Department of English

This course will focus on the late nineteenth-century literary movements of realism, naturalism, and regionalism, with an emphasis on such cultural phenomena as the growth of the modern city, the rise of the middle class, the development of an American vernacular and sense of place, and the social conflicts of the period. Readings include Bierce, CIVIL WAR SHORT STORIES; Twain, HUCKLEBERRY FINN; Chesnutt, THE CONJURE WOMAN; Howells, THE RISE OF SILAS LAPHAM; James, PORTRAIT OF A LADY; Chopin, THE AWAKENING; and Wister, THE VIRGINIAN. Two papers of moderate length will be assigned, and brief mid-term and final exams will be given.