Cultural Studies is a diverse field of study that encompasses a plethora of approaches, methods and vantage points of inquiry. Since this arena is relatively difficult to define, this course aims to outline the main tenets and major movements of Cultural Studies as it applies to everyday practices and rituals. The course will consider American, British, and South Asian forms of Cultural Studies while also looking at the main critics and criticisms of the discipline to get an introduction into the field. After a framework is set in place, the class will specifically examine race and power relations in terms of the cultural perspective by looking at some fiction in the form of short novels and short stories. How might one consider race and stereotypes from the cultural perspective? This approach will help students think through the uses of cultural studies and its place in English literary studies.

We will be looking at artifacts and texts from critical theory, fiction, film, and visual imagery. We may be reading selections from: Stuart Hall, Edward Said, Benedict Anderson, Raymond Williams, Ashis Nandy, Homi Bhabha and others. Some of these reading material includes: A reader coursepack, selections from The Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri, Things Fall Apart by Achebe, Animal Farm by Orwell, and others. Additionally, we will be looking a number of films and TV programs which may include: Disney films, A Passage to India, The DiVinci Code, House M.D. and 24.

Students will be responsible for active in-class participation, group presentations, reading quizzes, short paper responses and a long paper. This is not a lecture class and my hope is that students will engage with the material by speaking up in class and contributing ideas. The writing assignments will be in a variety of formats including close readings and annotated bibliographies. Since this is a W-credit course, students will be expected to engage in revision of their assignments (10-15 pgs) and practice the craft of writing.