Transnational Lives: Culture, Film, and Fiction in the Iranian and Indian Diasporas

This course explores the lives of Iranian and South Asian diasporic communities with a focus on the cultures of migration, and their representation in cinematic and literary narratives. Engaging with the disciplines of ethnography, film studies, and literary analysis, this course evaluates various research methodologies, giving students tools to approach the diasporic experience from multiple vantage points. Students will examine how migration and transnationalism shape cultural identity, social narratives, and artistic expression, paying special attention to the ways in which diasporic communities negotiate belonging and adaptation in host societies like the United States.