Despite the fact that intimate violence destroys the frameworks of identity and community, testimony and truth, memory and justice, rape has been a fundamental and globally pervasive literary theme and trope, often the very act that engenders narrative and plot. This seminar will explore how rape has been written in the face of its unspeakability and the silences surrounding it, and how the act of bearing witness can become an act of resistance, rebuilding voice, subjectivity and community. Literary texts will be read alongside feminist theoretical work on embodiment, trauma, testimony, and law.
Requirements: class attendance and participation, weekly one-page postings on the readings, two 8-10 page papers.
Application instructions:
E-mail Professor Marianne Hirsch (mh2349@columbia.edu) with the subject heading “Narrating Rape seminar.” In your message, include basic information: your name, school, major, year of study, and relevant courses taken, along with a brief statement about why you are interested in taking the course. Admitted students should register for the course; they will automatically be placed on a wait list from which the instructor will in due course admit them as spaces become available.
