Asian American Pop!

From bubble tea to K-pop, Asian diasporic culture is undeniably the shared lexicon of a global mainstream. In this seminar, we will engage with recent literary, televisual, and cinematic works to discern what they express about Asian American history, identity, and cultural politics. What is the difference between appropriation and authenticity? What can “popular” forms tell us about “serious” topics such as capitalism, citizenship, and empire? How does Asian American popular culture enact collective desires for belonging and memory? We approach such questions by focusing on how cultural representations inform the social and historical contents they depict through their aesthetic and formal choices. In particular, we will attend to the gendered and sexual circuits of cultural formation, with units on Asian American girlhood and queer diasporas. Authors include: Nam Le, Jhumpa Lahiri, Jenny Zhang, and Ocean Vuong. (not open to students who have taken FYSE 1562) 3 hrs. sem.