"Terrible Beauty": Literature and the Terrorist Imaginary

Why does terrorism fascinate literary writers in the modern period? Is terrorism the figure of something that is unrepresentable in fiction, or is it a type of direct political action that fiction writers aspire to? Can literature's humanistic role of allaying terror survive an age of spectacular politics? How susceptible is terrorism to "aestheticization"? Texts will include works by Conrad, Flannery O'Connor, Naipaul, Dennis Cooper, Frantz Fanon, and Ngugiwa Thiong'o. Enrollment limited to 20 seniors, juniors, and sophomores. Banner registrations after classes begin require instructor approval.