Week 1

E314V: Arab-American Literature and Culture Fall 2005

Weekly Schedule of Assignments Instructor: Micklethwait

Week	Readings and assignments
Week 1	Thurs Sept. 1: Review syllabus and policy statement. Introduction. Read Walt Whitman’s introduction to Leaves of Grass and the introduction to Grape Leaves (32-40, 113-124).
Week 2	Tue. Sept. 6: Grass Leaves and Grape Leaves: American Literature and American Ethnicities. Read Samir Khalaf’s “Background and Causes” (1-12) and Huseby Darvas’s “Coming to America” (342-349). Thurs. Sept. 8: Introduction to early Arab-American immigration. Read poems of Gibran and Naimi (49-70).
Week 3	Tue. Sept. 13: “The Most Foreign of All Foreigners”: The Pen Club and Orientalism. Why were Arabs so exotic in early twentieth-century America? Read poems of Rihani and al-Madi (41-48, 71-78), Book of Khalid, “Al-Fatiha” (129-131). Thurs. Sept. 15: Modern Mystics: Mahjar poets Rihani and al-Madi. (First critical response paper due.) Lecture on Arab literary traditions. Read Book of Khalid (131-177).
Week 4	Tue. Sept. 20: Book of Khalid. What is “modern” about these writers from such old civilizations? Read Book of Khalid (179-202) and Naff’s “Pack Peddling” (14-30). Thurs. Sept. 22: Cont. Book of Khalid: Read Book of Khalid (202-237) and Ramón Tanguis Pérez’s “Diary of an Undocumented Immigrant” (313-319).
Week 5	Tue. Sept. 27: Cont. Book of Khalid: Comparing Arab-American and Mexican-American immigrant experiences. Read Book of Khalid (238-255) and Frank McCourt’s excerpt from Angela’s Ashes (320-325). Thurs. Sept. 29: Panel presentations. Read Book of Khalid (255-305).
Week 6	Tue. Oct. 4: Book of Khalid, “In Kulmakan”: Is the American experience universal? Read poems of Etel Adnan, Joseph Awad, Lawrence Joseph and D. H. Melhem (79-107). Thurs. Oct. 6: Between Generations: Mid-Century Poets Lawrence Joseph and D. H. Melhem. How do Arab-Americans fit into the generation of beatniks, hippies and civil rights?
Week 7	Tue. Oct. 11: In-class peer review. (Rough draft of critical analysis due) Read Post-Gibran xi-xiii; Mattawa’s “Freeways and Resthouses”; Majaj’s “New Directions”; Handal’s “Poetry as Homeland” (409-429). Thurs. Oct. 13: The Pepsi Generation: New Arab-American Writing. (Second critical response paper due) Where do we place Arab-American writers in the global era? How do you create a literature that is both Arab and American? Read poems and essays by Hayan Charara (326-341, 430-432) and prepare for in-class visit.
Week 8	Tue. Oct. 18: Detroit, Iraq City: the poetry and essays of Hayan Charara. In-class visit by Hayan Charara. Thurs. Oct. 20 Panel presentations. Read Williams’s “Arabic Lessons” and Abraham’s “The Temptations of Lugman Abdallah” (472-495).
Week 9	Tue. Oct. 25 Growing Up American, Staying Arab: assimilation and adherence to tradition. Read Khaled Mattawa’s “First Snow” and poems (496-500, 524-525). Thurs. Oct. 27 (Final draft of critical analysis due) Read poems by Mohja Kahf and Suheir Hammad and short fiction by Randa Jarrar (433-435, 440-452, 501-521).
Week 10	Tue. Nov. 1: Gender and Ethnicity in contemporary Arab-American women’s poetry. Thurs. Nov. 3: Screening in class: Benaat Chicago. Prepare for in-class visit by Randa Jarrar.
Week 11	Tue. Nov. 8: “She was an American girl”: Short fiction by Randa Jarrar. In-class visit by Randa Jarrar. (Third critical response paper due) Thurs. Nov. 10: Panel presentations. Read Abraham’s “Anti-Arab Racism,” Samia Serageldin’s “It’s Not About That” and Mohja Kahf’s “Spiced Chicken Queen” (376-406, 467-471, 457-471)
Week 12	Tue. Nov. 15: 9/11 and the Patriot Act. Where do we find the balance between liberty and security? Between native and foreign? Thurs. Nov. 17: Panel presentations
Week 13	Tue. Nov. 22: Harem Girls and Camel Jockeys: American Media Stereotypes of Arabs Screening of clips from The Siege, Over There, 24, and The Three Kings. (Rough draft of final essay due). Thurs. Nov. 24: Holiday (no class).
Week 14	Tue. Nov. 29: Individual paper conferences by appointment—no class. Read Bennoune’s “Maghribi Workers” and Hargreaves’s “Violent Changes”(527-542). Thurs. Dec. 1: In the Ghetto: French-Arab Diaspora and hip-hop culture.
Week 15	Tue. Dec. 6: Panel presentations. Thurs. Dec. 8: Last Class day: course evaluations. (Final essays due)

Week

Readings and assignments

Week 1

Thurs Sept. 1: Review syllabus and policy statement. Introduction.

