Beyond the Border: The Politics of Place in Contemporary North American Literature and Culture (EASM153)

30 credits

Motivated by recent transnational and hemispheric approaches to the study of U.S. and Canadian literature, this module examines the politics of space and place in North American literature and culture since 1970.  Organised loosely around spaces such as “the wilderness,” “the frontier,” “the border,” “the prairie,” “the city” and “the suburb,” the module will introduce students to the range and diversity of contemporary writing and film that have emerged from Canada and the U.S.  Students will read literature in a range of forms: novels, poetry, essays, and short stories. They will also examine the work of both established (Munro and McCarthy) and less well-known writers and watch films, engage with screen culture and consider the adaptation of literary texts into film.