An Introduction to American Studies: Performative Embodiments: The Body in American Culture

Instructor: Caroline McKenzie email: [email protected] Tuesdays & Thursdays 4:30 – 5:45 p.m. Classroom: Rec 112 Office: HEAV TBA Required text: Burgett, Bruce and Glenn Hendler. Keywords for American Cultural Studies. New York: New York University Press, 2007.

The construction of “America” has been a social, cultural, political and economic process fraught in both past and present with complications, contradictions, and contestations. To address the U.S.’ process of nation- building through inclusion and exclusion, this course will introduce you to the construction of identity and difference; the cultures of everyday life; and the transnational.

Through these three avenues, this course will explore the meanings given to diversity, freedom, citizenship and subjectivity within situated contexts and discourses of “embodied identities.” This course will introduce you to the key analytical categories of race, class, gender, sexuality, nation, place and dis(ability). As we explore the construction of identity and difference; the cultures of everyday life; and the transnational through the lens of “the American body,” we will examine the ways in which

American studies has addressed how collective and impersonal forms of political agency are routinely embodied in propertied, white men . . .. The circulation of such ‘overembodied’ identities as public icons and spectacle has been crucial to the protection of established political privilege. At the same time, the visibility of disqualified political subjects within public culture has also generated important opportunities for contesting their disqualification. (“Body,” Ava Cherniavsky, Keywords for American Cultural Studies, 28).

A wide range of works, including texts exploring the basic issues and concerns of American Studies and various critical theories (feminist theory, queer theory, critical race theory and literary theories) will be used in conjunction with novels, short stories, poems and television shows that explore embodied identities and conceptions of the American body.

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As an introductory course in American Studies, three main ideas motivate this course. First, an interdisciplinary approach -- that is, a method not confined by the traditional boundaries of the disciplines -- better enables us to examine and interpret significant values, events, ideas, and cultural phenomena that have shaped our understanding of American society. No single academic discipline and no single subject matter can fully illuminate these and related issues: by bridging traditional categories of knowing we can more thoroughly comprehend the objects of our study.

Second, as a way of raising the question of what it means to be "American," this course investigates the gaps between America as it imagines itself and America as it is. For example, we may live in the "Land of Opportunity," but the power to access opportunities is not distributed equally: throughout American history, social factors like class, race, and gender have played crucial roles in determining who will vote, attend certain schools, work in a certain job, live in a particular place -- in determining the degree to which the American dream becomes possible. Because the tension between American ideals and American realities becomes most visible during historical or cultural crises, we will examine several such moments of conflict.

Finally, we will ask: what is American history? How has history been told and how should it be told? How do we decide which "facts" to include and which ones to omit?

Throughout the semester, you will be asked to watch films and television shows centered on a theme of your choosing. Some of the themes, topics and possible choices of this course include (but are not limited to):

GENDER: • beauty pageants/beauty (Paris is Burning, Toddlers & Tiaras, Little Miss Sunshine, Black Swan, Body Typed, Smile, Miss Congeniality, Smile, Miss Firecracker, To Wong Foo, Happy Texas, Drop Dead Gorgeous, Beautiful, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil) • femininity (Just about any Hollywood/mainstream film) • masculinity (Fight Club, Rocky, G.I. Jane) • purity (purity balls, debutantes, virginity pledgers, The Purity Myth) • pregnant bodies, (Precious, Juno, For Keeps, Junior, Nine Months, Father of the Bride 2) McKenzie, Caroline 3

SEXUALITY: • pornography (Don Jon, Boogie Nights, Wonderland, Orgazmo, The People vs. Larry Flynt, The Graduate) • sexuality (TransAmerica, Boys Don’t Cry, The Scarlet Letter, If These Walls Could Talk 2, Lars and the Real Girl) • drag (To Wong Foo, The Birdcage, RuPaul, Divine, Mrs. Doubtfire, ) • sex research (Kinsey, Masters of Sex) • sex work (Midnight Cowboy, Pretty Woman, Magic Mike) RACE: • slavery (Django Unchained, 12 Years a Slave, Kindred, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Beloved) • racism (The Color Purple, The Women of Brewster Place, Native Son, Rosewood, Higher Learning, Crash, “Desiree’s Baby” by Kate Chopin, Black Like Me, The Help, A Time to Kill, Corrina Corrina, Jungle Fever, Do the Right Thing, Mississippi Burning, Mi Familia (My Family), Driving Miss Daisy, The Lone Ranger, The Wire, The Earthseed Series, Smoke Signals, American History X ) • police profiling and police brutality • black hair and Black Looks (Good Hair; bell hooks) CLASS: • poverty (Bastard Out of Carolina, Hidden in America, The End of Poverty?, Down and Out in America, Jenny is a Good Thing, Poor No More, The Price of Sugar, Our Day, Waging a Living, Half the Sky) • wealth (American Psycho, There Will Be Blood, Wall Street, Iron Man, The Great Gatsby) ABILITY & HEALTH: • AIDS/HIV (Philadelphia, Longtime Companion, Jeffrey, Rent, Out of Control: The AIDS Epidemic in Black America; Girl, Positive; Go Toward the Light, The Ryan White Story, And the Band Played On, Yesterday, Angels in America, Dallas Buyers Club, Love! Valour! Compassion!, It’s My Party, The Cure ) • addiction (Leaving Los Vegas, The Lost Weekend, Drugstore Cowboy, Clean and Sober) • Size/obesity (“The Biggest Loser,” Fast Food Nation, The Nutty Professor) McKenzie, Caroline 4