Read Walt Whitman’s introduction to Leaves of Grass and the introduction to Grape Leaves (32-40, 113-124).

Week 2

Tue. Sept. 6: Grass Leaves and Grape Leaves: American Literature and American

Ethnicities.

Read Samir Khalaf’s “Background and Causes” (1-12) and Huseby

Darvas’s “Coming to America” (342-349).

Thurs. Sept. 8: Introduction to early Arab-American immigration.

Read poems of Gibran and Naimi (49-70).

Week 3

Tue. Sept. 13: “The Most Foreign of All Foreigners”: The Pen Club and Orientalism. Why were Arabs so exotic in early twentieth-century America?

Read poems of Rihani and al-Madi (41-48, 71-78), Book of Khalid, “Al-Fatiha” (129-131).

Thurs. Sept. 15: Modern Mystics: Mahjar poets Rihani and al-Madi. (First critical response paper due.) Lecture on Arab literary traditions.

Read Book of Khalid (131-177).

Week 4

Tue. Sept. 20: Book of Khalid. What is “modern” about these writers from such old

civilizations?

Read Book of Khalid (179-202) and Naff’s “Pack Peddling” (14-30).

Thurs. Sept. 22: Cont. Book of Khalid:

Read Book of Khalid (202-237) and Ramón Tanguis Pérez’s “Diary of an

Undocumented Immigrant” (313-319).

Week 5

Tue. Sept. 27: Cont. Book of Khalid: Comparing Arab-American and Mexican-American immigrant experiences.

Read Book of Khalid (238-255) and Frank McCourt’s excerpt from Angela’s Ashes (320-325).

Thurs. Sept. 29: Panel presentations.

Read Book of Khalid (255-305).

Week 6

Tue. Oct. 4: Book of Khalid, “In Kulmakan”: Is the American experience universal?

Read poems of Etel Adnan, Joseph Awad, Lawrence Joseph and D. H. Melhem (79-107).

Thurs. Oct. 6: Between Generations: Mid-Century Poets Lawrence Joseph and D. H. Melhem. How do Arab-Americans fit into the generation of beatniks, hippies and civil rights?

Week 7

Tue. Oct. 11: In-class peer review. (Rough draft of critical analysis due)

Read Post-Gibran xi-xiii; Mattawa’s “Freeways and Resthouses”; Majaj’s “New Directions”; Handal’s “Poetry as Homeland” (409-429).

Thurs. Oct. 13: The Pepsi Generation: New Arab-American Writing. (Second critical response paper due) Where do we place Arab-American writers in the global era? How do you create a literature that is both Arab and American?

Read poems and essays by Hayan Charara (326-341, 430-432) and prepare for in-class visit.

Week 8

Tue. Oct. 18: Detroit, Iraq City: the poetry and essays of Hayan Charara. In-class visit by Hayan Charara.

Thurs. Oct. 20 Panel presentations.

Read Williams’s “Arabic Lessons” and Abraham’s “The Temptations of Lugman Abdallah” (472-495).

Week 9

Tue. Oct. 25 Growing Up American, Staying Arab: assimilation and adherence to tradition.

Read Khaled Mattawa’s “First Snow” and poems (496-500, 524-525).

Thurs. Oct. 27 (Final draft of critical analysis due)

Read poems by Mohja Kahf and Suheir Hammad and short fiction by Randa Jarrar (433-435, 440-452, 501-521).

Week 10

Tue. Nov. 1: Gender and Ethnicity in contemporary Arab-American women’s poetry.

Thurs. Nov. 3: Screening in class: Benaat Chicago.

Prepare for in-class visit by Randa Jarrar.

Week 11

Tue. Nov. 8: “She was an American girl”: Short fiction by Randa Jarrar. In-class visit by Randa Jarrar. (Third critical response paper due)

Thurs. Nov. 10: Panel presentations.

Read Abraham’s “Anti-Arab Racism,” Samia Serageldin’s “It’s Not About That” and Mohja Kahf’s “Spiced Chicken Queen” (376-406, 467-471, 457-471)

Week 12

Tue. Nov. 15: 9/11 and the Patriot Act. Where do we find the balance between liberty and security? Between native and foreign?

Thurs. Nov. 17: Panel presentations

Week 13

Tue. Nov. 22: Harem Girls and Camel Jockeys: American Media Stereotypes of Arabs Screening of clips from The Siege, Over There, 24, and The Three Kings. (Rough draft of final essay due).

Thurs. Nov. 24: Holiday (no class).

Week 14

Tue. Nov. 29: Individual paper conferences by appointment—no class.

Read Bennoune’s “Maghribi Workers” and Hargreaves’s “Violent Changes”(527-542).

Thurs. Dec. 1: In the Ghetto: French-Arab Diaspora and hip-hop culture.

Week 15

Tue. Dec. 6: Panel presentations.

Thurs. Dec. 8: Last Class day: course evaluations. (Final essays due)