Fictions du masculin

The aesthetics and politics of masculine identities in seventeenth- century France. Both literary representations and case studies of historical figures are considered. Topics include: the picaresque hero, male melancholy, effeminacy, salons and women's cultural authority, sodomy, the king's body. In addition to critical readings in gender theory and cultural studies, texts by Sorel, Molière, Lafayette; iconography; satirical literature.