On successful completion of this subject, students should be able to:

1. Articulate the key elements and features of a series of representative works of short fiction from the Americas.
2. Develop an original, closely-argued response to a question about short fiction couched in theoretical or historical terms.
3. Explain the role of the press and particular prestigious magazines in shaping American short fiction in the twentieth century.
4. Identify and describe genres of short fiction from the 'micro-story' to the novella, giving an account of their conventions.
5. Understand the mechanisms by which narrative tension is maintained in short fiction.
6. Analyze the ways in which short fiction constructs and undoes selves.

Short fiction in the twentieth century:
- The limits of short fiction: how short can It be? where does The novel begin?
- writers, publishers, editors, readers: The periodical press and The short story
- theories of short fiction from The Russian Formalists to Guillermo Martinez
- short fiction and narrative selves
- gender, race and culture in The short story
The texts will be drawn from the following national and regional literatures:
- Argentina
- Brazil
- Mexico
- The French-speaking Carribean
- USA
- Canada