Course Schedule and Catalog

Department: English

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: GENERATION X IN LITERATURE AND CULTURE ***** Our course surveys several cultures associated with Generation X in order to ask: what, who and why is Gen X? Are today's students Gen X, Gen Y, both? We begin by establishing broad sociological and historical contexts, asking after the differences between slacker culture, Gen "Mex," and that of the hip hop nation. We then move to reading a series of Gen X literary, musical and film texts. Early "classics" include Coupland and Ellis alongside later "response" Gen X texts like Liu, Schweser & Himelstein, Nicholson, Kadohata. Films include New Jack City, Slacker, Smoke Signals, Quadrophenia. Conclusions focus on so-called Gen Y (or Gen 9/11). Two papers + final project. ***** Also offered as WGST 389 Repeatable for Credit.