2026
Course Title: Proseminar I Culture Studies
Nation and Multispecies Belonging in Migration and Refugee Narratives
Department of English, University of Heidelberg
(Summer Semester 2026)
Description:
“Oh, weather, my question to you,
As one of many genocide survivors, is why-
why like the […] government,
do you still set us on fire?”
(Azad Mohammed, “Misfortune,” I Am a Rohingya, p. 48.)
What if belonging did not depend on national borders, but on the planet we share? This proseminar examines how migration and refugee narratives decentre the nation to rethink belonging through the environment. We will explore how both fictional and non-fictional narratives depict interconnected life-worlds (including rivers, animals, weather, water, and landscapes) as shaping experiences of migration, memory, and identity. Particular attention will be paid to narrative strategies such as perspective, setting, and motifs in articulating ecological forms of belonging. Alongside close readings of selected narratives, students will be introduced to key concepts from migration and refugee studies and environmental studies.
Requirements: regular attendance, active participation, a presentation, and a final exam.
Course Materials:
Ed. Byrne & Doja, I Am a Rohingya (2019) (selected poems will be made available before class)
Amitav Ghosh, The Hungry Tide (2004) (novel)
Nam Le, The Boat (2008) (selected short fiction will be made available before class)
Dir. Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012) (film) (Available on Netflix)
Amitav Ghosh, The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable (2016) (selected excerpts will be made available before class).
Dr. Jayana Jain 