & Dystopia * Speculative fiction * Alternative world orders * Cosmopolitanism and the planetary Postcolonialism, Decolonization, Anti-Colonialism * Imperial history and violence * The aftermath of Western colonialism * Borders, occupation, and opposition The Gothic & Horror * Ghosts and haunting * Monsters and wild animals * Dark affects * Psychological turmoil Climate & the Anthropocene * Climate change in literature * Eco-futurism & eco-socialism * Natural disasters Surface & Depth * Psychoanalysis and the unconscious * Obscurity, light, and shadow * Narratives of mental illness * Taboos Please submit proposals (150-250 words) to ccnygradconference(a)gmail.com<mailto:ccnygradconference@gmail.com> by Friday, April 18th, 2025. We welcome both critical and creative presentations. Possibilities include the reading of an academic paper, a scholarly reflection, a poetry reading, a soundscape, a panel discussion, and more. Submissions may be co-authored. All graduate students are welcomed to submit, including those pursuing their MA, MFA, and PhD.

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[EnglishMA] Reminder: Nancy Comley Prize for Best Essay by a QC MA Student
by William Orchard 20 Mar '25

20 Mar '25

Hello All, This is a just a reminder that the deadline for submissions for the Nancy Comley Prize for best essay by a QC MA student is due tomorrow. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Best, Bill From 2025 NANCY COMLEY PRIZE for the best essay by a QC English MA, MS Ed, or MAT student Named for the long-standing Chair of the English Department, the Nancy Comley Prize was established in 2012 to honor the best essay written by a graduate student matriculated in the Queens College English MA, MS Ed, or MAT programs. The prize is sponsored by the English Department Alumni Fund. All currently matriculated English MA, MS Ed, and MAT students, as well as master’s students who graduated in Fall 2020, are eligible. Submissions should be 10–25 pages in length, typed, double-spaced, in standard 12-point font, with 1-inch margins and page numbers. They must be carefully proofread and formatted according to current MLA style, including a Works Cited page. The deadline for submissions is Friday, March 21, 2025. All entries must be submitted via email to MAEnglish(a)qc.cuny.edu<mailto:MAEnglish@qc.cuny.edu>. Before submitting your entry, please take careful note of the following instructions: * Essays must be submitted in DOC, DOCX, or PDF formats. * The filename for your essay should read “[CUNYfirst ID number]NancyComleyPrize.” If you don’t know your 8-digit CUNYfirst ID number, please look it up before submitting your essay. * In the body of your email, make sure to include the following information: 1. Your full name 2. Your 8-digit CUNYfirst ID number 3. The title of your essay § Make sure that your name does not appear anywhere in your essay, which will be blind-read by the prize judges, who are faculty members serving on the English Department’s MA Committee. Winners will be contacted by Monday, April 24. Presentation of the award will occur at the department’s Honors Ceremony. Questions about the Nancy Comley Prize should be directed to the Directors of Graduate Studies in English at MAEnglish(a)qc.cuny.edu<mailto:MAEnglish@qc.cuny.edu>.

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[EnglishMA] Writers at Queens: April 2 Roundtable on Careers in Media and Publishing
by William Orchard 19 Mar '25

19 Mar '25

Writers at Queens is sponsoring a roundtable on careers in media and publishing. The announcement and details are below. It’s both in person and on Zoom. Best, Bill The next Writers at Queens event is this media and publishing roundtable on April 2, Wednesday, at 7pm! Please join us in the QC Art Center, Rosenthal Library 6th floor, to hear from MFA alumnae zakia henderson-brown, Rob Gunther, Jasper Lo, Jenna Telesca, and Alexa Wejko. They will talk about their work at The New Yorker, Slate, The Wall Street Journal, The New Press, and Soho Press. Or join us on zoom here<http://bit.ly/4hq6XWj>—no registration required. This will be a wonderful event and very useful for students thinking of career paths. [cid:image001.png@01DB98C4.0A352A70]Best, Nicole Nicole Cooley she/her/hers Professor, MFA Program in Creative Writing and Literary Translation Queens College, City University of New York Director, Writers at Queens series

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[EnglishMA] Commencement 2025 Information
by William Orchard 18 Mar '25

