Concentrates in alternate years on either prose or poetry of the Pacific Northwest. Prose works examine early exploration, conflicts of native and settlement cultures, various social and economic conflicts. Pacific Northwest poetry includes consideration of its sources, formative influences, and emergence into national prominence.
Contemporary poets, authors and short fiction writers who are from the Northern Coast and Pacific Northwest. This is a "Northwest" that will for our purposes include Alaska, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. Starting with the oral traditions of these writers and their communities, the class addresses the transition made between oral storytelling and the work of contemporary authors, some whose work is nationally and internationally known (Formerly AIS 377: A Northwest Focus).