Black Earth: Nature and African-American Writing

Description

Writing about nature - whether from the tradition of the sublime or as an expression of American potentiality or from the perspective of eco-criticism - has excluded considerations of the contributions of African-Americans. What concepts of nature and one's interaction with nature that survived the Middle Passage, the relationship of slavery, migration, and rural and urban life, as well as contemporary appraisals of the environment, will be among the topics considered. In particular, through literary works - whether essays, novels, or poems - environmental concerns and approaches to nature are addressed. The course proposes there is a decided and profound tradition within the African-American community of addressing nature that both parallels and is quite distinct from European traditions. Secondly, the course proposes to examine the conjunction of discrimination and environmental degradation, that the bifurcation of humans from nature is intrinsically linked to social injustice and inequality. (McCorkle, alternate years relative to AFS 230)