• cancer (“Cancerland,” 50/50, Breaking Bad, Terms of Endearment, The Big C) • abortion (If These Walls Could Talk I, Lake of Fire, 12th & Delaware, A Private Matter, After Tiller, For Colored Girls, The Cider House Rules) • mental health (Prozac Nation, A Beautiful Mind, Rain Man, Mask, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Girl Interrupted, Perception, Mind Games, The Black Box) • Suicide (Ordinary People, The First Wives Club, “The Yellow Wallpaper”) • eating disorders (Political Animals, Thin, Killing Us Softly, Dying to Be Thin, Perfect Illusions) MISCELLANEOUS • Politics: Our Brand is Crisis • prison (The Shawshank Redemption, “Oz,” “Orange is the New Black,” The Longest Yard, “The Wire”) • American superheroes (Batman, Spiderman, Wonder Woman, Superman, The Avengers, Iron Man, Thor, The X-Men, Captain America) • Supernatural (True Blood, The Walking Dead, Grimm, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film and tv show), Angel, Twilight, E. T.: The Extra- Terrestrial, Ghostbusters, Predator, Blade, Interview with a Vampire, The Vampire Diaries, “Salem,” “Charmed,” “Sabrina the Teenage Witch,” Warlock) • plastic/cosmetic surgery (“Nip/Tuck”) • body modification (“L.A. Ink,” “Nip/Tuck”) • bodybuilding (Generation Iron, Pumping Iron, Pumping Iron II: The Women; Bigger, Stronger, Faster;) • sports (Raging Bull, Million Dollar Baby, Happy Gilmore, Slap Shot, Little Giants, Bull Durham, Hoosiers) • advertising (Mad Men) • The Salem Witchcraft Trials (The Crucible,“Salem”) • military (A Few Good Men, Saving Private Ryan, Full Metal Jacket, G.I. Jane, Platoon, Pearl Harbor, We Were Soldiers, G.I. Joe) • Westerns (True Grit, 3:10 to Yuma, The Searchers, High Noon, Shane, Unforgiven, Red River, The Wild Bunch, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, McCabe & Mrs. Miller, Stagecoach, Cat Ballou, McKenzie, Caroline 5

Lonesome Dove, The Magnificent Seven; The Good, the Bad and the Ugly; Rio Bravo, Tombstone, The Outlaw Josey Wales, The Shootist) • gambling (The Cooler, Rounders, Maverick) • drugs (Blow, The Wire, Traffic) Since you’ll be given some leeway in terms of what you read and view in this class, I suggest that you think early on about some themes that might interest you. Not everything has to be on the same theme, but making smart choices in your readings/viewings can make it easier when it comes times to write your paper. Some major themes include: themes on “America,” freedom, democracy, individualism, equality, opportunity and identity. Consider the following genres in film/tv, such as medical, police/detectives, lawyers, vampires, mental illness, friendship, love, sex, drugs, dystopia, technology, Army/Navy/Marines, crime, animation, “tv” families, witches, serial killers, historical remakes, religion, angels, high school, birth, death, suicide, education, youth, teens, elderly, super heroes/super powers, immigrant experience, humor, westerns, “chick flicks,” “bromances”

Attendance I expect a good deal of activity and instruction every time we meet, so you must attend class regularly. Many times, whatever you miss cannot be made up. In order to participate in discussions, activities, peer reviews, and in other instruction, you must be present. I realize that sometimes you have illnesses or circumstances beyond your control, so I am allowing you three absences without attendance penalty. Beyond 3 absences, your final letter grade will be lowered. This means if you have 4-5 absences, the highest grade you may obtain is "B." If you have 6-8 absences, the highest grade you may obtain is "C," and if you have 9 or more absences, the highest grade you may obtain is "D." If you have 12 or more absences, the highest grade you may obtain is "F." Save your absences in case you really need them.

I also expect you to take responsibility for what you miss in class. I will not come to you to tell you what you missed. I also will not answer an email in which you ask, “Did I miss anything in class today?” Of course you did. Likewise, I will not spell out everything you missed if you email me the question, “What did I miss in class today?” Ask another student or come see me during my office hours.

If you are a member of a group that officially represents Purdue University McKenzie, Caroline 6 and you anticipate time conflicts between your university-sanctioned event and this class, please see me.

Grief Absence Policy If you have a death in the family, you (or your representative) should contact the Office of the Dean of Students. That office will then notify your instructors. (See the Grief Absence Policy for Students at http://www.purdue.edu/univregs/academicprocedures/classes.html)

Emergencies In the event of a major campus emergency, course requirements, deadlines and grading percentages are subject to changes that may be necessitated by a revised semester calendar or other circumstances beyond my control. Here are ways to get information about changes in this course: 1) Check Purdue’s Homepage 2) Check your email.

