32113

WiSe 21/22: Changing Narratives about American Diversity

Winfried Fluck

Comments

The field of American studies was founded on the idea of American exceptionalism, that is, the (superior) uniqueness of American culture and society. This idea shaped the research agenda of the first generation of Americanists who tried hard to identify a specific, monolithically conceived American identity. Taking its point of departure from the revisions of this starting premise of the field, this course will focus on the (re)discovery of the diversity of American life and its many manifestations of difference. Significant stages on which we will focus will be the concepts of cultural pluralism and multiculturalism, the rise of ethnic studies and its challenges to the American canon, the critique of ethnic studies by race and gender studies, and the subsequent differentiations of these approaches that have led to the critical debates of today. Each session will discuss representative texts of these approaches. The analytical focus will lie on the changing narratives that the different versions of the idea of diversity offer and on the concepts of equality and justice, of society and recognition that provide their normative basis. Tracing the way in which the narratives rapidly challenged and replaced each other can help to gain a clearer sense of the major theoretical developments of American studies over the last decades. ---- The course will be taught online, student participation is encouraged. ----- Credits: To receive participation credit in this class, a 10-15 minute online presentation is required, plus regular attendance. To obtain a full credit, a term paper (of about 15 pages) on one of the seminar topics or texts is required, plus regular attendance. ----- Registration: All participants must be registered via Blackboard and Campus Management before the first session. If you cannot register online, please contact the department’s secretary Regina Götz (culture@fki.fu-berlin.de) before the beginning of the term; or if you would like to participate, but cannot attend the first session, please contact me (winfried.fluck@fu-berlin.de). close