18 Mar '25

Dear English MA Students, I’m writing with information about Spring 2025 Commencement. General information can be found on the College Commencement website<mailto:commencement@qc.cuny.edu.>, which includes FAQs about gown rental, RSVPs for guests, etc. Apologies for the lengthy email. Please review the following and let me know if you have any additional questions. Graduating English MA students from Fall 2024, Spring 2025, and Summer 2025 have the option of attending the following events: * The Queens College Commencement Ceremony, Thursday May 29, 9am. * The English Department Post-Commencement Ceremony, Thursday May 29, approx. 11:45am (it begins about 15 minutes after the conclusion of the Queens College Commencement Ceremony). *Please note: Summer 2025 students must apply to graduate by April 1 to have their names included in the official Commencement program. ***If you have ANY concerns about your graduation status, please reach out to me directly. What to Expect on Commencement Day: The QC Commencement Ceremony takes place on Thursday, May 29, starting at 9am, on the College Green. This ceremony is attended by all graduating students with their families and guests, with speeches by College and City officials and special guests. It usually runs for about two hours. At this ceremony, students do not walk the stage or have their names called. Students may bring as many guests as they wish but guests must RSVP<https://www.qc.cuny.edu/ce/for-guests/>. Graduation regalia is required to attend the main Commencement ceremony. Immediately following the College ceremony, students may choose to attend their Departmental Post-Commencement Ceremony. Different departmental ceremonies are held all over campus. For English students, ours will be held in the Goldstein Theater, starting at approximately 11:45am, or about 15 minutes after the main ceremony ends. We won’t start the English Department ceremony until the College Commencement is over and everyone has had time to move to the new venue! Students may bring as many guests as they wish, and guests do not have to RSVP. However, we ask that students RSVP here<https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=s_BgbwZfCU6XFZiduozH2DY…>. There will be faculty and student speakers, graduating students may walk the stage, and you will receive an English Department diploma (your official diploma will be mailed to you in late Summer). Graduation regalia is welcome but not required. This ceremony usually lasts less than an hour, and is followed by a light reception. You may opt to attend either the Main Ceremony or the Departmental Ceremony (or both! or neither!). You may prefer to just come to the English ceremony, and you do not have to attend the Main Ceremony to be able to attend the Departmental Ceremony. All are welcome! Congratulations to all our graduating students! Best, Bill

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[EnglishMA] Prizes--Best Conference Paper and Nancy Comley Prize
by William Orchard 12 Mar '25

12 Mar '25

Hello All, Apologies for filling your inboxes with announcements recently, but a lot is going on! First, I write to congratulate the winner of the Best Conference Paper Prize from Monday’s conference: Kaitlynn (Yea Lin) Lee for her paper, “Longing and Belonging: Breaking Boundaries in Bishakh Som’s Spellbound”! Second, I want to alert you to another prize opportunity: the Nancy Comley Prize for Best Graduate Student Essay. This is a prize for students in the MA, MAT, and MSEd programs. If you have a thesis essay or a course paper that you are especially proud of, please submit it for consideration. Those who completed their theses in the fall are also eligible to submit. The deadline is anytime on Friday, March 21. I have attached the flyer for the Comley Prize to this message. It will be awarded at the Honors Ceremony in May. If you have any questions about it, please feel free to contact me or Cliff. Best, Bill 2025 NANCY COMLEY PRIZE for the best essay by a QC English MA, MS Ed, or MAT student Named for the long-standing Chair of the English Department, the Nancy Comley Prize was established in 2012 to honor the best essay written by a graduate student matriculated in the Queens College English MA, MS Ed, or MAT programs. The prize is sponsored by the English Department Alumni Fund. All currently matriculated English MA, MS Ed, and MAT students, as well as master’s students who graduated in Fall 2020, are eligible. Submissions should be 10–25 pages in length, typed, double-spaced, in standard 12-point font, with 1-inch margins and page numbers. They must be carefully proofread and formatted according to current MLA style, including a Works Cited page. The deadline for submissions is Friday, March 21, 2025. All entries must be submitted via email to MAEnglish(a)qc.cuny.edu<mailto:MAEnglish@qc.cuny.edu>. Before submitting your entry, please take careful note of the following instructions: * Essays must be submitted in DOC, DOCX, or PDF formats. * The filename for your essay should read “[CUNYfirst ID number]NancyComleyPrize.” If you don’t know your 8-digit CUNYfirst ID number, please look it up before submitting your essay. * In the body of your email, make sure to include the following information: 1. Your full name 2. Your 8-digit CUNYfirst ID number 3. The title of your essay § Make sure that your name does not appear anywhere in your essay, which will be blind-read by the prize judges, who are faculty members serving on the English Department’s MA Committee. Winners will be contacted by Monday, April 24. Presentation of the award will occur at the department’s Honors Ceremony. Questions about the Nancy Comley Prize should be directed to the Directors of Graduate Studies in English at MAEnglish(a)qc.cuny.edu<mailto:MAEnglish@qc.cuny.edu>.

