The CEA Forum - Winter/Spring 2006 - Special Section: Region(s) - Teaching Illinois - Developing a Course on State Literature

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by SANS

“Teaching Illinois: Developing a Course on State Literature” discusses how and why to design a literature survey course centered on a specific state, using Illinois as the example. The article explains motivations such as curriculum variety, faculty renewal, and expanding understanding of place and regional history. It details course enrollment outcomes and student interest driven by a regional focus. It also describes how using region rather than genre or period supports broad historical coverage and cross-genre connections, linking landscape and lived experience to literary development.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages5

Reading Time13 min

AccessFree to download

Special Section: Region(s)

Teaching Illinois: Developing a Course on State Literature

Why develop a literature survey course particular to a state?

Benefits of using region as the lens

The CEA Forum Winter/Spring 2006: 35.1 SPECIAL SECTION: REGION(S) TEACHING ILLINOIS: DEVELOPING A COURSE ON STATE LITERATURE Beth Widmaier Capo What makes someone an "Illinois Author"? What role do these writers play in American literature? How has Illinois been presented as a setting in literature? These were a few of the questions prominent on a promotional brochure last Spring semester for a new course I would be offering in the Fall. Now that the course has been successfully completed, I'd like to share why developing a course on state literature is valuable, and how to go about doing so. Thus this article is structured around answering questions that I had, and that may be plaguing you. While my essay is specific to a course on Illinois, I believe that useful information can be extrapolated to other situations and may help you develop a course on the literature of your own state. Why develop a literature survey course particular to a state? I'll begin with a personal reason: adding variety to the curriculum. I'm an assistant professor at a small, private liberal arts college in Illinois, aptly titled Illinois College as a marker that it was the first college in the state to conduct classes and award the baccalaureate degree in 1829 (􀳦College of 􀳦 Firsts'􀳦) . As the resident Americanist in a department of eight full-time faculty, I teach an early American survey every Fall. The course is designed as a broad survey for non-majors at all levels, although it does occasionally 􀳦 hook􀳦 students into declaring an English major. I proposed teaching a course on Illinois authors in part selfishly, to replace the early American survey in the 2005-2006 course offerings. The process of updating our existing courses and the work of researching and developing new courses is, I believe, very valuable to keeping faculty fresh engaged with the discipline. While it entails more work in preparation, a new course can serve as a 􀳦vacation􀳦 from an old standard that may be going stale. A second reason to develop a course on state literature was to expand my knowledge of what was, to me, a new home. However, researching the literature of place can bring new information even to those who have lived their whole lives in the same state, and structuring the discovered literature into a coherent curriculum can reveal connections between canonical works and newfound gems of regional writers. In Rediscoveries: Literature and Place in Illinois, Robert C. Bray asks an intriguing question: 􀳦Can the ethos of a state or region or nation be adequately understood if a considerable segment of its literature, though no more than a century removed in time, goes almost entirely unread?􀳦 When researching state literature you will no doubt find, as I did, many works that shed a new light on local history, people, and places, yet are part of no official curriculum. As David C. Pierce and Richard C. Wiles note, 􀳦the local is the point of departure for all life􀳦 (3) . How could reading the literature specific to my town, region, and state help me better understand the place and its people? And, more importantly, how would it aid students in understanding literary history? The proposal for an Illinois Authors course was eagerly accepted. The college prides itself on its unique history, as I'm sure every college does, and the course was of interest because it could promote and put into context the college's role in the region. The course might be of interest to local community members and groups and distinguish our curriculum from that of several local colleges. It was also hoped that the course would interest our student body (89% are from Illinois) . The course was fully enrolled, indicating that students found it an appealing choice to meet a humanities requirement, and 20 of the 22 students in the course were from the state. Indeed, in the post-course survey I conducted, all but one of the students said they selected the course from among a varie

FAQs

Why does the author recommend developing a state literature survey course?

To add variety to the curriculum and renew faculty engagement, and to expand understanding of a “new home” by structuring local literature into a coherent program for students.

How was the Illinois Authors course received by students?

The course was fully enrolled, and in post-course survey results nearly all students reported choosing it because the regional focus drew their attention.

What benefits come from using region instead of genre or period?

A regional lens enables a broad historical range, supports multiple genres in one course, and helps connect students’ experiences with landscape and literature while illustrating how literary techniques develop alongside major movements.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by SANS