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At the conclusion of this course, the student should be able to:
1. Understand the intersectional experiences of Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Americans in diaspora.
2. Learn definitions and theories (racism, classism, oppression, assimilation, acculturation, colonization, imperialism, xenophobia, etc.) and explore how these concepts are integrated into Asian American and Pacific Islander American identities and literature.
3. Understand the use of literature to explore identity, culture, and struggles for social justice, equity, antiracism, civil rights, immigration rights, and agency in the Asian American and Pacific Islander American communities.
4. Analyze works of literature through the lens of literary techniques and theories.
5. Engage in critical reading, writing, and thinking.
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I. Historical and Cultural Contexts
A. Literary traditions, including ancient tales, oral traditions, and cultural practices
B. Social issues, including family, gender, and community structures
C. Political and economic issues, including the distribution of power and wealth, colonization, imperialism, and immigration
II. The creation of Asian American and Pacific Islander American Communities and Identities
A. Reception: racism, classism, oppression, assimilation, acculturation, colonization, power-dynamics, and xenophobia
B. Forging ethnic identities
C. Emergent and evolving literary, artistic, social, political, and economic traditions
III. Contemporary Trends in Literature
A. Intersectionality and positionality
B. Popular culture
C. Literary criticism
D. Antiracism, cross-ethnic and cross-racial coalitions, and decolonization
IV. Theoretical Perspectives
A. Marxism and Critical Theory
B. Asian American Studies, Ethnic Studies, and Postcolonial Criticism
C. Gender Studies and Queer Theory
D. Cultural Studies
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Texts will vary from classic literature and contemporary literature and will draw from Novels, Short Stories, Poems, Films, Newspapers, Music, Essays, and other Works of Art.
All I Asking for is My Body. Murayama, Milton. U of Hawaii Press, 1988 (classic).
America is in the Heart. Bulosan, Carlos. U of Washington Press. 2014 (classic).
BONE. Ng, Faye Nyenne. Hachette Books. 2008 (classic).
Dogeaters. Hagedorn, Jessica. Penguin. 1991 (classic).
Making Waves: An Anthology of Writings by and about Asian American Women. Asian Women United of California. Beacon Press. 1989 (classic).
No-No Boy. Okada, John. U of Washington press. 2014 (classic).
The Woman Warrior. Kingston, Maxine Hong. Picador. 2015 (classic).
Reading the Literatures of Asian America. Lim, Shirley Geok-lin and Ling, Amy. Temple University Press. 1992 (classic).
Strangers from a Different Shore. Takaki, Ron. Little, Brown, and Company. 1989 (classic).
The Kitchen God's Wife. Tan, Amy. Penguin. 2006 (classic).
Aiiieeeee!: An Anthology of Asian American Writers. Chin, Frank. University of Washington Press. 2019.
The Open Boat. Hongo, Garrett. Anchor Books. 1993 (classic).
Seventeen Syllables and Other Stories. Yamamoto, Hisaye. Rutgers University Press. 2001 (classic).
Home to Stay: Asian American Women's Fiction. Watanabe, Sylvia, and Bruchac, Carol. Greenfield Review Press. 1990 (classic).
Eat a Bowl of Tea. Chu, Louis. U of Washington Press. 2020.
Scent of Apples. Santos, Bienvenido. University of Washington Press. 2015 (classic).
Clay Walls. Ronyuong, Kim. Permanent Press. 1996 (classic).
Jasmine. Mukherjee, Bharati. Grove Press, 1999 (classic).
Years of Infamy. Weglyn, Michi. University of Washington Press. 2000 (classic).
Frameless Windows, Squares of Light. Song, Cathy. Norton. 1988 (classic).
Minor Feelings. Hong, Cathy Park. One World. 2020.
Interior Chinatown. Yu, Charles. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. 2020.
She Kills Monsters. Nguyen, Qui. Samuel French. 2012 (classic).
American Born Chinese. Yang, Gene Luen. First Second. 2021.
Light Through the Crevice Never Seen. Trask, Haunani-Kay. University of Hawaii Press. 2002 (classic).
Asian American Feminisms and Women of Color Politics (Decolonizing Feminisms). Fujiwara, Lynn, Roshanravan, Shireen, and Chatterjee, Piya. University of Washington Press. 2018.
Saturday Night at the Pahala Theatre. Yamanaka, Lois-Ann. Bamboo Ridge Press. 1993 (classic).
Everything I Never Told You. Ng, Celeste. Penguin Group. 2015 (classic).
Mixed Feelings. Jogia, Avan. Andrews McMeel Publishing. 2019.
Mixed: An Anthology of Short Stories on the Multicultural Experience. Prasad, Chandra. W. W. Norton & Company. 2006 (classic).
Interpreter of Maladies. Lahiri, Jhumpa. Mariner Books. 2019.
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous. Vuong, Ocean. Penguin. 2019.
Afterparties: Stories. So, Anthony Veasna. Ecco. 2021.