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[EnglishMA] Thanks, and a Reminder about Summer Registration
by William Orchard 11 Mar '25

11 Mar '25

Thanks to everyone who attended to the Alone Together conference yesterday! It was great to see the amazing work that students in the program are doing and to welcome students from other CUNY campuses. Thanks for helping to make it a success! I’m also writing to remind you that you can pre-register for the summer classes today by emailing us at MAEnglish(a)qc.cuny.edu<mailto:MAEnglish@qc.cuny.edu>. In your email, include the following: * Name * CUNYFirst ID number * Course codes for the classes that you want to register in. Please note that the times for classes has changed slightly. Professor Sirlin’s 4-week class will now begin at 6 pm rather than 6:45 pm. I’ve attached the course descriptions as a pdf file to this message, and I have also pasted them below. Beginning tomorrow, you should be able to register yourself in classes on CUNYfirst for the summer. Best, Bill SUMMER 2025 ENGLISH MA COURSE DESCRIPTIONS Session I (4-week session, June 2 to June 26) English 719. Medieval Epic Literature Online, Asynchronous Prof. Edward Currie Course Code: 6983 The epic is generally taken to be one of the oldest and most venerable genres, a literary form used by ancient cultures to represent their legendary origins and martial achievements. This course, a survey of medieval ‘epics’ (i.e., quasi-epics with epic features and pretensions) from the eighth century to the thirteenth, explores the diversity of forms and purposes that can be found in epic productions of the medieval period and the difficulty of bringing these extremely varied texts under one denominator. Although works within this genre have much in common, they are also diverse enough that it is hard to speak of them as belonging to one tradition. A heroic epic may include narrative elements—varying in number and type—derived from myth, legend, and folklore. The text may center on a single hero, or a group of warriors (e.g. a dynasty), exemplifying virtues we expect in literature of this sort, but also qualities particular to a certain culture and foreign to modern notions of ‘heroism.’ We will read texts composed in medieval England, France, Scandinavia, and Carolingian Germany; namely, Beowulf, The Song of Roland, The Saga of the Volsungs, and The Nibelungenlied. Some of our texts share the ‘same’ heroes and narrative situations, represented very differently according to the purposes of particular authors, the periods when they were composed, and the audiences for whom they were intended. The literature will be read in translation. Students will submit daily responses and write two papers: the first requires close readings of a text; the second is a research paper that involves engagement with scholarship. This online course will be asynchronous. Class discussions will occur on our Brightspace site, where required lectures and other course materials will also be available. English 781. American Women Playwrights MTWTh 6:00 to 7:40 pm, online synchronous Prof. Rhoda Sirlin Course Code: 6926 This special topics course will focus on American women playwrights, some of whom have won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and some who are significant for other reasons. We will explore themes and approaches of these women dramatists and what their plays reveal about American culture. Among the topics considered are the relationship between women writers and their cultural and social backgrounds, conditions affecting women’s literary production, including their struggle for gender parity in the theatre world, the influence of female and male precursors, the impact of race and class, and the continuities and breaks with the dominant literary traditions; additionally, we will explore how contemporary theatre is connected to Greek tragedy and to Ibsen’s realistic social dramas of the 19th century. We will begin with the mother of American drama—Susan Glaspell, writing plays before women could vote—and end the course with the most recent winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama—Eboni Booth. Some of the other women playwrights we will discuss are Lillian Hellman, Lorraine Hansberry, Beth Henley, Marsha Norman, Paula Vogel, Rebecca Gilman, Sarah Ruhl, Quiara Alegria Hudes, Lynn Nottage, and Martyna Majok. Session II (7-week session in June 30-August 18) English 732. Latinx Childhood MW 6:00 to 8:05 pm, online synchronous Prof. William Orchard Course Code: 6927 In the heart-wrenching stories of migrant families torn asunder at the US-Mexico border, the Latinx child has emerged a key figure in contemporary political discourse. Although we are often inclined to think of childhood as a universal experience or a time of innocence, childhood is affected by a host of historical, economic, social, political, and cultural factors. In this class, we will examine the experience of Latinx childhood in three ways. First, we will consider the ways in which Latinx coming of age narratives have to rework the conventions of the bildungsroman in order to account for the roles that race, ethnicity, class, gender, and sexuality play in a Latinx child’s growing understanding of their social roles. Second, we will read recent works in young adult and children’s literature to examine how Latinx childhood is being represented to young readers. Finally, we will consider the various ways in which childhood has been invoked and deployed in contemporary debates in the United States about immigration. Likely text include Sandra Cisneros’s The House on Mango Street, Tomas Rivera’s And the Earth Did Not Devour Him, Justin Torres’s We the Animals, Javier Zamora’s Unaccompanied, and Valeria Luiselli’s Tell Me How It Ends, and the film Coco. English 781. 20th Century Poetry: Modernism to Postmodernism TTh 6:00 to 8:05 pm, online synchronous Prof. James Richie Course Code: 6925 While new work is continually being done to re-examine the claims, terms, and historical contexts for modern poetry, there’s a general critical consensus on what poetic modernism entails and what works may be considered modern. Postmodern poetry, which both emerges and diverges from the tenets of modernism, is another story. Parameters are starting to emerge, but for the most there’s still debate on what counts as postmodern or if there even is (or was) such a thing as a “postmodernism.” This course is going to examine modern and postmodern American poetry with a historicizing lens to understand how poets from the early part of the century developed poetic strategies to account for the feeling of overwhelming, rapid, and unprecedented historical change and how the poets of the mid part of the 20th century drew from and critiqued those strategies to account for their own historical moment. It will also conclude by analyzing a few poets whose work emerged much later in the 20th century (or beginning of the 21st) to think through how these writers may be dealing with their own inherited dual legacy.

