In the wake of the destruction of the World Trade Center (WTC) on September 11, 2001, a multifaceted body of literature emerged as a reaction to the events in New York City. In this course we will explore the ways in which literature covers and interprets such disasters as the Towers’ destruction and its aftermath. Proceeding from a broad definition of “literature,” we will not only examine fiction and poetry by prominent writers, including Don DeLillo, Jonathan Safran Foer, and John Updike, but also plays about 9/11 such as Anne Nelson’s The Guys (2001), graphic novels (e.g., Art Spiegelman’s influential In the Shadow of No Towers, 2004), and movies (e.g., “9/11” by James Hanlon and “11'09"01 - September 11”). Close attention will be paid to a wide range of topics such as “memory,” “trauma,” “grief,” and “aesthetic representation” as they are treated in literary texts. It is the purpose of this course to provide the students with a multiple set of perspectives of this event and demonstrate the deep impact 9/11 has had on contemporary American imagination.
A reader with a sample of texts will be made available at the beginning of the course. Students are expected to purchase the two novels:
- Don DeLillo, Falling Man (Picador)
- Jonathan Safran Foer, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (Penguin)
