Literature and Identity. The stories we consume inform, and often serve at the raw materials for, the identities we create for ourselves, and by presenting us with characters and circumstances unlike our own, form the foundation for the ability to empathize with others. In this course, we will read and analyze texts ranging from ancient Anglo-Saxon epics to contemporary poetry infused with the rapid-fire cadences of social media, and look at them through the lens of identity. Whose stories get told, and who gets to tell them? How can characters we seem to share nothing in common with teach us about ourselves and the world? What is the difference between identifying and empathizing with a character, and how do the two complement each other? This course will focus on developing student’s ability to read literature through a critical eye and produce analytic writing about fiction and poetry. Students will keep reflection journals on all readings, and will submit critical essays at the end of each unit.
Instructors: Bob Proehl and Regina DeMauro
Instructor Bios: **Though co-teaching the course throughout, Bob will be the primary person in the classroom throughout the Fall semester and Regina will be the primary person in the classroom throughout the Spring semester.**
Bob Proehl is the author of the novels A HUNDRED THOUSAND WORLDS, THE NOBODY PEOPLE, and THE SOMEBODY PEOPLE. His work has appeared in American Short Fiction, Stone Canoe, the 33 1/3 book series, and online at Salon and PopMatters. He graduated from Boston University with a Masters in Literature, is a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellow in Fiction, and has worked as a lecturer at Wells College, as well as an artist in residence at the Chautauqua Institute and the Saltonstall Foundation for the Arts. He lives in Ithaca with his wife, daughter, and too many dogs.
Regina DeMauro is the Teen Services Librarian at Tompkins County Public Library where she focuses on collection development, programming, and services to teen patrons. A fan of YA literature, she enjoys speculative fiction, especially fantasy, and has a soft spot for media that features LGBTQIA+ characters as well.
Required Materials: pencil; notebook and folder or looseleaf notebook; assigned books*
*Depending on where you purchase them, participants should expect to pay $20-40 total for assigned books. NOTE: many books may be obtainable for free through the Tompkins County Public library system with some advanced planning.
TEEN DAY Ithaca 