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American Literature and the Mid-Twentieth Century - ENGL373

This unit examines examples of American literature produced during the middle of the twentieth century, focusing on texts which embody the key social and historical developments of the period including notions of consumerism, the domestic ideal, suburban expansion and racial and gender tensions. Students will consider texts by prominent American writers of the period including Richard Yates, Mary McCarthy, Ralph Ellison, Sylvia Plath, Frank O’Hara and Jack Kerouac, and will ask questions about the engagement of these texts with their unique mid century context. Particular attention will be paid to the ways in which these texts shaped the literary forms of their era and contributed to the cultural upheaval of their time, conforming to and subverting ideas about family, country, gender and every day life.

Credit Points: 3
When Offered:

2019 - Next offered in 2019

Staff Contact(s): English staff
Prerequisites:

6cp in ENGL units at 200 level Prerequisite Information

Corequisites:

NCCW(s):
Unit Designation(s):
Unit Type:
Assessed As: Graded
Offered By:

Department of English

Faculty of Arts

Course structures, including unit offerings, are subject to change.
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