Advanced Topics in Literature and Culture (376-0-4)

Topic

Techno-Orientalism

Instructors

Michelle Nancy Huang
847/491-6837
University 226
Office Hours: T 2pm - 3pm; W 2pm - 3pm

Meeting Info

University Hall 118: Mon, Wed 2:00PM - 3:20PM

Overview of class

Techno-Orientalism names a variant of Orientalism that associates Asians with a technological future. This seminar will explore how Techno-Orientalist tropes are used by, played with, and rewritten by Asian American authors. We will study how twentieth-century and contemporary issues of technology, globalization, and financial speculation collide with a history of yellow peril and Asian Invasion discourse, as well as how these tensions manifest in figures and tropes such as robots, aliens, and pandemics. Texts include poetry, novels, short stories, comics, and film.

Class Materials (Required)

Franny Choi, The World Keeps Ending and the World Goes On (ISBN 978-0063240087)

Ling Ma, Severance (ISBN 978-1250214997)

Charles Yu, How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe (ISBN 978-0307739452)

Texts will be available at: Primary texts will be available at Norris Bookstore. All course readings besides the primary texts will be available in a course reader available at Quartet Copies.

Class Attributes

Advanced Expression
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
Literature & Fine Arts Distro Area
U.S. Perspectives on Power, Justice, and Equity