Some students worry upper level courses may focus on incredibly specific subjects, but one 4000-level course in the English department allows students to work on their critical thinking and writing skills, all the while making sure everything relates back to a critical time in American History.
The class is Special Topics in African-American Literature: The Fight for Civil Rights in African American Literature and Culture, and it is taught by Susana Morris.
"Students are going to read a diverse set of readings from authors from the
'50s, '60s and '70s," Morris said. "There is the more well-known literature such as 'The Autobiography of Malcolm X' or Martin Luther King's 'Letter from a Birmingham Jail.' Then we'll also read things from folks in the black power movement, like Huey Newton, or literature from the black women's movement."
The first half of the class is focused primarily on first-hand documents from the Civil Rights Movement.
The second half branches out to relevant works of fiction, Morris said.
Students can expect to read books such as "Dreamer" by Charles Johnson, a book about a
man who works as Martin Luther King's stand-in during the Civil Rights Movement.
Morris said there is also a film portion of the class.
Students can expect to watch at least six films relating to the civil rights movement.
The Fight for Civil Rights is part of a series of African-American literature classes offered by the English department.
"There's two main courses in the English department," Morris said. "Survey of African-American Lit is the introductory course."
In the introductory course, Morris said they read things from a lot of different time periods.
In the special topics course, the second of the two main classes, students take a more in-depth look.
"This is connected to what I taught in the fall, but it focuses more on the middle decades of the 19th century," Morris said.
While Special Topics is offered by the University, Morris said the theme of the class was her own creation.
"As a professor, you can do whatever you like," Morris said. "(The topic of the class) changes every time. Last semester the theme was love and we examined topics of love throughout African-American literature."
Morris said The Fight for Civil Rights class is not just for English majors. "This class would be interesting to anyone," Morris said. "We always have plenty history majors, sociology majors. Lots of humanities and education students." Morris said the class puts a different spin on what is usually considered typical or boring subject matter.
"We might look at materials you might see in a political science class, but from a different perspective," Morris said.
Students from all walks of life and educational backgrounds can succeed in Special Topics in African-American Literature, Morris said.
"One of the best students I ever had was a biology major who is now in med school," Morris said. "She had some difficulties at first, but I think she wound up getting an 'A' on everything she did."
Morris said she thinks every student should take an upper-level English course, regardless of whether it is an AfricanAmerican literature class.
"I think that upper-level English classes are important because you'll be able to speak well and write well, no matter what field you go into," Morris said. "Those skills work alongside all these other fields, they inform them in a good way. Classes like this ask you to exercise different mental muscles."
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