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[EnglishMA] Reminder: English MA Conference Today!
by William Orchard 10 Mar '25

10 Mar '25

Dear All, This just a reminder that the English MA Conference, Alone Together, happens today in President’s Conference Room 1 on the fifth floor of Rosenthal Library today. I’ve pasted the program below We hope you’ll join us for some part of the day. Please also feel free to stop by the reception in 6th floor conference room from 6 to 6:45 to grab some pizza and snacks before Edwidge Danticat’s reading in the Writers at Queens Series at 7 pm. Best, Bill ALONE TOGETHER PROGRAM March 10, 2025 Rosenthal Library President’s Conference Room 1 Fifth Floor 1:00 to 2:30 Alone in the City * Chair: Professor Cliff Mak * E. Marvin Brown, “Financial Nihilism— An Action Research Project. Generation Z Grapples Alone Against the Great Inflation and The Bubble of Everything” * Raveena Nabi, “Helga Crane: Trauma in Isolation” * Elle Schwetz, “Tying Strings Together: Increasing Solidarity by Placing Lived Experiences in Dialogue” * Louise Linh Tran, “Chasing Connection, Finding Loneliness” 2:45 to 4:15 The Desire to Connect * Chair: Professor Caroline Hong * Enid Brain, “‘Simply Seen Her’: Transfemme Isolation and Community in Nevada and Glamour Boutique” * Adriana Fischetti, “The Invisible Woman” * Kaitlynn Lee, “Longing and Belonging: Breaking Boundaries in Bishakh Som's Spellbound” * Nina Thomas, “Speculative Spheres: Racial and Sexual Identity in Bishakh Som’s Spellbound” 4:30 to 6:00 Interiors and Confinements * Chair: Professor Sawyer Kemp * Kayla Baur, “Upstairs/ Downstairs” * Boguslaw Mitrega, “Yearning for a Path Not Often Taken: The Politics of Narrative Form in Anuk Arudpragasam’s A Passage North” * Jennifer Olson, “The Dream Life of Comics: Dreams, Rehabilitation, and Art in Asterios Polyp” * Gabrielle Sarrubbo, This Woman’s Work: Guðrun’s Vengeance and Place of Women in the Elder Edda” 6:15 Reception in Klapper Hall, 6th Floor 7:00 Edwidge Danticat Reading and Discussion LeFrak Concert Hall [cid:image001.png@01DB91AC.2A2BD640]

