Southwestern American Indian Literature: In the Classroom and Beyond addresses several challenges that teaching Southwestern American Indian literature presents, and suggests innovative ways of teaching the material. Drawing on the author's experiences teaching literature both in the classroom and in the canyons of the Southwest the book covers works ranging from the famous (Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony) to the underappreciated (George Webb's A Pima Remembers). One chapter discusses teaching Sherman Alexie's Smoke Signals along with Silko's «Yellow Woman» as world literature; another functions as a guide to organizing a travel seminar that will enable students to experience American Indian literature and culture in potentially life-changing ways. This book provides a practical approach to the teaching of Southwestern American Indian literature without simplifying its inherent challenges.

Autorentext

The Author: Conrad Shumaker received his Ph.D. in American literature from the University of California, Los Angeles, and teaches courses in American literature and culture, American Indian literature, and world literature at the University of Central Arkansas. His essays have appeared in such journals as American Literature, The Journal of American Culture, The Arizona Quarterly, and Studies in American Indian Literatures. He has designed, organized, and led four travel seminars, taking students to meet with Pueblo, Hopi, Navajo, and Pima artists, storytellers, healers, farmers, and educators, and allowing them to experience firsthand the landscape where the literature originated.