Romero, Channette
TR 2 :20 PM
Park Hall 0139
Special Topic Title: Native Women Writers
This course will examine narratives by North American Indigenous women. We will begin by examining how select writers resist stereotypes of American Indian women by introducing their readers to the historic power Native women possess. We will then explore how narratives, poetry, and films written by North American Indigenous women address imperial history and its effects on Native women’s lives, with attention to such issues as gender roles, motherhood, sexuality, violence, and connection to land. Finally, we will examine Indigenous futurisms, where Native women writers use conventions from science fiction and fantasy to imagine more empowering futures for Indigenous peoples. Throughout the class, we’ll explore the ways contemporary Indigenous women use traditional Native gender roles (and/or revisions of these roles) as the basis for encouraging social change. Possible texts include Ella Deloria's Waterlily, LeAnne Howe's Shell Shaker, Mona Susan Power's A Council of Dolls, Louise Erdrich's Round House, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson's As We Have Always Done, Jennifer Foerster's Leaving Tulsa, Andrea Rogers's Man Made Monsters, and Darcy Little Badger's A Snake Falls to Earth. Possible films include Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers's A Red Girl’s Reasoning, Amanda Strong's Four Faces of the Moon, Nanobah Becker's The 6th World, and others.