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[EnglishMA] Summer Classes/ Graduate Student Conference
by William Orchard 04 Mar '25

04 Mar '25

Hello All, I’m writing to remind you that the MA student conference, Alone Together, will take place next week on Monday, March 10, 2025, in the President’s Conference Room 1, on the fifth floor of Rosenthal Library from 1 pm to 6 pm. I’ve pasted the program and the conference poster below. (You can also find this information on the conference website<https://alonetogether.commons.gc.cuny.edu/>.) It would be great if you could attend a session or more to support your colleagues who are presenting work. All are welcome to the reception in Klapper that will precede Edwidge Danticat’s reading at 7 pm that day. I’m also sending along the Summer 2025 English MA course descriptions. Registration begins next week on March 12, although students could register early by emailing me on March 11. The descriptions are attached as a pdf and also pasted below, after the conference program. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me or Cliff. Best, Bill ALONE TOGETHER PROGRAM March 10, 2025 1:00 to 2:30 Alone in the City * E. Marvin Brown, “Financial Nihilism— An Action Research Project. Generation Z Grapples Alone Against the Great Inflation and The Bubble of Everything” * Raveena Nabi, “Helga Crane: Trauma in Isolation” * Elle Schwetz, “Tying Strings Together: Increasing Solidarity by Placing Lived Experiences in Dialogue” * Louise Linh Tran, “Chasing Connection, Finding Loneliness” 2:45 to 4:15 The Desire to Connect * Enid Brain, “‘Simply Seen Her’” Transfemme Isolation and Community in Nevada and Glamour Boutique” * Adriana Fischetti, “The Invisible Woman” * Kaitlynn Lee, “Longing and Belonging: Breaking Boundaries in Bishakh Som's Spellbound” * Nina Thomas, “Speculative Spheres: Racial and Sexual Identity in Bishakh Som’s Spellbound” 4:30 to 6:00 Interiors and Confinements * Kayla Baur, “Upstairs/ Downstairs” * Boguslaw Mitrega, “Yearning for a Path Not Often Taken: The Politics of Narrative Form in Anuk Arudpragasam’s A Passage North” * Jennifer Olson, “The Dream Life of Comics: Dreams, Rehabilitation, and Art in Asterios Polyp” * Gabrielle Sarrubbo, This Woman’s Work: Guðrun’s Vengeance and Place of Women in the Elder Edda” 6:15 to 6:45 Reception in Klapper Hall, 6th Floor 7:00 Edwidge Danticat Reading and Discussion LeFrak Hall [cid:image001.png@01DB8CD7.12EE5C70] SUMMER 2025 ENGLISH MA COURSE DESCRIPTIONS Session I (4-week session, June 2 to June 26) English 719. Medieval Epic Literature Online, Asynchronous Prof. Edward Currie Course Code: 6983 The epic is generally taken to be one of the oldest and most venerable genres, a literary form used by ancient cultures to represent their legendary origins and martial achievements. This course, a survey of medieval ‘epics’ (i.e., quasi-epics with epic features and pretensions) from the eighth century to the thirteenth, explores the diversity of forms and purposes that can be found in epic productions of the medieval period and the difficulty of bringing these extremely varied texts under one denominator. Although works within this genre have much in common, they are also diverse enough that it is hard to speak of them as belonging to one tradition. A heroic epic may include narrative elements—varying in number and type—derived from myth, legend, and folklore. The text may center on a single hero, or a group of warriors (e.g. a dynasty), exemplifying virtues we expect in literature of this sort, but also qualities particular to a certain culture and foreign to modern notions of ‘heroism.’ We will read texts composed in medieval England, France, Scandinavia, and Carolingian Germany; namely, Beowulf, The Song of Roland, The Saga of the Volsungs, and The Nibelungenlied. Some of our texts share the ‘same’ heroes and narrative situations, represented very differently according to the purposes of particular authors, the periods when they were composed, and the audiences for whom they were intended. The literature will be read in translation. Students will submit daily responses and write two papers: the first requires close readings of a text; the second is a research paper that involves engagement with scholarship. This online course will be asynchronous. Class discussions will occur on our Brightspace site, where required lectures and other course materials will also be available. English 781. American Women Playwrights MTWTh 6:45 to 8:25 pm, online synchronous Prof. Rhoda Sirlin Course Code: 6926 This special topics course will focus on American women playwrights, some of whom have won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and some who are significant for other reasons. We will explore themes and approaches of these women dramatists and what their plays reveal about American culture. Among the topics considered are the relationship between women writers and their cultural and social backgrounds, conditions affecting women’s literary production, including their struggle for gender parity in the theatre world, the influence of female and male precursors, the impact of race and class, and the continuities and breaks with the dominant literary traditions; additionally, we will explore how contemporary theatre is connected to Greek tragedy and to Ibsen’s realistic social dramas of the 19th century. We will begin with the mother of American drama—Susan Glaspell, writing plays before women could vote—and end the course with the most recent winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama—Eboni Booth. Some of the other women playwrights we will discuss are Lillian Hellman, Lorraine Hansberry, Beth Henley, Marsha Norman, Paula Vogel, Rebecca Gilman, Sarah Ruhl, Quiara Alegria Hudes, Lynn Nottage, and Martyna Majok. Session II (7-week session in June 30-August 18) English 732. Latinx Childhood MW 6:00 to 8:05 pm, online synchronous Prof. William Orchard Course Code: 6927 In the heart-wrenching stories of migrant families torn asunder at the US-Mexico border, the Latinx child has emerged a key figure in contemporary political discourse. Although we are often inclined to think of childhood as a universal experience or a time of innocence, childhood is affected by a host of historical, economic, social, political, and cultural factors. In this class, we will examine the experience of Latinx childhood in three ways. First, we will consider the ways in which Latinx coming of age narratives have to rework the conventions of the bildungsroman in order to account for the roles that race, ethnicity, class, gender, and sexuality play in a Latinx child’s growing understanding of their social roles. Second, we will read recent works in young adult and children’s literature to examine how Latinx childhood is being represented to young readers. Finally, we will consider the various ways in which childhood has been invoked and deployed in contemporary debates in the United States about immigration. Likely text include Sandra Cisneros’s The House on Mango Street, Tomas Rivera’s And the Earth Did Not Devour Him, Justin Torres’s We the Animals, Javier Zamora’s Unaccompanied, and Valeria Luiselli’s Tell Me How It Ends, and the film Coco. English 781. 20th Century Poetry: Modernism to Postmodernism TTh 6:00 to 8:05 pm, online synchronous Prof. James Richie Course Code: 6925 While new work is continually being done to re-examine the claims, terms, and historical contexts for modern poetry, there’s a general critical consensus on what poetic modernism entails and what works may be considered modern. Postmodern poetry, which both emerges and diverges from the tenets of modernism, is another story. Parameters are starting to emerge, but for the most there’s still debate on what counts as postmodern or if there even is (or was) such a thing as a “postmodernism.” This course is going to examine modern and postmodern American poetry with a historicizing lens to understand how poets from the early part of the century developed poetic strategies to account for the feeling of overwhelming, rapid, and unprecedented historical change and how the poets of the mid part of the 20th century drew from and critiqued those strategies to account for their own historical moment. It will also conclude by analyzing a few poets whose work emerged much later in the 20th century (or beginning of the 21st) to think through how these writers may be dealing with their own inherited dual legacy.

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