Feminist and Queer Literary Criticism

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

Feminist and queer literary criticism and cultural theory, with an emphasis on the past half-century. How have gender and sexuality, as well as collective ideas about gender and sexuality, affected the creation and reception of literature and other art forms? We'll spend the semester thinking with scholars, artists, writers, and activists who have taken up this question. Course materials will be a mix of literary, critical, and theoretical texts, including classic texts from second-wave feminist literary criticism and archival efforts; Black and Third World feminisms; Marxist feminism and feminist theology; clashing approaches to sexual practices and identities; feminist takes on psychoanalysis and deconstruction; and the genesis of queer theory and trans studies. Class will be entirely discussion-based; written work will include frequent reading responses, research-based term papers, and contributions to a class anthology.