LIT 354/554 Literature and Immigration
Sabancı University, Fall 2007
Wednesdays, 9:40-12:30 in FASS 1080
Instructor: Annedith (Aninne) Schneider
schneider@sabanciuniv.edu
Office Hours: Wednesdays 13:40-15:30 and by appointment
tel. 9244
FASS 1025
Immigration has received much attention in the last century, usually as a “problem” or a “question”
for the host country. The general term immigration is often used to talk about political exiles,
economic refugees and internal migrants, as well as those who fit the classic picture of an individual
or family moving permanently to a new home country. This course will look at literary works by
writers who have been classified as "immigrants" to the country from which they write. While the
course will take into account the linguistic, political and cultural issues these authors consider, it will
also consider how the writers themselves have embraced or rejected the designation of "immigrant"
and what is at stake in such a decision. This semester we will spend seven weeks focusing on France,
while other weeks will provide a comparative perspective by looking at writers in the U.S., Germany
and Turkey.
26 Sept.
Introduction
Benaat Chicago: Growing Up Arab and Female in Chicago (HQ1170.B46 video)
3 Oct.
Faiza Guene, Just Like Tomorrow (1-112)
Donald L. Horowitz, “Immigration and Group Relations in France and America,”
Immigrants in Two Democracies: French and American Experience
10 Oct.
*Faiza Guene, Just Like Tomorrow (113-224)
Gerard Noiriel, “The Card and the Code,” The French Melting Pot: Immigration,
Citizenship, and National Identity
17 Oct.
Film: La Haine (Hate), Mathieu Kassovitz
film: Inch’allah Dimanche, Yamina Benguigui
Alec Hargreaves and Mark McKinney, “The Post-colonial Problematic in
Contemporary France,” Post-Colonial Cultures in France
24 Oct.
*Julia Kristeva, Strangers to Ourselves (ch. 1, 5, 8)
film: Dirty Pretty Things
31 Oct.
Eva Hoffman, Lost in Translation: Life in a New Language (“Exile,” 99-164)
Additional reading to be announced.
7 Nov.
*Hoffmann, Lost in Translation (“The New World,”167-280)
Additional reading to be announced.
9 Nov.
MIDTERM PAPER DUE (optional first drafts are due 2 Nov.)
14 Nov.:
FALL BREAK
21 Nov.
Leila Sebbar, Silence on the Shores (3-51)
Tahar Ben Jelloun, French Hospitality (ch. 1, 6)
28 Nov.
*Leila Sebbar, Silence on the Shores (51-79; introduction)
Edward Said, “Intellectual Exile: Expatriates and Marginals”
5 Dec.
Emine Sevgi Özdamar, Mother Tongue (1-57)
Leslie Adelson, “The Turkish Turn in Contemporary German Literature and Memory
Work”
12 Dec.
*Emine Sevgi Özdamar, Mother Tongue (59-157)
19 Dec.
KURBAN BAYRAMI – NO CLASS
26 Dec.
*film: Duvarlar/Mauern/Walls, Can Candan
Senocak, Zafer. Atlas of a Tropical Germany: Essays on Politics and Culture 19901998. (selections)
2 Jan.
Yilmaz Karahan, selected poems
Other contemporary young Turco-French writers
9 Jan.
Final Paper Workshop
Conclusions
Assessment
Paper 1 (5-7 pages; ): 30%
Paper 2 (5-7 pages; graduate students, 10-15 pp.): 35%
Discussion prompts (you must complete 4 of 6): 20%
Attendance and participation: 15%
An additional “bonus” 5% may be earned by doing a presentation or an additional discussion prompt.
Graduate students are expected to carry out original research toward the completion of a research
paper based on primary and secondary materials.They may also be required to complete additional
reading.