Missed or Late Work You must submit your work on time. Late work may be accepted under extenuating circumstances and only if you consult with me before the class period in which the work is due. With that said, if you find yourself overwhelmed and unable to complete an assignment, please come talk with me...but do so before the assignment is due. I expect you to do your best work and to turn work in on time, but I do know that sometimes "life happens."

Disability Resource Center (DRC) Students with disabilities must be registered with DRC in the Office of the Dean of Students before classroom accommodations can be provided. If you are eligible for academic accommodations because you have a documented disability that will impact your work in this class, please schedule an appointment with me within the first two weeks of the semester to discuss any adjustments you may need.

Professionalism and You Please conduct yourself professionally at all times. You should not harass, threaten, or belittle others in any way. You should listen respectfully to the views of others. Your cell phones and iPods should be off and in your book bag (not on your desk or lap). I will give you one warning if you do any of these things. If you continue, I will ask you to leave the room.

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Purdue’s Violent Behavior Policy Below is Purdue’s policy prohibiting violent behavior. Purdue University is committed to providing a safe and secure campus environment for members of the university community. Purdue strives to create an educational environment for students and a work environment for employees that promote educational and career goals. Violent Behavior impedes such goals. Therefore, Violent Behavior is prohibited in or on any University Facility or while participating in any university activity.

Academic Integrity and Plagiarism Plagiarism is the act of using another person’s work and calling it your own. You can plagiarize by purchasing a paper from someone and handing it in as your work, by stealing another student’s electronic file, by downloading someone’s work from the internet, by copying material from a book or magazine article without citing the source, by “cutting and pasting” material from websites, and by using another’s ideas without proper attribution. When doing research, you need to take careful notes and attribute your sources meticulously; you can inadvertently plagiarize someone’s material if you don’t!

The English Department's official definition of plagiarism is: “When writers use material from other sources, they must acknowledge this source. Not doing so is called plagiarism, which means using without crediting the ideas or expression of another. You are therefore cautioned (1) against using, word for word, without acknowledgement, phrases, sentences, paragraphs, etc. from the printed or manuscript material of others; (2) against using with only slight changes the materials of another; (3) against using the general plan, the main headings, or a rewritten form of someone else's material. These cautions apply to the work of other students as well as to the published work of professional writers.

Penalties for plagiarism vary from failure of the plagiarized assignment to expulsion from the university, and may include failure for the course and notification of the Dean of Students' Office. The Department of English considers the previous explanation to be official notification of the nature and seriousness of plagiarism."

If you still have questions about what is and is not plagiarism, do not hesitate to ask me in class, in my office, during conferences or via email.

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Resources Besides seeing me during my office hours and by appointment, you have other resources at Purdue to help you with your writing and writing assignments. Purdue’s Writing Lab is one of the best Writing Labs in the nation! The Writing Lab is located in Heavilon Hall, Room 226; they offer FREE tutorials to students by appointment or on a drop-in basis. For more information or to make an appointment, call 494-3723. You may also access the Online Writing Lab (OWL) at http://owl.english.purdue.edu. You may also use The Digital Learning Collaboratory (DLC) to help you create multimedia projects. You can check out equipment, use the computers, learn new software, or reserve space to work collaboratively on a class project. For more information, go to http://www.lib.purdue.edu.

Nondiscrimination Purdue University’s statement on nondiscrimination: Purdue University is committed to maintaining a community which recognizes and values the inherent worth and dignity of every person; fosters tolerance, sensitivity, understanding, and mutual respect among its members; and encourages each individual to strive to reach his or her own potential. In pursuit of its goal of academic excellence, the University seeks to develop and nurture diversity. The University believes that diversity among its many members strengthens the institution, stimulates creativity, promotes the exchange of ideas, and enriches campus life. Purdue University prohibits discrimination against any member of the University community on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin or ancestry, marital status, parental status, sexual orientation, disability, or status as a veteran. The University will conduct its programs, services and activities consistent with applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and orders and in conformance with the procedures and limitations as set forth in Executive Memorandum No. D-1, which provides specific contractual rights and remedies.

PROJECTS 1. Regular participation in discussion (25% of final grade). Participation in discussion can take many forms; for example, asking questions is a vital part of discussion. We will be doing some small group work in class and students are encouraged to collaborate outside of class. 2. Mid-term Presentation (20% of final grade): Each student will be required to give a presentation of an article from Keywords for American Cultural Studies, either individually or as a member of a two-person team. McKenzie, Caroline 9

The presentation must demonstrate comprehension of the ideas and issues of the article by means of examples drawn from multiple media. 3. Short annotations (c. 350 - 500 words) for each text (20% of final grade). 4. Final Project (35% of final grade): “Who do we think we have been? Who are we now?” Based on your readings in class, and on independent research outside of class, what does America represent in the dawn of the 21st century? Do old definitions remain or have they been modified over time in response to changes at home and overseas? Are we living up to our ideals or do we need to change those ideals? In short, what is the current “idea” of America, for whom does that ideal exist, and is it realistic? If not, why do we continue to hold onto it? You will present your findings at the end of the semester in 15-minute presentations, accompanied by an 8-10 page formal paper analyzing sources and expanding on the in-class presentation. More details about this project will come in class.

