Surrealism is often spoken about as if it were a small, exclusively European movement concerned only with art and literature; but in fact, it was and remains a large global counterculture with active groups in dozens of cities around the world––in Europe, Africa, Asia, and both Americas––and among its most active and important exponents have been dozens of people of color. Moreover, the ‘Surrealist Revolution’ aimed at by these communities encompasses not only the arts, but economics, politics, sociology, psychology, philosophy, and consciousness itself, and the Surrealists were among the first organized intellectual groups to place anti-colonial and anti-racist activism at the center of their activity. We will learn the history and prehistory of the movement, experiment with its techniques, and explore its ideas, literature, and art. While attentive to the European roots of the movement, we will focus on it’s relationship with colonialism, and on Surrealism as manifested outside of Europe. We will read portions of Breton’s Manifesto of Surrealism, all of Aimé Césaire’s Notebook of a Return to the Native Land, and several dozen Surrealist poems, manifestos, and essays. Each student will research and write on the colonial situation of one region in which Surrealist groups were active, and compose a critical essay about a particular Surrealist work, oeuvre, or theme. We will also regularly experiment with Surrealist games, group activities, and writing and mark-making methods, and students will develop pieces from their journals to include in a book to be published at the end of the class.
