ENGL 1780 - Recently-Arrived Contemporary Immigrant Literature

3 Credits

Some of the most compelling contemporary American literature has been written by first and second-generation immigrants to the United States. This course will cover a number of works that explore the difficult process of cultural adjustment for writers of various racial and ethnic groups. The course will cover the larger narrative of coming to America but also focus on particular literary, socio-cultural and historical issues. Students will discover how language and narrative strategies are employed by writers to create the stories of their lives: intergenerational conflicts, difficulties tied to language, and the formation and re-formation of racial and ethnic identities as writers confront the demands of a new country and life. Immigration and naturalization laws at various moments in US history and how those laws have influenced contemporary literature will be discussed. 3C/3/0/0

Prerequisite(s): ENGL 1711 Composition 1 with a grade of “C” or better.

Minnesota Transfer Curriculum (MnTC) Goal Area(s): Goals 6 & 7