ENGL 2065 - LGBTQ+ Literature

Credits: 3
Hours/Week: Lecture None Lab None
Course Description: This course, intended for all students, examines Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, related and allied (LGBTQ+) literature. This course welcomes students of all genders and sexual orientations. Students engage in critical analysis, form aesthetic judgments, and develop an informed personal reaction to LGBTQ+ literature. Readings and course materials focus on the following: LGBTQ+ issues, LGBTQ+ writers and readers, and LGBTQ+ audiences as fundamental to an understanding of the diverse human condition. Emphasis is placed on a wide range of literature, including historical texts, multiple and diverse genres, and cross-cultural literature.
MnTC Goals
6 Humanities/Fine Arts, 7 Human Diversity

Prerequisite(s): Course placement into college-level English and Reading OR completion of ENGL 0950  with a grade of C or higher OR completion of RDNG 0940  with a grade of C or higher and qualifying English Placement Exam OR completion of RDNG 0950  with a grade of C or higher and ENGL 0090  with a grade of C or higher OR completion of ESOL 0051  with a grade of C or higher and ESOL 0052  with a grade of C or higher.
Corequisite(s): None
Recommendation: ENGL 1020  with a grade of C or higher OR ENGL 1021  with a grade of C or higher.

Major Content

1. Literature by, about, and for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, related and allied (LGBTQ+) people
2. Literature by LGBTQ+ authors and for LGBTQ+ readers from a variety of cultures, regions, ethnicities, and/or classes
3. Literary traditions of LGBTQ+ authors and literature
4. Authors’ life experiences and influences on LGBTQ+ literature
5. Historical and artistic trends and influences on LGBTQ+ literature
6. Elements of literature, including plot, character, point-of-view, setting, theme, tone, style
7. Strategies of literary criticism with emphasis on queer-theory and feminist approaches
8. Definition of “literature” and canon formation

1. identify the scope and variety of works in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, related and allied (LGBTQ+) literature.
2. analyze those works as expressions of diverse individual and human values within a historical and social context.
3. analyze fiction, poetry, drama, and non-fiction in LGBTQ+ literature.
4. articulate an informed personal reaction to LGBTQ+ literature.
5. analyze basic literary elements in works studied.
6. interpret patterns and interrelationships between individual experience and socio-cultural systems as reflected in the literature.
7. analyze the social, legal, political, economic, and religious institutions and attitudes that affect human sexual and gender expression, as reflected in the literature.
8. evaluate LGBTQ+  issues by considering personal choices, human interrelationships, cultural systems, and institutions as seen in the literature.
9. explore various solutions to LGBTQ+ problems as seen in the literature and in current issues.
10. develop personal responses to various LGBTQ+ issues as expressed in the literature.

06. 02. Understand those works as expressions of individual and human values within an historical and social context.

06. 03. Respond critically to works in the arts and humanities.

06. 05. Articulate an informed personal reaction to works in the arts and humanities.
Competency 2 (7-10)
07. 01. Understand the development of and the changing meanings of group identities in the United States’ history and culture.

07. 03. Analyze their own attitudes, behaviors, concepts and beliefs regarding diversity, racism, and bigotry.

07. 04. Describe and discuss the experience and contributions (political, social, economic, etc.) of the many groups that shape American society and culture, in particular those groups that have suffered discrimination and exclusion.

07. 05. Demonstrate communication skills necessary for living and working effectively in a society with great population diversity.

Courses and Registration