Madwomen, ghosts, witches, monsters—the Gothic genre has long been a vehicle for representing female characters deemed too transgressive for inclusion in “respectable” fiction. Indeed, much of what makes the Gothic dark and mysterious, what inspires dread, is how it reckons with thwarted female autonomy, repressed desire, and past injustice. It’s no wonder the genre has proved so fruitful for feminist theory: in its tales and archetypes, the Gothic offers a powerful means for exploring key topics in feminist thought, from capitalism, reproduction, and race to sexuality, rage, and freedom. Is it a coincidence that a resurgence in Gothic tropes has taken place simultaneously with the revitalization of a vocal, global feminist movement?
In this course, we’ll enter feminist thought through the Gothic mode, reading fiction, poetry, and theory in order to look at central concepts in feminist theory. Who, we’ll ask, is the misogynist “monster” against which feminists have fought? We’ll think with the madwoman as a way to consider race, the postcolonial, and the psychoanalytic, and invoke the witch to look at reproduction and capitalism. Finally, we’ll allow the ghosts of historical violence to haunt us, and speculate on what the return of the repressed might be. Readings may include works by: Toni Morrison, Silvia Federici, Maryse Condé, Angela Carter, Julia Kristeva, Hélène Cixous, Dorothy Dinerstein, Ann Snitow, Sarah Ahmed, Mary Shelley, Charlotte Brontë, Susan Stryker, Selma James, and Edgar Allen Poe.
There *is* no physical Brooklyn Institute. We hold our classes all over (thus far) Brooklyn and Manhattan, in alternative spaces ranging from the back rooms of bars to bookstores to spaces in cultural centers, including the Center for Jewish History, the Goethe-Institut, and the Barnard Center for Research on Women. We can (and do) turn any space into a classroom. You will be notified of the exact location when you register for a class.
Instructors will contact students approximately one week prior to the first class with reading assignments and details about the course location.
