Official Course Description
What can we learn – and unlearn – from Indigenous voices in film and literature? This course explores examples of literary and film narratives by and about First Nations and other colonized peoples in order to introduce students to the basics of how literary writing relates to moviemaking as not just commercial enterprises but more importantly tools of empowerment. By focusing on the dynamics of “owning” stories – both honoring and possessing them – across media, the course also helps to elaborate the conditions of historic changes in Indigenous people’s lives that are taking place within our lifetimes, such as the Standing Rock protests. One of the wonders of the internet age is that Indigenous peoples all over the world are able to share their own stories as never before. Engaging with their changing understandings of history and representation prepares everyone to become better allies in decolonial struggles for political autonomy.
Student Course Description
The Indigenous Film and Literature course covers a range of ideas, including self-identity, language, culture, traditions, and political and social struggles surrounding Indigenous People in Northern American, Australia, and New Zealand. From analyzing and discussing literary works and films, this course aims to uncover the ramifications of deep-rooted oppression our past is riddled with when it comes to Indigenous People and how to emphasize their voices today to continue to educate and acknowledge their role in modern-day society. Students collaborate through in-class discussions and continuous weekly discussion postings online to share new ideas, analyze media, and provoke new concepts and ways of thinking about, at times, incredibly sensitive topics. Major projects include a Midterm essay on a topic of student’s choice that relates to what was covered in the first half of the course, an Analyzing Indigenous Media project where students identify a work of literature or film that the class has not covered in-depth and provide a close-reading to identify how it relates to previously examined themes, and then a Final Essay at the end of the term.
