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Refugee and Exile Writing is an e-learning course. The course is prompted by the current influx of people into Europe. By studying past and present works from various genres—novels, poems, personal testimony, graphic novels, film, and theoretical texts—we will examine the ways in which leaving home and adapting to new circumstances are depicted. How are exiles’ and refugees’ experiences similar or different? Can exile be construed in positive terms—for example as a process of self-discovery—as some writers claim? What are the emotional, psychological, and socio-economic consequences of displacement? Rather than construing refugees and exiles exclusively as victims of political, economic and environmental crises, the seminar will investigate qualities of resilience, adaptability, and self-agency.
Our texts will shed light on the question of what host countries gain from the cultural output of exiles and refugees. Can such cultural output shape local and global views towards outsiders? How can host countries become more hospitable? Must refugees and exiles remain strangers? What does it mean to be on the move, to wait?
Primary texts and theoretical readings in English may include works (and excerpts) by Said, Arendt, Joyce, Rushdie, Achebe, Eagleton, Malouf and Sacco. Readings will need to be completed prior to the start of each session and will be made available in electronic form. A few texts will need to be purchased. Assessment will involve class discussion, participation, written work and oral presentations. |
