ENGL 4450.001 UNT Spring 2014 LANG 114 MW 3:30-4:50pm Professor Ybarra priscilla.ybarra@unt.edu LANG 407E Ofc Hrs W 12-3pm, OBA ENGL 4450.001 Single or Dual Author: Cherríe Moraga and Ana Castillo Description: Two very influential fiction writers and theorists of contemporary Chicana/o Studies, Moraga and Castillo offer a range of genres for our course of study: drama, poetry, nonfiction essays, theory, short stories, and novels. Indeed, they are exemplars of the multi-genre writer. Their works are landmarks in Chicana feminist thought of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. In order to elucidate their influence, class readings will also include contemporary literary theoretical essays relevant to their work. Their works explore issues of gender, sexuality, race, environmental justice, and decoloniality. In particular, we will engage writings and discussions concerning decoloniality. Students in this course will emerge with a firm grasp of the evolution of Chicana feminist thought and its influence on current theories of decoloniality, as well as a deep engagement with two of the most prolific writers of this rich field. Required Texts: Cherríe Moraga: Loving in the War Years (1983), and Heroes and Saints & Other Plays (1994) Ana Castillo: The Mixquiahuala Letters (1986), and So Far From God (1994) Our readings also include many PDFs from our course website. Make sure you download, read, and bring hard copies of these readings to class. Expected Learning Outcomes Discuss key issues in the development of Chicana feminist literature Integrate a discussion of contemporary Chicana/o issues with an array of past and contemporary Chicana literature, verbally and in writing Identify the varieties of Chicana identity demonstrated in Chicana cultural production Explain the relevance of decolonial theory to Chicana feminist literature Identify major themes of Chicana feminist literature Identity major themes of decolonial theory These expected learning outcomes will be measured by means of the assignments listed below, including grade percentages for each assignment: Grading (25%) Four 500-word close-reading analyses: explicate a passage from a text (drop lowest grade) (20%) Reading Quizzes at every class meeting (drop 2 lowest grades) (15%) Regular participation in class discussion; including attendance, asking questions, responding to questions, and responding to other students comments (10%) Theory in the Flesh essay and presentation (15%) Exam One (15%) Exam Two Special Notes
ATTENDANCE: Students should endeavor to attend every class. Roll will be taken at every meeting. Up to four absences are permitted. After four absences, the student begins to put his or her participation grade in jeopardy. Six absences results in an F. Academic Honesty You are encouraged to become familiar with the University's Policy of Academic dishonesty found in the Student Handbook. The content of the Handbook applies to this course. Additional information will be included on essay assignments sheets. Disability Accommodation The University of North Texas is on record as being committed to both the spirit and letter of federal equal opportunity legislation; reference Public Law 92-112 The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. With the passage of new federal legislation entitled Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), pursuant to section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, there is renewed focus on providing this population with the same opportunities enjoyed by all citizens. As a faculty member, I am required by law to provide "reasonable accommodations" to students with disabilities, so as not to discriminate on the basis of that disability. Student responsibility primarily rests with informing faculty of their need for accommodation and in providing authorized documentation through designated administrative channels. Information regarding specific diagnostic criteria and policies for obtaining academic accommodations can be found here. Also, you may visit the Office of Disability Accommodation in the University Union (room 321) or call us at (940) 565-4323. The University Writing Lab, located in Room 105 of the Auditorium Building, serves the needs of the students at the University of North Texas in all aspects of writing. Undergraduate and graduate students consult with the staff of the Writing Lab for help in writing better papers. All services of the Writing Lab are free of charge for all University of North Texas students. University Writing Lab: Auditorium Building, Room 105; 940.565.2563; http://www.unt.edu/writinglab/
SCHEDULE OF ASSIGNMENTS (subject to adjustment; come to class to find out; check the website for updates) UNIT ONE: CHICANA HISTORY, THEORY, AND DECOLONIALITY Week One M 01/13 Course description, goals, schedule of assignments W 01/15 Watch Part One: Quest for a Homeland (55 mins) of documentary Chicano!: A History of the Mexican American Civil Rights Movement Discuss film Take notes and write a one-page response to the documentary: DUE W 1/22 Week Two M 01/20: NO CLASS/MLK HOLIDAY W 01/22 Mexican & Mexican American history discussion Film response DUE Week Three M 01/27 Paula Moya, Who We Are and From Where We Speak (online) Corky González, I Am Joaquin (online) DUE: Syllabus agreement W 01/29 Gloria Anzaldua, now let us shift (online) Lorna Dee Cervantes, Poem for the Young White Man Who Asked Me How I, an Intelligent, Well-Read Person Could Believe in the War Between Races (online) Week Four M 02/03 Mignolo On Gnosis (3-33) (online) W 02/05 Mignolo On Gnosis (34-45) & Preface to 2012 (ix-xxiii) (online) Week Five M 02/10 Loving in the War Years (iii-38) Explication One DUE W 02/12 UNIT TWO: CHERRíE MORAGA
Loving in the War Years (42-51) (82-133) Week Six M 02/17 Excerpt from Fresh Fruit, Broken Bodies: Migrant Farmworkers in the United States (online) W 02/19 Heroes and Saints Week Seven M 02/24 The Last Generation (1-131) (online) Explication Two DUE W 02/26 The Last Generation (137-192) (online) Week Eight M 03/03 Review for Midterm W 03/05 Midterm Exam Week Nine 03/10-03/14 NO CLASS/SPRING BREAK UNIT THREE: ANA CASTILLO Week Ten M 03/17 Paula Moya, Racism is not intellectual : Interracial Friendship, Multicultural Literature, and Decolonizing Epistemologies (online) Mixquiahuala Letters (one third) Theory in the Flesh demonstration W 03/19 Mixquiahuala Letters (second third) Week Eleven M 03/24 Mixquiahuala Letters (final third) W 03/26 So Far From God (19-113)
Week Twelve M 03/31 So Far From God (114-169) W 04/02 So Far From God (170-252) Week Thirteen M 04/07 Ana Castillo, A Countryless Woman: The Early Feminista, and The Watsonville Women s Strike, 1986: A Case of Mexicana Activism (online) W 04/09 Cherríe Moraga, Watsonville (online) UNIT FOUR: THEORY IN THE FLESH Week Fourteen M 04/14 Cherríe Moraga, The Hungry Woman: A Mexican Medea (online) W 04/16 Cherríe Moraga, The Hungry Woman: A Mexican Medea (online) (Thursday 04/17: ATTEND WALTER MIGNOLO LECTURE @UNT; TIME/PLACE TBA) Week Fifteen M 04/21 **ALL THEORY IN THE FLESH ESSAYS DUE** THEORY IN THE FLESH PRESENTATIONS W 04/23 THEORY IN THE FLESH PRESENTATIONS Week Sixteen M 04/28 Ana Castillo, Loverboys (online) W 04/30 REVIEW FOR FINAL EXAM Explication Four DUE FINAL EXAM: WED 05/07; 1:30PM-3:30PM