GRADING MATRIX FOR WRITTEN WORK

Analyzes and critiques the issue/material beyond the basic requirements. Carefully written, concise, thoughtful, well-structured, analytical, comprehensive in scope, raises provocative points or questions, incorporates previous topics or discussions, and relates the issue to specific examples. A Arguments are clearly linked and with effective transitions. Major themes and issues are analyzed. Especially rich with insight and originality. The thoughts and ideas expressed connect the writer to the reader. All submission guidelines are followed. Clearly stated thesis. Creative. Strong writing skills and mechanics.

In short, assignment is enjoyable to read because it flows easily from one part to another, imaginatively applies concepts or theories, demonstrates the insights or struggles of the writer, and is relevant to expanding and exploring our understanding of issues as they relate to “America” and American culture. Using the Writing Lab will help you achieve this. Addresses the issue and materials but not in a specific or concise manner. Depth and breadth of discussion, as well as analysis or critique of issues are somewhat lacking. May include a personal experience that has not been incorporated with the material. Arguments are loosely tied together. May have B overlooked key issues. Decent writing mechanics and thesis. All submission and format guidelines are followed.

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In short, the assignment is organized, concise and well referenced but may not flow as well as the "A" paper nor may not be as pleasurable to read in that the writer may have some difficulty injecting his/her voice into the material. What the B plus paper lacks in conciseness and organization may be compensated with imagination and insight or vice versa. Average response that fulfilled the basic parameters of the assignment but did little else. Detail, depth and assessment are lacking. Material is minimally incorporated. Key arguments are missing or difficult to locate. Development of C arguments is minimal, loosely connected and do not flow. Thesis is difficult to identify. Little creativity.

In short, the assignment lacks organization, conciseness or citations but has enough coherence to convey ideas or a position. The reader has difficulty distinguishing between fact, theory and opinion. Contains more opinion than anything else and theoretical concepts are minimally presented. Demonstrates an obvious lack of effort or comprehension of the assignment. D Difficult to understand due to major problems with mechanics, structure, or analysis and citation style. Lacks an identifiable thesis. Does not follow belo submission or format guidelines. Minimal creativity. w In short, the assignment minimally meets the requirements.

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AMST 201 Semester Reading Schedule, Fall 2014

The following reading and assignment schedule is tentative and may be changed during the semester. All reading assignments are to be read BEFORE the class they are listed. Meaning, when you come in to class, you should have read all of the readings listed for that day. Words highlighted in yellow are found in Burget and Hendler’s Keywords for American Cultural Studies. New York: New York University Press, 2007.

*** Denotes short (c. 350-500 word) response required (you may skip 4 responses)

WEEK 1: Introduction & Building a Critical Vocabulary T 8/26 Introductions, Review of Syllabus and Overview of Course R 8/28 Lauter, Paul “Reconfiguring Academic Disciples: The Emergence of American Studies” America 16, Citizenship 37, Border 29, Exceptionalism 108 WEEK 2: Building a Critical Vocabulary T 9/2 Frye, Marilyn “Oppression”*** Reading Notes for Frye Globalization 120, Identity 123 WGSS “Dream Team” lecture 1:30-2:45 p.m. (extra credit/optional) R 9/4 Macintosh, Peggy “Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack” *** List of Christian Privileges White 242, Race 191 WEEK 3: Building a Critical Vocabulary T 9/9 Berger, John “Ways of Seeing” *** Reading Notes for Berger WGSS “Dream Team” lecture 1:30-2:45 p.m. (extra credit/optional) R 9/11 Johnson, Allan G. “Patriarchy, the System: An It, Not a He, a Them, or an Us” (The Gender Knot: Unraveling Our Patriarchal Legacy) *** Reading Notes for Johnson WEEK 4: Important American Documents T 9/16 Truth, Sojourner “Ain’t I a Woman” *** “Declaration of Sentiments” *** WGSS “Dream Team” lecture 1:30-2:45 p.m. (extra credit/optional) R 9/18 King, Martin Luther (Jr.). “Letter from Birmingham Jail” 1963 *** Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech 1963 *** WEEK 5: Important American Documents T 9/23 Redstockings’ “Redstockings Manifesto” 1969 *** NOW Bill of Rights from Sisterhood is Powerful: An Anthology of Writings from the Women’s Liberation Movement. Ed. Robin Morgan 1970 *** WGSS “Dream Team” lecture 1:30-2:45 p.m. (extra credit/optional) R 9/25 Film WEEK 6: Social Construction of Race and Introduction to Critical Race Theory T 9/30 Lopez, Ian F. Haney “The Social Construction of Race” 1994 *** hooks, bell “Eating the Other: Desire and Resistance” *** Abolition 7, African 12 McKenzie 2

