Course Description
A woman looks in the mirror and silently criticizes what she sees, perceiving flaws and imperfections that make her turn away from her own image and hate her own body. When she does this, she is scolded for being “too hard on herself,” and cautioned against internalizing messages from the media. A woman turns the camera to herself in a moment of delight and joy, snapping a picture of a beaming smile. When she does this, she is excoriated for her narcissism and vanity.
Self-doubt and self-assurance are not mutually exclusive; they are overlapping conditions that signify the competing demands placed not only on women’s presentations of self, but also on their very perceptions of self. Existing somewhere in the grey space between insecurity and grace, women struggle to define their own identities, to embody their principles, and to resist demands to level themselves off both physically and mentally. In this course, we will explore how women writers negotiate identity and place. To this end, we will examine the works of a broad range of authors from the United States, the Caribbean, Latin America, Europe, Africa, and Asia to trace the ways in which different places situate women in the competing demands surrounding the elaboration of an authentic self.
Consider the images below. Which is more "true"? The artist's self-portrait in paint, or the photograph of the artist by a lover?
Self-doubt and self-assurance are not mutually exclusive; they are overlapping conditions that signify the competing demands placed not only on women’s presentations of self, but also on their very perceptions of self. Existing somewhere in the grey space between insecurity and grace, women struggle to define their own identities, to embody their principles, and to resist demands to level themselves off both physically and mentally. In this course, we will explore how women writers negotiate identity and place. To this end, we will examine the works of a broad range of authors from the United States, the Caribbean, Latin America, Europe, Africa, and Asia to trace the ways in which different places situate women in the competing demands surrounding the elaboration of an authentic self.
Consider the images below. Which is more "true"? The artist's self-portrait in paint, or the photograph of the artist by a lover?
Which do you find more beautiful? Why?
Course Goals
Students completing a 300-level literature seminar will be able to:
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Goals for this set of readings and tasks
For this section, students will:
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