230254 Caribbean Women Writers: Resistance and Revolt (S) (WiSe 2014/2015)

Genaue Termine folgen. Eine selektive Teilnahme an der Konferenz zu Widerstand in der Karibik, ZiF (22.-24.1.15) ist Bestandteil des Kurses.

Caribbean Women Writers: Resistance and Revolt

In this course, we will examine a sampling of literary texts by women from the English-, French-, and Spanish-speaking Caribbean (texts in English tranlation). These texts will be selected around the theme of rebellion: some by authors who depict physical and psychological resistance to enslavement; some that challenge a colonial ideology that posits the colonized—and especially colonized women—as lesser, inferior, and weaker; some that question European standards of beauty and success; all subverting forms of patriarchal domination. Using the motif of resistance and revolt to guide our readings, we will address the following issues: the roles that women are expected to play both within traditional households and within the larger society; constructions of “race,” “gender,” and “nation” in the Caribbean; the ways in which class, gender, sexuality, and race intersect.
Texts may include: Julia Alvarez, In the Time of the Butterflies; Michelle Cliff, No Telephone to Heaven; Maryse Condé, I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem; a complete list will be provided by late September.