Instructor: Joshua Miller, LSA English Literature
Partner: Catherine Rotenberg, Ben Gurion University, Beersheba, Israel
Term: Fall 2015
Many scholars of North American literatures teach immigrant novels with perspectives and emphases that vary from those of U.S. faculty. As international peers, students explore the historical context of both the immigrant’s country of origin and of the U.S. as a site of arrival to develop nuanced and sensitive understandings of immigration/migration/refugeeism issues. Students also explore complex literary representations of this genre, often written to mutually exclusive audiences of insider and outsider readers, theories of diasporic identity and translation. Common readings, student-led presentations of topics and discussion with faculty facilitating bi-directional exchange in English. Thoughtful plans for structuring the exchanges in class to allow for broad participation and include debrief after each session. Potential to include two U-M graduate students working on dissertations in this area.