
ATHENS, W.Va. – After spending the semester researching voices often unrepresented in American and Appalachian literary canons, students in English 327: American Literature to 1865 will present their findings to the public next week.
The first presentation will be held on Monday, December 2 from 1 to 1:50 p.m. The second will be held on Wednesday, December 4 from 1 to 1:50 p.m. Both events will take place in the President’s Room of Marsh Library. There is no cost to attend.
Dr. Blevin Shelnutt, assistant professor of English, says her students spent the semester reading American literature alongside perspectives of “people whose voices have been left out of traditional stories about the region’s and nation’s history.”
Shelnutt says this project is rooted in the idea that we understand one another and ourselves through the act of telling stories. In the presentations, students will introduce the audience to some of the stories they discovered and will explain how they changed their concept of the past. The accompanying visual aids will remain on display in the library.
Concord’s Appalachian Book Collection, recently donated by alumna Judy Ann Teaford, served as a research tool for this project. The endeavor is also part of the Bonner Foundation’s service-learning course development program.
CONTACT:
Lindsey Byars
Concord University
Office of Advancement
PO Box 1000, Athens, WV 24712
(304) 384-5223
http://www.concord.edu
After 4 p.m.
lbyars@concord.edu
Cell: 304-887-6816
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