ENGL 125On the Farm: Agriculture and Literature

3 credits · English · Penn State

This course explores representations of farming in literature, with a focus on American texts. How have literary and popular texts shaped cultural perceptions of agriculture in the United States? How have novels, poetry, drama, and films defined and challenged cultural understanding of the practices, participants, and values (economic, cultural, ethical) of farming? Topics might include representations of the family farm and its significance, concepts of property and cultivation, historical developments in agri-business, and/or the U.S. farm and farmer in the cultural imagination.