ENG-299T.25 Prose & Cons 3 credits
Prerequisites: FYS-101
One of the most extraordinary achievements of 20th- century American culture is the literature that has come out of the nation's prisons. While there have also been many eminent prison writers from other countries, such as John Donne, Maxim Gorky, and Dostoyevsky, modern American prison writings constitute what might be considered a coherent body of literature with a unique historical significance and cultural influence. Through careful examination of selected works of primarily American prison literature, this course investigates a vision of America from the bottom, an anatomy of the American prison, and an exploration of the meanings of imprisonment. Authors may include Malcom X, Jimmy Santiago Baca, Ken Lamberton, Agnes Smedley, and Nawal El Saadawi.