In 1900, the British Empire spanned the globe, encompassing tremendous swaths of North America, the Caribbean, Asia, Africa, and the South Pacific. A century later, all that remained were a few tiny chunks of rock, scattered across the most remote corners of the world’s oceans. In place of the empire were dozens of new nations—and dozens of new literatures belonging to them. This class will study several of those literatures, along with the histories and cultures of the countries that gave birth to them. Special attention will be paid to the legacy of Empire: the complex relationship between colonizer and colonized; the role of the English language and British culture in the former colonies; questions of national identity and belonging.

My primary goal for the course is that you expand your knowledge of literatures from countries other than Britain and America, as well as developing your awareness of the ideas and issues driving critical conversations about postcolonial literature and theory. In a more general sense, I also expect you to increase your expertise in the fundamentals of literary criticism: close textual readings, articulate discussion, and even more articulate written analysis. And, as always, I simply hope that we all enjoy reading, and discussing our ideas, together.

You may expect the syllabus to be somewhat fluid, as snow days, illness, protracted discussion, etc. may derail us. I’ll make every effort to keep this site up to date, as well as to announce any changes in class and over e-mail. It’s up to you to check your e-mail, and I do expect you to do so regularly (at least every other day). That’s my only real way of getting in touch with you outside of class, and I do use it fairly frequently.

Written work is due at the beginning of class, and you must be present to submit work. You may turn in hard copies of your prep papers, but if you do so, please also submit them as Word attachments over e-mail; your term paper (both draft and final) should simply be submitted electronically. For more information on papers, see my on-line FAQs. No make-ups are permitted for prep papers missed due to absence; on the other hand, you may skip any three weeks you choose, or drop your weakest paper from your overall grade.

I take plagiarism extremely seriously. Intellectual theft robs the original author of his or her work; you of the learning you’re supposed to be here for; your classmates of the chance to have their work evaluated on a level playing field; and me of a tremendous amount of time and energy. Read the section on academic honesty in the student handbook, and familiarize yourself with its provisions. A failing grade for the semester is the minimum penalty for plagiarism in this course.

If you have any questions or concerns—whether they be about texts, course procedure, or whatever—please bring them up in class, or talk (or e-mail) to me personally. As a general rule, I strongly encourage any form of communication. If you think the reading is going too fast, or too slow; if you’re uncomfortable with the dynamic in the classroom; if you’re unclear on my expectations for an assignment—please let me know. If I don’t know you have a problem, I can’t try to fix it. And on a more positive note, if you’re really excited about a book, or idea, and want to talk about it outside of class, please stop in! After all, I wouldn’t be teaching this class if I didn’t want to talk about the books…