ENGL 385-02, Advanced Topics: Medieval Literature, Fall 2007

Abstract

This course is designed to introduce you to women writers of the Middle Ages who wrote in English, French, and Latin. lt examines the writings of medieval women - abbesses, merchants, wives, mothers, and mystics - to explore the challenges that female writers presented to orlhodox Christianity, to gender stereotypes, and to medieval political and social structures, The course has three primary objectives: to discover the rich variety of women's literary voices in the Middle Ages, to analyze the works of medieval women in their historical context, and to explore the relationship between medieval and contemporary theoretical issues concerning gender and literature, As a junior seminar for the English major, this course also has a secondary objective, which is to hone your skills of analyzing literary criticism and literary theory to develop your readings of the literature itself.