Faces and Spaces of the U.S.

From the American Dream, to multifaceted crises, from the border, through airports and hotels to NYC and L.A. – the U.S. showcases a plethora of faces and encompasses multiple spaces and non-places. The purpose of this seminar is to discover all these aspects on the basis of contemporary literary texts and cultural productions. Continuing in the tradition of previous seminars, “Will the real America please stand up?” and “From Sea to Shining Sea:” Varieties of American Experience in Contemporary American Literature and  Culture” we are going to analyze literary texts and cultural productions in the context of political, social, and cultural transformations of the U.S. This way the course will present and analyze key issues important for the contemporary American society as reflected in literature, film et al. Literary texts will be complemented by a brief lead-in part and/or a film/clip depicting a particular problem.

The second part of the seminar will be devoted to students’ BA projects. Therefore, our classes will also cover the key issues related to the writing of a BA thesis, where students will be allowed to venture into any area of contemporary American literature/culture they find of interest, as long as it provides sufficient material for their theses. The credit is given on the basis of students’ performance in the class (including both attendance and participation), presentations, and grades for additional assignments (e.g. a semester paper). Apart from that, students have to meet deadlines related to the submission of their theses (i.e. outlines, drafts, chapters, etc.). READING the assigned material is a requirement of the course. No AI’s papers/essays/works allowed.