Course Details
The study of literature is a work of interpretation, analysis and argument, not of right and wrong
answers. That does not mean that anything goes. There are good arguments and there are bad
arguments. Arguments and analysis founded on close attention to the context and language of the text
will generally be more convincing than those that are not. Given that we are interested in testing out
interpretations and looking for stronger and better founded arguments in this class, discussion is
essential. While a lecture may provide you with a new way of considering a text, it does not allow you
to test your own arguments. This goal of helping you develop your own arguments determines the
structure and requirements of the course.
Participation:
This is a seminar, which requires active listening and speaking by everyone involved. You must come
to class having completed the reading and be ready to discuss it. Students are expected to listen and
respond to each other, not only to the instructor. You do not need to raise your hand, but you should
observe the usual etiquette for speaking in groups, i.e. listen to each other and respond to other’s
comments. If you want to raise a new point or change the direction of discussion, say so; don’t just
ignore the person who spoke before you.
Of course, some people are more vocal in class than others, but it is what you say, not how much you
talk that is important. I will consider the quality of your contributions and how well you listen to
others. It goes without saying that you cannot participate if you are not present. More than three
unexcused absences will result in a lower grade.
Discussion prompts/response papers:
This is informal writing which is intended to further two goals of the course. First, it should provide a
good jumping-off place for discussion, and second, it should help you personally to develop your
arguments. Think of these assignments as a low-risk way to try out ideas before you have to write a
formal paper. The more thought you put into them, the more you will get out of them.
There will be six of these short assignments, but you are required to complete only four of them (your
choice of which four). Each one should take no more than 30 minutes to 1 hour to complete. They
must be written and posted to webct 24 hours before class (required weeks are marked with an
asterisk), so that everyone in the class has a chance to read them. They are informal writing, and I will
not grade them in terms of organization, thesis, or language. But I will be looking for a genuine
response to (not a summary of!) the text. Think of what kinds of comments are likely to spark
discussion. On each response you will receive either an S (satisfactory) or a U (unsatisfactory). A
satisfactory response may not be stylistically or grammatically perfect, but it will show a definite
engagement with the text. It will ask questions, point out difficulties or confusions, and/or discuss
what the text does well.
Work that looks rushed, careless or contains factual inaccuracies will not be considered satisfactory -or will a simple summary of the text. Because these are intended to enhance class discussion, you will
receive no credit if they are turned in late.
You should plan to read the responses of other people in the class, as well, so that you can think ahead
of time about how you might want to respond to them in class.
Presentations (optional):
The course readings focus on experiences of immigration in particular times and places. In order to
keep ourselves aware of the larger picture of immigration in the world today, you may prepare a 10minute presentation on some aspect of “current events” in immigration. Examples for presentations
might include EU immigration policy, the situation of immigrants in a particular country, immigrant
rights’ movements, refugees or another topic to be approved by the instructor. These are intended to
provide you with an opportunity to follow up on something that interests you and to share that
information with others in the class. You will need to provide a list of at least three references related
to your presentation and write a few sentences for each one in which you evaluate its usefulness.
Grading:
No one is perfect all of the time, and this is especially true when we are working in a language that is
not our first language! I’m more interested in your participation throughout the semester than your
performance on two papers. Even if you cannot write flawless formal papers, you may still learn from
and contribute much to class. 65% of your grade will be based on formal writing. Turning up for
every class (think of it as your job) will go a good way towards guaranteeing the participation part of
your grade (15%). All discussion prompts will be graded on an S/U basis (20%).
A Note Regarding Plagiarism
I encourage you to work together to understand a text, discuss ideas for a written assignment or
prepare for a presentation. BUT when it comes time to put pen to paper or to start tapping away at the
keyboard, the work must be your own. Similarly, it is in your own interest not to show your finished
written work to anyone until it has been graded. If you use someone else’s words or ideas (whether
the ideas of your friend, something on the internet or something you read outside of class), you must
give them credit. In other words, you must give references for any ideas or words you include that are
not your own. If you do not, it is intellectual theft, otherwise known as plagiarism. Depending on the
severity of any plagiarism detected, it may result in an F for the assignment and/or for the course.