WGSS “Dream Team” lecture 1:30-2:45 p.m. (extra credit/optional) R 10/2 hooks, bell “Is Paris Burning?” *** hooks, bell “Seeing and Making Culture: Representing the Poor” *** Ethnicity 103, Slavery 221 WEEK 7: Social Construction of Race and Introduction to Critical Race Theory T 10/7 Ayo, Damali “I Can Fix It: Volume 1 Racism” *** Delgado, Richard and Jean Stefancic “Introduction” Critical Race Theory *** Asian 22, Orientalism 174 WGSS “Dream Team” lecture 1:30-2:45 p.m. (extra credit/optional) R 10/9 Singh, Nikhil Pal “Introduction: Civil Rights, Civic Myths” Black is a Country: Race and the Unfinished Struggle for Democracy 1-14 *** WEEK 8: Social Construction of Race and Introduction to Critical Race Theory T 10/14 No class: October Break R 10/16 Roediger, David R. “The Prehistory of the White Worker: Settler Colonialism, Race and Republicanism before 1800” *** WEEK 9: Introduction to Feminist Theory T 10/21 No class: Urvashi Vaid at 7:00 p.m. WGSS “Dream Team” lecture 1:30-2:45 p.m. (extra credit/optional) R 10/23 Grosz, Elizabeth “Refiguring Bodies.” Volatile Bodies: Toward a Corporeal Feminism*** Body 26, Marriage 152 WEEK 10: Introduction to Feminist Theory T 10/28 No class: bell hooks at 5:00 p.m. WGSS “Dream Team” NOT OPEN TO AMST THIS CLASS! R 10/30 Bordo, Susan “Feminism, Postmodernism, and Gender Skepticism” (Unbearable Weight: Feminism, Western Culture, and the Body) *** Gender 116, Sex 217 WEEK 11: Introduction to Feminist Theory T 11/4 Bordo, Susan “‘Material Girl’: The Effacements of Postmodern Culture” (Unbearable Weight: Feminism, Western Culture, and the Body) *** Performance 177 WGSS “Dream Team” lecture 1:30-2:45 p.m. (extra credit/optional) R 11/6 Bordo, Susan “Postmodern Subjects, Postmodern Bodies, Postmodern Resistance” (Unbearable Weight: Feminism, Western Culture, and the Body) *** WEEK 12: Introduction to Feminist Theory T 11/11 Film R 11/13 Film WEEK 13: Social Construction of Sexuality and Introduction to Queer Theory T 11/18 Butler, Judith Introduction from Gender Trouble 1990*** WGSS “Dream Team” lecture 1:30-2:45 p.m. (extra credit/optional) R 11/20 Sanders, Stephanie and June Machover Reinisch “Would You Say You ‘Had Sex’ If . . . ?” *** WEEK 14: Social Construction of Sexuality and Introduction to Queer Theory T 11/25 Film WGSS “Dream Team” lecture 1:30-2:45 p.m. (extra credit/optional) McKenzie 3

R 11/27 No class: Thanksgiving Break WEEK 15: Social Construction of Sexuality and Introduction to Queer Theory T 12/2 Jagose, Annamarie “Introduction.” Queer Theory: An Introduction 1-6 *** Queer 187 WGSS “Dream Team” lecture 1:30-2:45 p.m. (extra credit/optional) R 12/4 Jagose, Annamarie “Theorising Same-Sex Desire.” Queer Theory: An Introduction 7-21*** WEEK 16: Presentations T 12/9 Presentations R 12/11 Presentations

AMST 201 Supplemental Reading/Viewing List

REQUIRED ENTRIES: Capitalism 32 City 42 Civilization 44 Class 49 Colonial 52 Corporation 66 Culture 71 Democracy 76 Dialect 80 Diaspora 81 Disability 85 Domestic 88 Economy 92 Empire 95 Environment 101 Family 112 Identity 123 Immigration 127 Indian 132 Liberalism 139 Modern 160 Nation 164 Naturalization 170 Property 180 Public 183 Religion 201 Science 205 Secularism 209 Society 225 South 230 State 233 War 236 West 238

RECOMMENDED DOCUMENTS: Declaration of Independence 1776 Articles of Confederation 1777 US Constitution 1787-1788 Federalist Papers #10; #51 Bill of Rights 1791 Emancipation Proclamation 1863 War Department General Order 143: Creation of the US Colored Troops 1863 Gettysburg Address 1863 13th Amendment to the US Constitution: Abolition of Slavery 1865 14th Amendment: Civil Rights 1868 15th Amendment: Voting Rights 1870 Keating-Owen Child Labor Act of 1916 19th Amendment: Women’s Right to Vote 1920 Brown v. Board of Education 1954 Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech 1963 Civil Rights Act 1964 Voting Rights Act 1965

- See more at: http://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history-primary- documents#sthash.IAWLlBHN.dpuf

OTHER MEDIA WE’LL BE DRAWING FROM: ARTISTS/PHOTOGRAPHERS: Addario, Lynsey, The Criminalization Mothers Mapplethorpe, Robert McKay, Brett and Kate, Bosom Buddies: A Photo History of Male Affection Orloff, Deborah, Reclaiming the Night Sherman, Cindy, Untitled Film Stills Warhol, Andy Weems, Carrie Mae, The Kitchen Table Series; Thoughts on Marriage

