Literature and Documentary Film in the Century of Climate Politics

According to Kate Aronoff, we are living through a century of climate politics. In this course, we will spend time with literature, documentary film, and poetry to explore both general and specific, place-based struggles for environmental justice. We will wrangle with some of the following questions: How do environmental justice issues relate to and shape climate action? What formal and stylistic tools do writers use to accomplish documentary ends, and how do these tools intersect with action-based approaches to environmental crises? We will also think about the political and ethical dimensions of environmental justice struggles. This will allow us to consider how writers and other cultural producers can illuminate pathways to greater flourishing for both people and the planet. During our time together, we will develop a shared sense of the challenges and responsibilities that come with living and learning on a warming planet.