ENGL 62.04 Trauma and Enjoyment in Early American Literature

Trauma is omnipresent today, but so is confusion about its signs, symptomatology, and long-term effects. Is trauma an event, a process, or a condition of being? Is sex or power more predominant in human relations? Why do we put ourselves in harm’s way despite our better intentions? Are life’s worst experiences always immitigable injustices, or are they potentially transformative? Early American literature might seem an unlikely guide here, but the distinction between violence and pleasurable excitation was crucial to the way American settlers encountered natives, how slavery became a definitive moral issue, and how literary history evolved from cautionary narratives of seduction to intensified engagements with reality. This dual survey course examines classic works of American literature from the first encounter to the Civil War, alongside pivotal works in trauma theory.

Instructor

Not being offered in 2022-23

Degree Requirement Attributes

Dist:LIT; WCult:W

The Timetable of Class Meetings contains the most up-to-date information about a course. It includes not only the meeting time and instructor, but also its official distributive and/or world culture designation. This information supersedes any information you may see elsewhere, to include what may appear in this ORC/Catalog or on a department/program website. Note that course attributes may change term to term therefore those in effect are those (only) during the term in which you enroll in the course.

Department-Specific Course Categories

Junior Colloquium: Course Group II