Duration
30h Th
Number of credits
Lecturer
Coordinator
Language(s) of instruction
English language
Organisation and examination
Teaching in the first semester, review in January
Schedule
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Learning unit contents
The course will focus on contemporary South African fiction of the post-Apartheid period.
After a general introduction to South African history and politics, including the passage to a democratic system under the leadership of Nelson Mandela in 1994, we shall discuss a selection of fictional works variously encoding the moral confusions and the political ambiguities of white liberal subjects who share a feeling of disorientation in the face of the very political dispensation (democracy and racial equality) which they themselves always desired.
One aspect of our reflection, which may be more than incidental, will concern the relevance of this classic post-colonial situation to our own "implication" (M. Rothberg) in an age of migrations and climate injustice.
Learning outcomes of the learning unit
A gain in political self-consciousness, perhaps.
Prerequisite knowledge and skills
An interest in literature, and in the world.
A good grasp of English may help.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
Thinking, individually and collectively, the latter in the context of heuristic seminars.
Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)
Face-to-face course
Additional information:
Face to face(s).
Recommended or required readings
Compulsory reading:
Nadine Gordimer, The House Gun (1998; Bloomsbury)
J.M. Coetzee, Disgrace (1999; Vintage)
Damon Galgut, The Impostor (2008; Atlantic Books)
Optional reading:
The Promise, the latest novel by Galgut, will also be glanced at.
Exam(s) in session
Any session
- In-person
oral exam
Additional information:
An oral exam will provide the students with an opportunity to demonstrate the extent of their personal reflection about the novels, based on a selection of critical material.
Work placement(s)
Not applicable.
Organisational remarks and main changes to the course
The course will be organized in the first term and take place in room A4/6/8 on Wednesdays (2-4pm).
Contacts
Prof. Marc Delrez, marc.delrez@uliege.be