19th Century Lives: Biography and Autobiography

3 credits

Who were the Victorians? This course invites us to, in Stephen Greenblatt's famous phrase, "speak with the dead": the vanished ancestors and figures of the transatlantic nineteenth century. Drawing on works by working class men and women as well as Indigenous and otherwise racialized men and women, the course considers both what it means to write a life and what that writing tells us about the ones who live it. Students will have the opportunity to research their own family members as well as notable historical figures, and will learn techniques of life-writing. Evaluation: interview, obituary, biography, academic term paper, final examination. ***Prerequisite: ENGL 100 and either ENGL 110 or completion of 48 credit hours.***