Advanced course

 

Disability Studies is a growing field which sheds light on the ways in which society constructs the boundaries of normalcy. This course examines literary representations of the more “hidden” disabilities – cognitive, intellectual and mental. In what ways does literature draw the boundaries of normalcy? How do definitions of disability change in different historical, political, social and cultural contexts? What is the relation between disability and identity politics in literature? How does literature give voice to the subjectivity of the inarticulate and what are the ethical considerations of such representations? What functions do disabled characters serve in literary works? The course engages in these issues by closely examining literary works and by discussing theoretical and analytical essays that address these questions.

Texts:

Mark Haddon, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (2003)

Daniel Keyes, “Flowers for Algernon” (1959)

Bernard Malamud, “Idiots First” (1961)

John Joseph Mathews, Sundown (1934)

Herman Melville, “Bartleby the Scrivener” (1853)

Toni Morrison, “Recitatif” (1983)

Flannery O’Connor, “The Lame Shall Enter First” (1965)

Edgar Allen Poe, “The Black Cat” (1843)

Leslie Marmon Silko, from Ceremony (1977)

Hisaye Yamamoto, “The Legend of Miss Sasagawara” (1988)