Calendar

Please Note: The syllabus is subject to change! Please pay attention to announcements regarding any changes in course readings and assignments!

Thurs. Aug. 31 Introduction. Getting to know you. When God Made Woman… and sex and power.

Tues. Sept. 6 Arabic and Biblical Readings. Queen of Sheba Readings: Introduction CR 185-191; Readings in Translation, Sections A, B, D, F, H, found between CR 192-205; Bressler, "Feminism" CR 25-35
Thurs. Sept. 8 "The Qu'ran" (7th c.) CR 219-224, "Court Culture" (7th-8th c) CR 225-232, "Widening Horizons" (Jahiz, 9th c) CR 233-234; Tolmacheva, "Female Piety and Patronage in the Medieval 'Hajj'" CR 124-134

Tues. Sept. 13 Arabian Nights (10th c) CR; Robert Irwin, "Introduction" CR 71-76
Thurs. Sept. 15 Arabian Nights CR; Irwin, "Sexual Fictions" CR 77-88

Tues. Sept. 20 Arabian Nights CR ; Malti-Douglas, "Narration and Desire: Shahrazad" CR114-123
Thurs. Sept. 22 Turkish Poetesses and Tales. "Calumniated Empress and Poet" (5th c) CR 333-344; "Queen of Night" (14thc) CR 332-331; Zeyneb & Mihri (15thc) CR 332

Tues. Sept. 27 Chinese Saints, Sinners and Warriors. "Ballad of Mu-Lan" and "Break the Branch Willows" (6th) CR 236-237; "Tang Dynasty" (7th -10th c) CR 238; Yu Xuan-ji (9th c) CR 243; Li Qing-zhao (11thc) CR 244-245; "Pau Chao's Perfected Woman" (2ndc) CR 297-304; Birrell, "Women in Literature" CR 12-24
Thurs. Sept. 29 "Book of Filial Piety for Women" (8thc) CR 262-273; "Biography of the Daoist Saint" (10th c) CR 247-253; "Biography of the Great Compassionate One of Xiangshan" (11thc) CR 254-261
Tues. Oct. 4 "Funerary Writings by Chien Liang" (12th c) CR 274-280; "Customs of Various Barbarians" (13thc) CR 281-289; "Woman Adept Attains the Way" (16thc) CR 305-311
Thurs. Oct. 6 Midterm

Tues. Oct. 11 Japanese Ladies of the Court and the Night. Tale of Genji
Thurs. Oct. 13 Tale of Genji

Tues. Oct. 18 Fall Break-No Class
Thurs. Oct. 20 Tale of Genji; Ho, "Words Alone Cannot Express" CR 60-70

Tues. Oct. 25 Pillow Book
Thurs. Oct. 27 Pillow Book

Tues. Nov. 1 Pillow Book
Thurs. Nov. 3 Catch Up Day

Tues. Nov. 8 Saintly and Seductive European Women. "A Mother to a Young Warrior: Dhuoda of Uzès" (9thc) CR 312-321; Marie de France, Lais
Thurs. Nov. 10 Marie de France, Lais

Tues. Nov. 15 Marie de France, Lais
Thurs. Nov. 17 The Book of Margery Kempe; Gilbert & Gubar, "The Queen's Looking Glass" CR 36-58

Tues. Nov. 22 Margery Kempe
Thurs. Nov. 24 Margery Kempe

Tues. Nov. 29 Christine de Pizan (1364-1431); Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375), excerpts from Concerning Famous Women (1362) (handout)
Thurs. Dec. 1 Thanksgiving-no class!

Tues. Dec. 6 Christine de Pizan; Joan Kelly, "Early Feminist Theory and the Querelle des Femmes, 1400-1789" CR 89-112
Thurs. Dec. 8 Christine de Pizan

Mon. Dec. 8 Critical Analysis Paper due in my box or office by 12 noon.
Sat. Dec. 13 Last Day of Class
Monday December 19 FINAL EXAM-9 AM