Historical Narrative and the Graphic Novel
HIST 372
Spring 2026
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01
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Historical narratives are all around us -- from the films and television we watch, to the murals and monuments we walk past on the street, to the underlying foundations of the jokes we tell or the phrases we say. Building from this assumption, that we are surrounded by historical narratives both explicitly and subliminally, this seminar will focus on the ways that graphic novels engage with historical storytelling and historical narratives. The course will focus on how graphic novelists tell history, with particular emphasis on modern U.S. history in a transnational framework. We will read across graphic novel genres, from historically-inspired mysteries to memoirs to young adult fiction set in the contemporary moment. Alongside these graphic novels, we will read the work of historians and interdisciplinary scholars who have written about the histories told in illustrated format. The course will therefore provide snapshots of transnational twentieth- and twenty-first-century U.S. histories, with each focusing on a different time period and community, while asking us to take seriously the question of how we tell history beyond the confines of academia. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
SBS HIST |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Graded |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (History Minor)(History) |
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Past Enrollment Probability: 75% - 89% |
| SECTION 01 |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
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Incognegro: A Graphic Mystery (New Edition) by Mat Johnson and Warren Pleece
A Bintel Brief: Love and Longing in Old New York by Liana Finck
The Puerto Rican War: A Graphic History by John Vasquez Mejias
The Best We Could Do: An Illustrated Memoir by Thi Bui
Borders by Thomas King and Natasha Donovan
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Examinations and Assignments:
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Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
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| Instructor(s): Ulysses,Monique Flores Times: ....R.. 01:20PM-04:10PM; Location: FRANK117; |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 15 | | SR major: 3 | JR major: 3 | | |
| Seats Available: 0 | GRAD: X | SR non-major: 2 | JR non-major: 2 | SO: 3 | FR: 2 |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 0 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 0 | Unranked: 0 |
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