Writing the Urban Experience

Writing the Urban Experience is a Social Science course taught by Will Ryan.

This course satisfies Division I requirements.

Course Description
Tumultuous and robust, American cities have certainly enjoyed a rich history. Since this course is primarily a writing seminar, we're interested in the voice of that urban experience, beginning with the literary realism of the late 19th century and culminating in the hip-hop culture of today. Are there patterns to the expression? How and why do shifting populations tell different stories? We?ll read history, biography, autobiography, journalism, fiction, and poetry in order to understand the tensions that have informed urban life. More importantly, we?ll study these writings with an eye towards adopting their approaches in the critical and creative written assignments.

Learning Goals

 * Multi-Cultural
 * Reading
 * Writing