The history of the early twentieth century is, in many ways, a history of manufacturing. From the automobile to the airplane, the refrigerator to the toaster, the United States was a country that produced things. And the “Rust Belt” cities like Detroit, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Cincinnati were at the heart of this economic and social progress.
Similarly, because industry needed labor, this story of production was also one of immigration. It’s true that life in the factories, mills, and forges was not an easy life — not by any means. To romanticize it would be naïve and foolish. But in many ways it was the foundation of the middle class and the American Dream, bound up with an ideal that work was necessary and valuable and could provide a means for community and stability.
Yet in the 1970s and 1980s, as the economy began its shift from Industry to Information, these once thriving cities began to decline. Smoke stacks no longer symbolized progress but blight. So what is the Rust Belt narrative today? What stories are being told about this place? And what can they show us about ourselves?
We’ll also try to define the Rust Belt’s geographic and social boundaries, examine the intersections of its politics and culture, and discuss the socio-economic factors that are bound up in the history of the region.
To answer these questions, we’ll read fiction written by Rust Belt authors grappling with issues of place, identity, work, class, and gender. We’ll also supplement our readings with essays on literary theory and criticism.
Note: although we will practice extensive critical reading and writing, this class does not fulfill the upper-level writing requirement.
Readings will be selected from such books as:
• Brass, by Xhenet Aliu
• Western Avenue and Other Fictions, by Fred Arroyo
• American Salvage, by Bonnie Jo Campbell
• Look at Me, by Jennifer Egan
• The Turner House, by Angela Flourney
• American Rust, by Philip Meyer
• Crooked River Burning, by Mark Weingardner
Course Requirements:
Work will include several short response papers (1-2 pages), a longer (6-7 page) essay, and a final exam.