Readings in American Literature

3 units

In this class we will examine the relationship between 21st-century American fiction and the new forms of community and commerce made possible by the Web. How have developments like Facebook, online gaming, and the blogosphere shaped contemporary narrative innovation? What do these writers have to say about the egalitarian potential, aesthetically and politically, of these new technologies? How do old media types relate to new media values like "interactivity" and "the wisdom of crowds"? Readings will likely include texts by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Dennis Cooper, Don DeLillo, Jennifer Egan, Dave Eggers, Shelley Jackson, Tao Lin, Thomas Pynchon, Jess Walter, and contributors to the Electronic Literature Collection. Satisfies the Twentieth century and beyond requirement.