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Class number:
2988
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Title: Early American Media |
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Department: English |
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Career: Undergraduate |
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Component: Seminar |
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Session: Regular |
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Instructor's Permission Required: No |
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Grading Basis: Regular |
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Units: 1.00 |
| Enrollment limited to 18 |
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Current enrollment: 12 |
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Available seats: 6 |
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Start date: Tuesday, January 20, 2026 |
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End date: Friday, May 8, 2026 |
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Mode of Instruction: In Person |
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Schedule: MW: 2:55PM-4:10PM, 115V - 106 |
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Instructor(s): Pokross, Benjamin |
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Prerequisite(s): None |
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Distribution Requirement: Meets Humanities Requirement |
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Note: This class fulfils the pre-1800 requirement/elective/additional literature or film course. It also fulfils the UVSJ and critical reflection requirement. |
Course Description:
We are inundated with many forms of media in contemporary life: film, tv, movies, books, texts, tweets, Snapchats, dms, etc. While this might seem like a recent development, this class will argue that America has always been a multimedia culture. Returning to the 17th and 18th centuries, we will examine sermons, speeches, pamphlets, diaries, wampum, Bibles, primers and more to reveal the complex communication networks of early America. In particular, we will consider how Black and Indigenous authors brought their own media traditions to writing and printing in English. Authors may include William Bradford, Anne Bradstreet, Benjamin Franklin, Samson Occom, Phillis Wheatley Peters, and Charles Brockden Brown. |