This course surveys a wide-range of women’s writing — that is, writing by and for women — in medieval and Early Modern England. We will trace how and why some of our earliest works in English were written for women, and how women’s complicated relationship to writing continued to shape the way that literature itself was imagined in the late Middle Ages, when English writers were self-consciously laying the foundation of a national literary history. We’ll also explore which kinds of writing were considered appropriate to women as writers and readers and why, and how the idea that some genres and modes of reading are “gendered” arose (that is, the prehistory of “chick lit”). Some time will also be devoted to investigating how ideas about gender and writing influence the presentation of works in manuscript and early print culture. What can looking at medieval manuscripts and early-modern books tell us about women’s participation in literary culture? We’ll learn a little medieval paleography (the study of handwriting) in order to answer these questions and look at literature that women actually wrote.

Readings will include works by Marie de France, Julian of Norwich, Margery Kempe, Anne Askew, Mary Sidney, Thomas Bentley, Elizabeth Tudor, and the most prolific early modern author, Anonymous; genres include romance, lyric poetry, religious writing, and autobiography. The reading list is also open to our discoveries in some excellent online archives.

Course Requirements:

Course requirements include four short response papers, an annotated bibliography of criticism, and a final paper or archival research project.

Intended Audience:

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Class Format:

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