TELEVISION: Aliens in America Almost Human American Horror Story Angel Army Wives Arrow Banshee Bates Motel The Big C Big Love The Big Bang Theory The Biggest Loser The Blacklist Blue Bloods Boardwalk Empire Breaking Bad Brooklyn Nine-Nine Buffy the Vampire Slayer Charmed Copper Criminal Minds CSI (any) The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Damages Deadwood Desperate Housewives Dexter Enlisted Family Guy Fargo The Following Frasier Friends Fringe Girls Glee The Good Wife Grey’s Anatomy Grimm Hannibal Heroes Homeland House House of Cards Hung I Dream of Jeannie In Living Color Intelligence (Canada) Intelligence (US) Justified Key and Peele Killer Women Law & Order: SVU The Leftovers Looking The Living Dead Mad Men Mad TV Malcolm in the Middle Married with Children Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD M*A*S*H Masters of Sex Miami Vice Mind Games Modern Family The Newsroom Nip/Tuck Numbers Nurse Jackie Once Upon a Time Orange is the New Black The Originals Oz Person of Interest Political Animals Portlandia Power Perception Reality TV shows (any) Revolution Roots RuPaul’s Drag Race Salem Saturday Night Live Seinfeld Sex and the City Scandal The Shield The Simpsons Sleepy Hollow Soap Operas (any) The Sopranos South Park Star Trek (any) Stargate (any) Talk shows (any) The Stephen Colbert Show Toddlers and Tiaras Treme True Blood True Detective Turn Twin Peaks Ugly Betty Under the Dome United States of Tara The Vampire Diaries Vice The Walking Dead Weeds White Collar Will and Grace The West Wing The Wire The X-Files Xena: Warrior Princess

FILMS: 3:10 to Yuma* 4 Little Girls (documentary) 12 Years a Slave* 50/50 A Mother’s Prayer Absolutely Positive (documentary) After Tiller (documentary)* Agnes of God* All About Eve All About My Mother American Beauty* American History X* American Psycho (also a novel* by Brett Easton Ellis) An American Rhapsody An Early Frost (made-for-television movie)* And the Band Played On* And Then There was One (made-for-television movie) Angels in America Annie Hall* As Good as It Gets* As Is The Avengers* Bamboozled Bastard Out of Carolina* (also a novel* by Dorothy Allison) Batman (any)* Batman Begins* A Beautiful Mind* A Better Life The Big Lebowski* The Birdcage* Black Swan* Bloomington Blue Jasmine* Body Typed: 3 Short Films on Media and Physical Perfection (False Images, The Guarantee, 34 x 25 x 36) Jesse Epstein* Bound* Boys Don’t Cry* Boys in the Band Boys on the Side* Boyz ‘n the Hood Brave Breaking the Surface: The Greg Louganis Story (made-for-television movie) Brokeback Mountain* (also a short story by Annie Proulx) But I’m a Cheerleader* The Butler Captain America* Casino The Celluloid Closet (documentary)* Chicago* The Children’s Hour* A Christmas Story* The Cider House Rules* Citizen Ruth City Lights Coach Carter The Color Purple* Cool Hand Luke Coming to America* Common Threads: Stories from A Quilt (documentary) The Contender Corrina Corrina* The Counselor* Crash* Crossing Over Cruising The Cure The Dallas Buyers Club* Dances with Wolves* The Dark Knight* Dead Man Walking* The Deer Hunter The Departed* Desert Hearts* Die Hard* Dirty Dancing* Django Unchained* Do the Right Thing* Driving Miss Daisy* The Education of Shelby Knox Edward Scissorhands* Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind* Fame Far from Heaven Fargo* Fast Food Nation (documentary)* Fast Times at Ridgemont High* Fight Club* Finding Nemo* Forrest Gump* From Danger to Dignity: The Fight for Safe Abortion (documentary) Frozen Full Metal Jacket* Gangs of New York* G. I. Jane* The Gift (documentary) Girl, Positive Girls Town* Go Toward the Light (made-for-television movie) The Godfather* Gods and Monsters* Gone with the Wind* The Good, the Bad and the Ugly Good Hair (Documentary)* Good Will Hunting* Goodfellas* The Graduate Gran Torino The Grapes of Wrath Grease* The Great Gatsby* Green Card* The Green Mile Harold and Maude* Hedwig and the Angry Inch* The Help Her High Art* Higher Learning* The Hours* If These Walls Could Talk I* If These Walls Could Talk 2* The Immigrant In and Out* In the Heat of the Night The Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls in Love* Into the Wild Iron Man* It’s a Wonderful Life* It’s My Party Jaws* Jeffrey* Jungle Fever Juno Just Another Girl on the IRT The Kids are All Right* Kinsey* The Kite Runner* Kramer vs. Kramer* Life and Death on the A-list (documentary) Little Miss Sunshine* The Living End The Lone Ranger* Long Time Companion* Love! Valour! Compassion!* Magic Mike* Malcolm X* Manhattan* Maria Full of Grace The Matrix* Midnight Cowboy Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil* Mildred Pierce (either version)* Milk* Million Dollar Baby Miss Congeniality Mississippi Burning Modern Times Mommy Dearest Monster Moscow on the Hudson* Mr. Smith Goes to Washington My Own Private Idaho* Mysterious Skin The Namesake Needles No Country for Old Men* The Normal Heart (made-for-television movie)* Of Mice and Men One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest* One Week Ordinary People* Our Brand is Crisis (documentary) Pandemic: Facing AIDS documentary) Parting Glances Pecker* Philadelphia* Platoon* Precious* Pretty Woman* The Producers* Psycho* Pulp Fiction* Radio Flyer* Raging Bull Rambo* Rain Man* Rear Window Rent* The Road*(also an INCREDIBLE novel* by Cormac McCarthy) Rocky Rosewood (based on real events)* The Ryan White Story (made-for-television movie) Saving Private Ryan Scarface School Daze* Set It Off* She Hate Me She’s Gotta Have It The Silence of the Lambs* Silver City* A Single Man* Sister Act* Sling Blade* Smoke Signals* Social Network* Something to Live for: The Alison Gertz Story (made-for-television movie) Spanglish Spiderman* Stand and Deliver Stand By Me* Stranger Than Paradise Steel Magnolias* Super Size Me (documentary)* Superman* Sweet Jane Terminator* Terms of Endearment The Thing Thelma and Louise* There Will Be Blood* Torch Song Trilogy* Toy Story* To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar* TransAmerica* The Truman Show* Twelve Monkeys* Under the Same Moon Unforgiven* Up* Up in the Air* The Visitor* Vito Wall Street* The Watermelon Woman We Were Here (documentary) The Wedding Banquet* West Side Story* The Wizard of Oz* The Wolf of Wall Street The World According to Garp* Yesterday Zero Patience * These are films I’ve seen, so I can give you a synopsis if you’d like.

