Professor: Laura Neuman
Monday 5:30-8:20pm
How is gender constructed as well as represented, within the short story? In this 100-level course fulfilling the liberal learning requirement, we’ll read short fiction written in a wide variety of styles and presenting diverse representations of gendered relationships and characters. Together, we will examine the way authors fulfill and challenge gender constructs in their stories. How do stories communicate about gender to a reader, and what are the stories we bring to what’s on the page? When we recognize it on the page, how do we know what we see? Why does gender matter in fiction, and how? Along the way, we will reflect upon these questions and more, in order to become more critical and reflexive readers. This class, intended for students of any major, will provide an introduction to the short story and to concepts from gender studies scholarship. Classes will be largely discussion based. Come prepared to read short works of fiction, to work collaboratively with your peers, and to examine and discuss contemporary narratives about gender.