LITR 4232 American Renaissance 2010 final exam—Answers to Question A1

Jeanette Williams

Knowledge Is Power

     The American Renaissance class has proven to be quite beneficial to me. I have gained a wealth of knowledge that I realize would not have happened had I not taken this course.  Having a passion for reading is null and void if there is no practical application taking place.  Of all the literature courses that I have taken I would have to say that I have truly benefited in this one in a way that has impacted me for the rest of my life.  As stated before in the midterm exam, though I love to read my repertoire of the classics is limited.  Being African American and growing up as a child in the sixties and seventies I had little exposure to the many genres of literature. However, it is because of this class that I learned of these different genres that I had not been exposed to.

     What I most appreciated about this course is the variety of texts that Dr. White chose for the reading assignments. From Rip Van Winkle to Abraham Lincoln and many more, the course provided students with classic, popular, representative, and romantic literature.   One of the greatest things I will take away from this course is the ability to identify what type of literature I read.  I will also take with me the ability to properly identify and place in a category the kind of literature that I am drawn to as a reader.  Knowing what is being read beyond a story and having the ability to identify words and phrases that give better understanding of a particular text only enhances the reading.

     Although there were many terms and phrases discussed in the course there are a few that really attracted my attention.  The word gothic is one that I never knew was associated with so many things other than black.  After learning the term in this course with lecture notes provided by Dr. White I learned that gothic means more than just black.  The fact that it is associated with castles, forests, haunted houses, secret passages, blood and much more was very enlightening within itself.  It is after learning the term and its associations that I began to identify those things associated with the gothic and I must admit that I felt a sense of accomplishment.

     Not only is gothic a memorable term but sentimental stereotyping is one that really impacted me as a reader.  As much as I have read books or articles that describe African Americans or other cultures I never had knowledge of sentimental stereotyping.  I suppose this term impacted me most because I am African American and the sentimental stereotyping revealed to me that it is what others think of my culture.  This term was first introduced to me when the class had to read The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow   when it spoke of the Negroes having a good time showing their ivory teeth and also the description of the Negro messenger wearing torn clothes.  Once again after learning this term I am able to identify sentimental stereotyping when I read it.

     What I would like to do with the knowledge that I have gained from this course is to educate others.  However, the thing I would like to do most is seek to offer a literature class for grades 5-12 in the African American community.  My goal is to expose those students who would avail themselves to learn to the different types of genres in literature.  More than just exposing them to the genres I want to teach them how to analyze the texts they read and equip them with the ability to identify terms and phrases I have learned in this course.  Waiting until their first semester or later semesters in college is too late.  The delay causes people to have to work longer and harder to try and catch up with others who may have been exposed at an earlier age.  My goal as an instructor is to empower them with knowledge and the ability to be vocal in their classes because they know the material instead of sitting quietly because they feel inferior. Therefore I intend to apply all that I have learned in this class to equip others for higher education.