NOVELS: Allison, Dorothy. Bastard Out of Carolina Alvarez, Julia. How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents Atwood, Margaret. The Handmaid’s Tale Brown, Rita Mae. Rubyfruit Jungle Butler, Octavia. Kindred; The Earthseed Series Cather, Willa. My Antonia (immigrant experience) Chopin, Kate. The Awakening Diaz, Junot. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (immigrant experience) Ellison, Ralph. The Invisible Man Erdrich, Louise. Love Medicine Eugenides, Jeffrey. Middlesex (immigrant experience) Hurston, Zora Neale. Their Eyes Were Watching God Irving, John. The Cider House Rules Kerouac, Jack. On the Road Lahiri, Jhumpa. The Namesake (immigrant experience) Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird McCarthy, Cormac. No Country for Old Men ---. The Road Morrison, Toni. Beloved ---. The Bluest Eye ---. Jazz ---. Paradise ---. Song of Solomon Nabokov, Vladimir. Pnin (immigrant experience) Naylor, Gloria. Linden Hills ---. The Women of Brewster Place Plath, Sylvia. The Bell Jar Prose, Francine. My New American Life (immigrant experience) Roth, Henry. Call It Sleep (immigrant experience) Sapphire, Precious Shteyngart, Gary. The Russian Debutante’s Handbook (immigrant experience) Sinclair, Upton. The Jungle Stein, Gertrude. Three Lives Steinbeck, John. East of Eden Stowe, Harriet Beecher. Uncle Tom’s Cabin Tan, Amy. The Joy Luck Club Tan, Shaun. The Arrival (immigrant experience) Twain, Mark. Huckleberry Finn Vonnegut, Kurt. Welcome to the Monkey House Waclawiak, Karolina. How to Get Into the Twin Palms (immigrant experience) Walker, Alice. The Color Purple West, Nathanael. The Day of the Locust Wright, Richard. Native Son

SHORT STORIES: Baldwin, James. Bambara, Toni Cade. “Girl” Barnes, Djuna. “Smoke” Cather, Willa. Chopin, Kate. “Desiree’s Baby” ---. “Regret” ---. “Story of An Hour” Davis, Rebecca Harding. “Life in the Iron Mills” Erdrich, Louise. LOVE MEDICINE Fitzgerald, F. Scott. “A Diamond as Big as the Ritz” Gaspell, Susan. “A Jury of Her Peers” Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “The Yellow Wallpaper” Hardwick, Elizabeth. “The New York Stories” Hawthorne, Nathaniel. “The Birthmark” ---. “Young Goodman Brown” Henry, O. “The Gift of the Magi” Hughes, Langston. “Thank You, M’am” Hurston, Zora Neale. “Sweat” Jackson, Shirley. “The Lottery” Jewett, Sarah Orne. La Guin, Ursula Kroeber. Larson, Nella. “Sanctuary” Melville, Herman. “Bartleby the Scrivener” O’Connor, Flannery. “A Good Man is Hard to Find” Palahniuk, Chuck. Poe, Edgar Allan. “The Fall of the House of Usher” Salinger, J. D. Thurber, James. “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” Twain, Mark. Updike, John. “A & P” Vonnegut, Kurt. “Harrison Bergeron” Walker, Alice. Short Stories, Collection Welty, Eudora. Wharton, Edith

POETRY: Alexie, Sherman Allen, Paula Gunn Atwood, Margaret Baraka, Amiri (LeRoi Jones) Brooks, Gwendolyn Cisneros, Sandra Diaz, Junot Dickinson, Emily Doolittle, Hilda (H. D.) Giovanni, Nikki Ginsberg, Allen Hayden, Robert Hughes, Langston Jong, Erica (Mann) Jordan, June Lazarus, Emma Lowell, Amy Mason, Bobbi Ann Millay, Edna St. Vincent Moore, Marianne Olds, Sharon Parker, Dorothy Phillips, Carl Piercy, Marge Plath, Sylvia Rich, Adrienne Rukeyser, Muriel Sarton, May Sexton, Anne Soto, Gary Snyder, Gary Teasdale, Sara Wheatley, Phillis Whitman, Walt

