Category: alabama literature

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“African American Literature and the American South” Syllabus

Occasionally, I post syllabi ideas here on the blog. Today, I want to share a syllabus I have been thinking about recently entitled “African American Literature and the American South.” The South, as a geographic and imaginary space, looms large in the works of not just African American authors but in writers of all ethnic backgrounds from the United States. Maryemma Graham discusses the … Read More “African American Literature and the American South” Syllabus

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Is Work/Life Balance Achievable in Academia?

For the first few weeks, I would walk into my eight o’clock class to bright faces and smiles from the students seated within the rows. About a month into the semester, and coincidentally around the same time that they had to turn in their first essay, the smiling faces turned to tired and haggled sleep-deprived visages that stared blankly back at me as I … Read More Is Work/Life Balance Achievable in Academia?

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Archive Project: Taking Students Out of the Classroom and Into History

Note: You can view the projects at engl2250.wordpress.com. Over the past year, I have constructed various projects for my literature survey courses. Last fall, I had students define a term related to Early American literature and present what they learned. In the spring, I had students read a novel or play by an author we were looking at in the course and present information … Read More Archive Project: Taking Students Out of the Classroom and Into History

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The Smoldering Embers in Our Presence

Today, I want to conclude the discussion from the previous two posts over the ways that we create memorials and remember the past, particularly in the South. In an interview with Ezra Klein, executive director of the Equal Justice Commission Bryan Stevenson commented, “What we do in the memorial spaces says a lot about who we are.” There is a lot of truth in … Read More The Smoldering Embers in Our Presence

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Working With Archives in the Literature Classroom

This summer, I am teaching an American literature survey curse through 1865. While I have taught this course multiple times, I have been contemplating and incorporating new assignments into the classroom the past couple of times I have taught it. One such assignment calls for students to use digital archives of the Freedom’s Journal to find a an article, summarize it, then tell their … Read More Working With Archives in the Literature Classroom