ENGLISH 178N: The American Novel Since 1900

Download draft syllabus .pdf here.

 

Jasper Johns, Three Flags (1958)

T H E   A M E R I C A N   N O V E L

S I N C E   1 9 0 0

English 178N, Fall 2024

MW 12-1.15pm, room TBD 

Professor Namwali Serpell   

Office hours Tu 1-3pm, Barker 215

Description

This course is a survey of the American novel since 1900: its forms, patterns, techniques, contexts, ideas, and intertextual networks. We’ll pay special attention to questions of epistemology, aesthetics, and ethics—e.g. how do we know about the world? what is beautiful? what ought we do?—in the American milieu over the course of the twentieth century and beyond. This course satisfies the “1900-2000 Guided Elective” requirement for English concentrators and Secondary Field students.

 

Access

We encourage you to let us know how we can improve your learning, participation, and access in this course. If you have a disability, or believe you may, and would like to request accommodations, let us know and consult with your Local Student Disability Coordinator.

 

Texts (may change)

Edith Wharton. The House of Mirth (1905). 350 pages. Signet Classic.

James W. Johnson. The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man (1912). 211 pages. Hill & Wang.

William Faulkner. The Sound and the Fury (1929). 321 pages. Vintage.

Zora Neale Hurston. Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937).

Vladimir Nabokov. Lolita (1955). 317 pages. Vintage.

Thomas Pynchon. The Crying of Lot 49 (1966). 152 pages. HarperCollins.

N. Scott Momaday. House Made of Dawn (1968). 185 pages. Harper Perennial.

Maxine Hong Kingston. The Woman Warrior (1976). 201 pages. Vintage.

Toni Morrison. Beloved (1987). 324 pages. Vintage.

Valeria Luiselli; tr. MacSweeney. Faces in the Crowd (2014). 146 pages. Coffee House.

 

Requirements

• Attendance (20 pts).We will account for attendance in both lecture and section. We are trusting you with three absences from section without penalty. You do not need to send us excuses for these “freebie” absences—no need to ask us or provide a reason in advance or after the fact. They are meant to cover everything: medical issues, emergencies, religious holidays, family or friend crises, extracurricular travel, etc. Please note that, beyond this allowance, egregious lateness or frequent absences will affect your participation grade, and may affect your final grade. 
• Participation (20 pts). One informed/ engaged question or comment per section.
• Reading responses (10 pts). Up to 250 pages of reading per week, monitored with short responses to be submitted through Canvas by 9pm the night before section.
• Three 5-page papers (30 pts), due 10/4, 11/8, and 12/13. Optional topics provided.

All assignments must be in Times 12pt font, double-spaced, with one-inch margins, in .doc format, and submitted to your TF by midnight on the deadline. Three-day extensions (e.g. Fri to Mon) will be granted with one week’s advance request. Otherwise, each late day is a half-step down, e.g. A- to B+.

 

Policies

• Please treat us and your fellow students with the respect you would wish for yourself. This includes respect for our viewpoints, for how we each want to be referred to, and for our time.
• Please bring your books to class and section. Please silence and put away your phones and laptops in class. E-readers may be used but must be disconnected from the internet during class time. If you need to use another device for accessibility reasons, please consult with us.
• We will reply to emails within 24 hours. Before you email us with a question, consult the syllabus, check the Canvas page, and ask another student in the class first. If you need to be absent or request an extension beyond parameters established above, please consult with us.
• We do not allow the use of AI for any assignment in this course. Per Harvard College Policy, any evidence of plagiarism is grounds for a failing grade in the course. Please consult the Harvard College Student Handbook and Harvard College Honor Code for more on academic integrity.

 

Schedule (may change)

W 09/04	Wharton, The House of Mirth 1–113, book I, chapters i–ix.
M 09/09 W 09/11	The House of Mirth 114–189, book I, chapters x–xv. The House of Mirth 191–350, book II, chapters i–xiv.
M 09/16    W 09/18	Johnson, The Autobiography of An Ex-Colored Man 1–109, chapters i-vii. The Autobiography of An Ex-Colored Man 110–211, chapters viii-xi.
M 09/23  W 09/25	Faulkner, The Sound and the Fury 3–75, “April Seventh, 1928.” The Sound and the Fury 76–179, “June Second, 1910.”
M 09/30 W 10/02 F   10/03	The Sound and the Fury 180–264, “April Sixth, 1928.” The Sound and the Fury 265–321, “April Eighth, 1928.” PAPER 1 DUE.
M 10/07 W 10/09	Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God, chapters 1–10. Their Eyes Were Watching God, chapters 11–20.
M 10/14  W 10/16	NO CLASS. Nabokov, Lolita 3–142, foreword, part one.
M 10/21 W 10/23	Lolita 145–207, part two, chapters 1–14. Lolita 208-317, part two, chapters 15–36 + afterword.
M 10/28   W 10/30	Pynchon, The Crying of Lot 49 1–79, chapters 1–4. The Crying of Lot 49 80–152, chapters 5–6.
M 11/04 W 11/06 F   11/08	Mamaday, House Made of Dawn 1–120. House Made of Dawn 123–182. PAPER 2 DUE.
M 11/11  W 11/13	Kingston, The Woman Warrior 1–109. The Woman Warrior 110–245.
M 11/18 W 11/20	Morrison, Beloved, 1-195, book I. Beloved 199–277, book II.
M 11/25 W 11/27	Beloved 281–324, book III. NO CLASS.
M 12/02 W 12/04	Luiselli, Faces in the Crowd 1–76. Faces in the Crowd 77–146.
F   12/13	PAPER 3 DUE.

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