Teaching Contemporary American Literature and Culture
SPRING 2016
Course: ANL1813MA / ANL1050MA
Time and place: Friday 12-13:40, Room 111, Main Building
Instructors: Dr. Lenke Németh (lenke.nemeth@arts.unideb.hu) – Room 118
Dr. Ágnes Tóth (agnestoth.drmail.com) - Room 108/1
Office hours: Dr. Lenke Németh: Wed 12.00 – 13.00 and Thu 10.00 -11.00 Room 118
Dr. Ágnes Tóth - Friday 13.45-14.30, Room 108/1
Course Description:
This seminar is designed to provide students with an up-to-date view on American culture, society,
myths and values as they are reflected (and sometimes challenged) in literature and everyday life.
The course is divided into two sections, one focusing on American literature, the other on American
civilization. Both parts examine the roots of contemporary American culture and the different
responses to the changing cultural, political and social landscape. Another goal of the course is to
offer various methods, practical advice and materials for students (high school teachers) for the
teaching of American culture and literature in Hungarian high schools.
The final grade for the course will be a cumulative one comprising the results of the civilization and
literature sections.
American Literature
The literary content of this multigenre course is designed to study how the American national
identity is constructed and (re)conceptualized as treated in representative works selected from post-
World War II American literature extending to the first decade of the 21st century. The course will
seek to address factors—both ideological and socio-political such as American myths, immigration,
multiculturalism, and transnationalism—that affect, shape, and challenge the ever-changing
concept of “Americanness. Accordingly, authors selected for the course include African American,
Asian American, Mexican American, and Native American voices.
As regards the methodological content of the course, it will provide theoretical background and
practical considerations for the integration of literary works into language teaching. Much emphasis
will be placed on developing an awareness of the linguistic and stylistic features of the literary texts
in order to encourage students’ individual interpretation through a process of exploration of
meaning.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS and EVALUATION CRITERIA
Attendance and active participation in class discussions. 20%
Occasional quizzes: they test your familiarity with the assigned literary works. 10 %
Project work: in teams of 3-4 you are required to present theoretical and/or practical issues
pertaining to the integration of literature in language teaching. Details of the project will be
discussed during orientation. 30%
In-class endterm paper: it will assess your familiarity with the material—both theoretical and
practical—covered during the semester. 40%
American Civilization
In this section of the course, we will discuss various aspects of American life, providing an
opportunity for the analysis of American politics, society, ethnicity, regional and national identity
and other topical issues (to prepare students for their final exam (szakmai zárószigorlat)). In order to
meet the methodological goals of the course, resources and tools for the teaching of American
civilization (textbooks, movies, internet resources, realia, etc.) will be presented and discussed,
alongside possible activities aimed at teaching culture and developing different skills as well (how to
set up a debate, presentations, extra-curricular activities, etc.). Each class will be divided into two
parts, one devoted to the discussion of teaching methods, resources, and practical issues, while the
other will involve the study of various topics in the field of American civilization.
Evaluation: Class participation 30%; Project work 30 %; End-term: 40%;
The details of the assignments will be discussed during orientation.
Schedule of classes and topics
Week 1 (February 19) – Orientation
Week 2 (February 26) – AFRICAN AMERICAN IDENTITY
Alice Walker, “Everyday Use” (E) (1973),
Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000), “We Real Cool”
Week 3 (March 4) – CHICANO/A IDENTITY
Sandra Cisneros (1954-), The House on Mango Street (1983)
Gary Soto (1952-), “Mexicans Begin Jogging”
Week 4 (March 11) – ASIAN-AMERICAN IDENTITY
Bharati Mukharjee, “A Wife’s Story” (1988)
Cathy Song (1955-), “Picture Bride”
Week 5 (March 18) – NATIVE AMERICAN IDENTITY
Sherman Alexie, “Every Little Hurricane” (E) (1993)
"This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona" (1993) (E)
Excerpts from the movie Smoke Signals, dir. Chis Eyre, 1998
Week 6 (March 25) – The American System of Government (Constitution, Political Parties, Elections)
Week 7 (Apr 1) – CONSULTATION WEEK
Week 8 (Apr 8) – Regeneration through violence? – The right to bear arms vs. death sentence
Week 9 (April 15) – Icons, symbols, myths – Belief systems in the USA
Week 10 (April 22) – The Hungarian slice of the American pie – famous Hungarians in America
Week 11 (Apr 29) – From John Smith to Luke Skywalker - Exporting American (pop-)culture
Week 12 (May 6) – End-term
Readings
American Civilization:
- Handouts and some of the readings will be provided by the teacher, or will be available online.
Texts to be consulted (all available in the Institute library):
AN352 Course Packet: American Culture and Institutions
Advanced American Civilization Course Reader
Bigsby, Christopher, ed. The Cambridge Companion to Modern American Culture. Cambridge: CUP,
2006.
Fiedler, Eckhard, et al. America in Close-Up. Harlow: Longman, 2001.
Joyce, Davis D. and Tibor Glant. United States History: A Brief History for Hungarian Students. 7th
rev. ed. (Debrecen: Debrecen University Press, 2010).
Kearny, E. et al. The American Way. An Introduction to American Culture. London: Prentice-Hall,
1984.
Luedtke, Luther S., ed. Making America: The Society and Culture of the United States. Washington,
D.C.: USIA, 1995.
Mauk, David and John Oakland. American Civilization: An Introduction. 5th ed. New York:
Routledge, 2009.
American Literature
Required Texts
1. AN 306 Course Packet: American Literature After World War Two and AN 35104 Course
Packet: American Poetry from 1945 to the Present.
2. Fiction and short fiction are available in the Institute library either in book format or
electronically (texts marked with E in the syllabus).
