English: Race & Crime (A)

About ENGL 3100 A

Advanced study in literary genres, forms, and themes. Representative topics: Noir in Fiction and Film; Great American Race Novel; Post-Apocalyptic Fiction. May be repeated for credit with different content. Topics vary by offering; periodic offering at intervals that may exceed four years. Credit not awarded for both ENGL 3100 and ENGL 5100. Prerequisites: ENGL 1500, ENGL 2000; English major, Secondary Education with a concentration in English, or English minor; minimum Junior standing.

Notes

Prereqs enforced by the system: ENGL 1500 and 2000; Minimum Junior standing; PACE students with permission and override

Section Description

Acclaimed crime writer Walter Mosley argues that “we are fascinated with stories of crime, real or imagined, because we need them to cleanse the modern world from our souls.” There is perhaps no other site that needs cleansing than the nexus of race and crime. This course examines the genre of contemporary crime fiction with a focus on how race is criminalized and how crime is racialized. Via multiracial perspectives, we will investigate how these stories complicate our
understandings of good vs. bad and right vs. wrong. Through possible topics such as immigration fears, historic trauma, justice in the era of Black Lives Matter, gendered violence, and the prison industrial complex, we will explore how fiction reflects the failures and fears of our social order.

Evaluation

Active participation, weekly response papers, in-class presentation, final paper/project.

Important Dates

Note: These dates may change before registration begins.

Courses may be cancelled due to low enrollment. Show your interest by enrolling.

Resources

• Parking
• PACE Course Pricing
• Textbooks

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