Joe Coulombe (jcoulomb@utm.edu) from 206.240.201.153 at 09/28/98 03:32PM
comment
    As a recently transplanted Northerner (more specifically, an upper mid-Westerner who lived six years in the East), I'm fascinated--like so many of you--with the regional stereotypes that are often imposed upon us. We might accept them; we might fight them; we might try to redefine them. But ultimately we have to come to terms with the categories in which others place us. For this Spring, I've been asked by the English department (which I've recently joined) to teach a course on Southern literature. Using works by men and women, blacks and whites, conservatives and progressives, we'll explore literary constructions of "Southernness" from the late 19th century through most of the 20th century. Needless to say, I'm a little uneasy about teaching Southern literature to Southerners. However, I plan to use the course--not as an opportunity to lecture at you--but as an open forum to investigate how previous literary constructions of "people and place" may contribute to present regional definitions. I hope some of you will consider joining me.