Arab American Literature and Culture - Single View

This class will study the history and cultural work of Arab Americans in the U.S. Scholars have frequently pointed out that Arab American literature and culture is consistently marked both by the community’s various struggles and achievements in the U.S. and by and the historical, cultural, and political events of the Arab World, precluding a view of Arab American literature and culture as simply a contribution to an American multicultural canon. Writing in this context, Arab Americans have created models of identity and political allegiance crucial to our theorizing of postcolonialism, (trans)nationalism, and diaspora. We will study Arab American poetry, short stories, novels, and theoretical writing, including works by William Peter Blatty, Edward Said, Joseph Geha, Gregory Orfalea, Lisa Suhair Majaj, Diana Abu-Jaber, Naomi Shihab Nye, Suheir Hammad, and Mohja Kahf.

Please obtain the following books:

Diana Abu-Jaber, Crescent

Naomi Shihab Nye, 19 Varieties of Gazelle

Mohja Kahf, The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf

Additional material will be made available on moodle

Short paper or presentation (depending on class size)

Additional credits: research paper