3. Texts for project work are available electronically in the Institute library.
Texts for Project work:
Brumfit, Christopher, “English Literature and English Language.” Brumfit and Carter 3-14.
Brumfit, Christopher. “English Literature and English Language.” Brumfit and Carter 14-21.
Maley, Alan. “That’s For your Poetry Book!” Carter and McRae, 101-114.
McRae, John. “Representational Language Learning:From Language Awareness to Text Awareness.”
Carter and McRae, 16-40.
Kramsch, Claire. “Teaching Poetry.” 156-76.
Long, Michael N., “A Feeling for Language: The Multiple Values of Teaching Literature.” Brumfit and
Carter, 42-58.
A Selection of Readings on Integrating Literature into the Language Classroom
Brumfit, C.J. and Ronald Carter, eds. Literature and Language Teaching. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1986.
Carter, Ronald adn John McRae, eds. Language, Literature & the Learner: Creative Classroom
Practice. London: Longman, 1996.
Collie, Joanne and Stephen Slater. Literature in the Language Classroom. Cambridge: CUP, 1987.
Kramsch, Claire. Context and Culture in Language Teaching. Oxford: OUP, 1993.
Lazar, Gillian. Literature and Language Teaching: A Guide for Teachers and Trainers. Cambridge:
CUP, 1993.
Maley, Alan and Alan Duff. Drama Techniques: A Resource Book of Communication Activities for
Language Teachers. Cambridge: CUP, 2005.
Widdowson, H. G. Practical Stylistics. Oxford: OUP, 1992.
Books Recommended
Abádi-Nagy Zoltán. Válság és komikum: A hatvanas évek amerikai regénye. Budapest:
Magvető, 1982.
---. Mai amerikai regénykalauz, 1970-1990. Budapest: Intera, 1995.
Anzaldúa, Gloria. La Frontera/Borderlands: The New Mestiza. San Francisco: Aunt Lute P, 1987.
Bercovitch, Sacvan, ed. The Cambridge History of American Literature. Vol. 7: Prose
Writing, 1940-1990 and vol. 8. Poetry and Criticism, 1940-1995. Ed. Cyrus R. K.
Patell. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1996.
Bloom, Harold, ed. Contemporary Poets. New York: Chelsea House, 1986.
Bollobás, Enikő. Az amerikai irodalom története. Budapest: Osiris, 2005.
Brumfit, C.J. and Ronald Carter, eds. Literature and Language Teaching. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1986.
Bradbury, Malcolm, and Richard Ruland. From Puritanism to Postmodernism: A History
of American Literature. New York: Penguin, 1991.
Carter, Ronald and John McRae, eds. Language, Literature & the Learner: Creative Classroom
Practice. London: Longman, 1996.
Elliott, Emory, gen. ed. Columbia Literary History of the United States. New York:
Columbia UP, 1988.
---. Columbia History of the American Novel. New York: Columbia UP, 1991.
Huerta, Jorge. Chicano Drama: Performance, Society and Myth. Cambridge Studies
in American Theatre and Drama 12. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2000.
Fisher, Dexter, ed. The Third Woman: Minority Women Writers of the United States. Boston: Houghton,
1980.
Kramsch, Claire. Context and Culture in Language Teaching. Oxford: OUP, 1993.
López-Lozano, Miguel. Utopian Dreams, Apocalyptic Nightmares: Globalization in Recent Mexican
and Chicano Narrative. West Lafayette, IN: Purdue UP, 2008.
Manzanas, Ana Maria, ed. Border Transits: Literature and Culture Across the Line. Critical
Approaches to Ethnic American Literature,. Amsterdam, Rodopi, 2007.
Országh, László és Virágos Zsolt. Az amerikai irodalom története. Budapest, Eötvös József, 1997.
Virágos, Zsolt. A négerség és az amerikai irodalom. Budapest: Akadémiai, 1975.
Weaver, Gordon, ed. The American Short Story, 1945-1980: A Critical History. Hall:
Twayne, 1983.
A Selection of Scholarly Studies Recommended for Consultation
Carbonell, Ana María. “From Llorona to Gritona: Coatlicue in Feminist Tales by Viramontes and
Cisneros.” MELUS 24.2.(1999):19-29.
Davies, G. Roco. “Have Come. Are Here: Reading Filipino/a American Literature.” MELUS 29.1 (2004):
5-18.
Doyle, Jacquelyn. “More Room of her Own: Sandra Cisneros’s The House on Mango Street.” MELUS
19.4 (1994): 5-35.
Ellis, Trey. “The New Black Aesthetic.” Callalo 38 (1989): 233-43.
Ganz, Robin. “Sandra Cisneros: Border Crossings and Beyond.” MELUS 19.1 (1994):19-29.
Nubla, Gladys. “Filipino American Literature.” MELUS 29.1 (2004):199-218.
WEBSITES
Deresiewicz, William, “Fukú Americanus.” Review of the Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, by Junot
Diaz. The Nation, 8, November, 2007.
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20071126/dereiewicz
Lim, Shirley, “Asian American Literature: Leaving the Mosaic.” Electric Journal of the Department of
State, 5.1. 2000.
http://usinfo.state.gov/journals/itsv/0200/ijse/toc.htm
Lowe, John, “Multicultural Literature in the United States: Advent and Process.” Electric Journal of the
Department of State, 5.1, 2000.
http://usinfo.state.gov/journals/itsv/0200/ijse/toc.htm
Vertovec, Steve, “Conceiving and Researching Transnationalism.” Ethnic and Racial Studies, 22.2,
1999.
http:// transcomm.ox.ac.uk/working%20papers/conceiving.PDF
Borderlands e-journal
http://www.borderlands.net.au/issues