Web Links: BBC World Service http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/ The Guardian (British Labourite Newspaper) http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardian/todays_stories/0,,,00.html The Independent http://www.independent.co.uk/c/?ec=404 The Times of London (more conservative British daily) http://www.timesonline.co.uk/global/ (and just for kicks and a French perspective—remember Freedom Fries?)International Herald Tribune http://www.iht.com/ Other world newspapers in English (select story coverage from around the world) http://www.world-newspapers.com/ http://www.businessinsider.com/ford-destroys-cadillacs-rich-guy-ad-2014-3 Lies My Teacher Told Me: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BzTOX1xo8sgpN2JmYWRjOGEtYjhlMS00NzMwLTlj NWEtNTdiZTJkMDZlYWRh/edit?pli=1 John Oliver on US prison system: http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2014/07/21/john_oliver_prison_segment_on_last_ week_tonight_is_one_you_should_watch.html

RECOMMENDED READING FOR VARIOUS THEMES IN AMST: America: Langston Hughes, "Let America Be America Again" (PDF) Ralph Waldo Emerson, "The American Scholar" (http://digitalemerson.wsulibs.wsu.edu/exhibits/show/text/the-american-scholar)

Freedom: David Hackett Fischer, Liberty and Freedom (Introduction, pp. 1-13) David Hackett Fischer, Albion's Seed (excerpts on Freedom Ways) Jefferson, Notes on the State of Virginia (brief excerpt) (PDF) Frederick Douglass, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (chapters 1-2, 5-7 & brief excerpt from chapter 10) Walt Whitman, Democratic Vistas (excerpt from opening) (http://xroads.virginia.edu/~HYPER/Whitman/vistas/vistas.html) William Graham Sumner, What Social Classes Owe to Each Other (chapters 1-2 only) (http://oll.libertyfund.org/titles/346) Ronald Reagan, "A Time to Choose" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXBswFfh6AY) Langston Hughes, "Refugee in America" (aka "Words Like Freedom") ( http://www.nexuslearning.net/books/holt-eol2/Collection%208/refugee.htm) Franklin Delano Roosevelt, "Four Freedoms" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnrZUHcpoNA; hear: http://www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/fourfreedoms) Martin Luther King, "The Birth of a New Nation" (http://vimeo.com/24453571) Kate Chopin, "The Story of an Hour" (PDF) Charlotte Perkins Gilman, "Yellow Wallpaper" (PDF) Henry David Thoreau, Walden (a few very brief excerpts) (PDF) Emma Lazarus, "The New Colossus" (http://www.libertystatepark.com/emma.htm)

Democracy: James Madison, Federalist Papers, #10 and #51 (PDFs) Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America (excerpt) (PDF) John Dewey, "Creative Democracy" (PDF) Mark Twain, "The Curious Republic of Gondor" (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/3192/3192-h/3192-h.htm#link2H_4_0001) Gunnar Myrdal, An American Dilemma (excerpt) (https://archive.org/details/AmericanDilemmaTheNegroProblemAndModernDemocracy) Elizabeth Cady Stanton, "Declaration of Sentiments from Seneca Falls" (PDF) Martin Luther King, "Letter from Birmingham Jail" (PDF)

Individualism: Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Self Reliance" (PDF) Edgar Allan Poe, "The Imp of the Perverse" (PDF) W. E. B. Du Bois, The Souls of Black Folk (Forethought & Chapters 1, 6 & 11) David Riesman, et. al., The Lonely Crowd (Chapter 1) (PDF) Henry David Thoreau, "Civil Disobedience" (PDF) Walt Whitman, "Song of Myself" (PDF) EMILY DICKINSON

Equality: Thomas Paine, excerpt from "Dissertation on First Principles of Government" Chris Hayes, Twilight of the Elites (Chapter 2) Plessy v. Ferguson (excerpt) Brown v. Board of Education (excerpt) Anne Moody, Coming of Age in Mississippi (chapters 10-11) Bob Dylan, "Only a Pawn in Their Game" (lyrics) Kurt Vonnegut, "Harrison Bergeron " William F. Buckley, "Why the South Must Prevail" Ayn Rand, "The Age of Envy" (excerpt) Shirley Jackson, "The Lottery" Octavia Butler, Fledgling (entire book)

Opportunity: Richard Weiss, The American Myth of Success (Introduction) Horatio Alger, "Henry Trafton's Independence" Jacob Riis, How the Other Half Lives (Chapters 15 & 20, plus some additional images) Carl Sandberg, "Chicago" Bruce Springsteen, "The River" (lyrics) LBJ, "To Fulfill These Rights" Elizabeth Anderson, The Imperative of Integration (Chapter 6) Barbara Ehrenreich, Nickel and Dimed (entire book) Stephen Sondheim, Assassins (entire book) Stephen Sondheim, Assassins (listen to music)

Identity: Philip Gleason, "Identifying Identity" James Baldwin, "The Discovery of What It Means to Be an American" Barbara J. Fields, "Ideology and Race in American History" Randolph Bourne, "Trans-National America" Walter Benn Michaels, The Trouble with Diversity (Chapter 5) Dar Williams, "When I Was a Boy" (lyrics) F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (entire book)

Coda: America: Langston Hughes, "Let America Be America Again"