American Studies 65000 / English 58300:   Contemporary Native Literature   Fall 2009     Thursdays 3-5:50 p.m.   Professor Nancy J. Peterson   Purdue University
	Jeffrey Chapman (Chippewa) CHIPPEWA FAST FOOD 1987

Course Description:

Contemporary Native literature offers a dynamic space where many forms of tribal and traditional knowledges meet, including art, history, politics, science, and spirituality.  This course focuses on Native authors working today who explore new ways of telling stories and who use their writing to theorize what Native literature can aspire to in the twenty-first century.  We will discuss authors from a range of tribal affiliations over the course of the semester, including Luci Tapahonso (Diné), Eric Gansworth (Onondaga), LeAnne Howe (Choctaw and Cherokee), Sherman Alexie (Spokane and Coeur d'Alene), Diane Glancy (Cherokee), and Louise Erdrich (Turtle Mountain Ojibwe).  The novel as a genre has been particularly appealing to contemporary Native writers, but we will also read poetry and some autobiographical essays.  Selected criticism and theory from various perspectives—including nationalist/tribalist, feminist, mixedblood, and ethnographic approaches—will enrich our understanding of Native literature.

Required Texts:

The following books have been ordered through Von's Books, 315 W. State Street, West Lafayette (765-743-1915), which has a discount card program that can save you money on all book purchases (for this course and others). If you choose to order books online, please consult the ISBNs I've included below to make sure you have the correct edition.

1. A Radiant Curve, by Luci Tapahonso
Univ. of Arizona Press
ISBN-13: 978-0-8165-2709-0

2. A Half-Life of Cardio-Pulmonary Function, by Eric Gansworth
Syracuse Univ. Press
ISBN-13: 978-0815609001

3. The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven (revised edition), by Sherman Alexie
Grove-Atlantic
ISBN-10: 0-8021-4167-6

4. Mending Skins, by Eric Gansworth
Univ. of Nebraska Press (Bison Books)
ISBN-13: 978-0803271180

5. The Plague of Doves: A Novel (P.S.), by Louise Erdrich
Harper Perennial
ISBN-13: 978-0060515133

6. Stone Heart: A Novel of Sacajawea, by Diane Glancy
Overlook Press/Tusk Books
ISBN-13: 978-1585675142

7. Miko Kings: An Indian Baseball Story, by LeAnne Howe
Aunt Lute
ISBN-13: 978-1879960787

In addition, we'll read recent poems and stories from Sherman Alexie, critical essays, and other relevant texts that will be made available through pdf copies or photocopies.

 

Useful resources for researching contemporary Native literature