ENGL 268 Literary New York: Reading the City

As the most densely populated urban center in North America and a historical entry point for immigration, New York is famously diverse and mutable, but it is also financially punishing and rife with visible and covert segregation. “Literary New York” examines three centuries of writing about New York, work that captures the city’s contradictory essence and challenges its power structures. We will study authors, such as Walt Whitman, James Baldwin, Audre Lorde, and Teju Cole, who capture and critique the New York of their moment, as we make our own observations about daily life in the city—its inspirations and its barriers. We will also learn about the contemporary literary landscape of New York, visiting iconic bookstores, a “Big 5” publishing house, & literary nonprofits, attending readings, and going on literary walking tours. The course requires structured responses to each reading, a daily journal of observational writing, on site activities, a collective zine, and a final written project.