HUMS 622
The Third Woman
Indira Karamcheti
| Course Description | |
| How are "Third World" women represented and understood, by those in the First World and by themselves? Analyzing such iconographic representations as the Orientalized woman, the exoticized/eroticized woman, the earth mother, the debased and exploited laborer, or the witch/tempress, we will study how these representations developed historically, questioning their persistence, and their resistance or appropriation. Studying films, still images, and literary texts, we will examine the collisions, collusions, and conflicts between views from "over here" and "over there." | |
| Requirements | |
| Students will be responsible for four response papers (1-2 pages each), one class facilitation (2-3 pages), two short essays (3-4 pages each), and a final research paper (5-6 pages). | |
| Required Texts | |
| Alloula, The Colonial Harem El Saadawi, Woman at Point Zero Condé, I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem Hulme, The Bone People Roy, God of Small Things Emecheta, The Joys of Motherhood Kincaid, Lucy: A Novel Readings: Fanon, “Algeria Unveiled” RECOMMENDED: MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers FILMS: relevant parts of the following movies will be shown in class, but you are welcome to watch them in their entirety. If you cannot find them in commercial venues, I have put them on two-hour reserve in the Science Library: Battle of Algiers, Devi, and Sugar Cane Alley. |
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| Course Calendar | |
| WEEK ONE: Orientalism, Representation, and Ways of Seeing | |
| June 28 | Introduction |
| June 30 | Battle Algiers, shown in class Fanon, "Algeria Unveiled Response paper one due in class |
| WEEK TWO: Resistance | |
| July 5 | Alloula, The Colonial Harem
Response paper two due in class |
| July 7 | El Saadawi, Women at Point Zero
Response paper three due in class |
| WEEK THREE: Religion/Tradition/Conservatism | |
| July 12 | Devi, shown in class Mohanty, "Under Western Eyes" Chuhtai, "The Veil" and "The Quilt" Essay #1 due in class |
| July 14 | Conde, I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem
Response paper four due in class |
| WEEK FOUR: Sexuality/Spiritualism | |
| July 19 | Hulme, The Bone People |
| July 21 | Roy, God of Small Things |
| WEEK FIVE: Motherhood | |
| July 26 | M.Devi, "Breast-Giver" Sugar Cane Alley, shown in class Essay #2 due in class |
| July 28 | I WILL BE OUT OF TOWN ON JULY 28; WE WILL DISCUSS HOW TO REPLACE THE MISSING CLASS |
| WEEK SIX | |
| August 2 | Emecheta, The Joys of Motherhood |
| Silence and Voice | |
| August 4 | Spivak, "Can the Subaltern Speak" Antherjanam, "The Confession" |
| August 9 | Kincaid, Lucy Aidoo, "In the Cutting of a Drink" Final paper due in class |