(Cross-listed with BL_STU 3400:01)

This is a writing intensive survey of African American literature that explores its earliest eighteenth-century beginnings, the post-Civil War, the Reconstruction era up to1900. Our main objectives of the course will be to explore: a) the various genres of African American Literature including vernacular tradition, spirituals, folk lore, slave and emancipation narratives, fiction and non-fiction literature; b) the trends, patterns, cultural influences and historical incidents that informed this literature; c) critically read, analyze, and respond to texts in class discussions, examinations, and essays with the aim of developing critical thinking and writing skills. By the end of the course, students should have a considerable appreciation of the broad range of genres, forms, and stylistic features of African American  Literature of the period to be studied on the course and how this historical literature is interwoven with contemporary American culture.