This quarter we will examine representations of education in prose fiction. We will consider in particular why writers choose to make arguments about education in the form of the novel. The texts we read span the twentieth century and enter into conversations about nation building, identity formation, literacy, and assimilation in the U.S. school system. How do authors use the form of the novel to make arguments about education in the U.S.? How does fiction participate in wider cultural conversations about education and national identity? To think through these questions, course reading will include essays and newspaper articles about the educational system in the U.S. (including Seattle) alongside fictional texts. Assignments and class time will be used to practice close reading skills as a way to interpret both fictional and nonfictional texts. Primary authors might include W.E.B. DuBois, Anzia Yezierska, Nella Larsen, Americo Paredes, Gloria Anzaldua, R. Zamora Linmark, Paul Beatty, and Jesmyn Ward.

This class offers a “W” credit requiring 10-15 pages of graded writing over the quarter. Students will likely be asked to write two
shorter papers and one longer paper to meet this requirement.