EN 8593
Studies in Postcolonial Literature
[The Caribbean]

This seminar will explore the literature and culture of the West Indies, paying particular attention to the eruption of creative activity that has occurred in the English-speaking Caribbean since the end of the colonial period. The focus of the course will be on fiction, but we will also take up important contextual matters such as the history and economics of the region, its music, its ethnic composition, its wide array of religious practices, and its ambivalent relationship to America and the rest of the developed world .

There will be a geography test near the beginning of the semester and a final exam near the end. Each student will also present an oral report to the class and subsequently turn in a short written version (about five pages). The seminar paper, a product of both research and original thought, will be due on April 19. This is the only course offered at MSU that includes three Nobel Prize recipients and a rum tasting.