We’re lucky to live in a vibrant literary culture, and in this course, we’ll explore one facet of that culture – short fiction. While grounding our knowledge of the genre in twentieth-century classics of short fiction, we'll focus our attention to recent work, sometimes very recent work (as in last week). Studying a range of short fiction by authors writing today, we'll consider how short fiction provides a source of pleasure and knowledge that is integral to the buzzing public conversations we call "culture." Attendance, participation, three short papers (4-5 pages), regular writing in the forums, and a final exam are required.