California State University, Northridge
Fall 2007
English 595WW
20th Century Women Writers: Feminist Theory
Instructor: Ian Barnard, Ph.D. (<http://www.csun.edu/~ib5991>)
Office Hours in ST 834: M 3:30-4:45, T 3-4 ,W 3:30-4:15, and by appointment
Email Office Hours: ian.barnard@csun.edu
Welcome! This particular section of English 595WW treats a field of 20th Century
women’s writing that has had a revolutionary impact on English studies in the past fifty
years: feminist theory. We’ll engage primarily with recent US feminist theory, situating
this work in the histories and politics of postcoloniality. Topics will include the feminist
“sex wars,” feminism and race, feminism and postmodernism, “men in feminism,”
feminist film theory, and specific feminist theories in various areas of English studies.
We’ll end by reading Jane Gallop’s scandalous memoir, Feminist Accused of Sexual
Harassment. We’ll also watch some Madonna music videos, and hopefully we’ll be able
to see Chantal Ackerman’s ground-breaking feminist film, Jeanne Dielman. Seminar
meetings will be discussion-based. No tests/exams. This course may be counted toward
all options in the English M.A. program.
Student Learning Outcomes:
You will
1. understand and engage with (in written and oral academic discourse) 20th and 21st
Century graduate level texts/issues/authors in feminist theory that have impacted
English studies and other disciplines
2. understand the political stakes in various debates in feminist theory
3. develop and disseminate specialized knowledge of a particular area of feminist
theory in English studies through graduate level research and oral presentation
4. demonstrate ability to collaborate professionally through graduate level seminar
discussions and group oral presentation
5. demonstrate sophisticated analytic, research, creative, and communication skills
in a graduate level independent final project
Required Texts:
Alexander, M. Jacqui. Pedagogies of Crossing: Meditations on Feminism, Sexual
Politics, Memory, and the Sacred.
Butler, Judith. Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity. 10th
Anniversary ed.
Course Reader
Gallop, Jane. Feminist Accused of Sexual Harassment.
Moraga, Cherríe, and Gloria E. Anzaldúa, eds. This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by
Radical Women of Color. 3rd ed.
Nicholson, Linda J., ed. Feminism/Postmodernism
Wittig, Monique. The Lesbian Body.
2
You will also spend time and money preparing a reading packet for your collaborative
oral presentation, and making copies of this packet for class members.
Course Requirements:
1. Careful and critical reading/viewing of all assigned texts
2. Regular attendance and vigorous participation in seminar discussions (including
online classes, if applicable), with an emphasis on academic discourse
3. 20 page seminar paper plus workshop draft
4. Collaborative oral presentation
Seminar Paper:
Develop any of the topics/texts we have discussed in class, excluding the presentation
topics/texts, into a 20 page scholarly paper. Since this course is theory-focused, do not
devote your paper to doing a feminist reading of a literary text (other than The Lesbian
Body). Please discuss your proposed topic with me if you’d like to work on a text or
area of feminist theory not covered in class. You may write an exploratory paper, with
the members of this class as your intended audience. Or you may imagine your audience
for your paper as scholars who are interested in feminist theory and have some familiarity
with the texts we have read/seen, but who are not necessarily members of our class. If
you wish, you may write your paper as an article to be submitted to a scholarly journal.
I’ll evaluate each seminar paper on the understanding of feminist theory demonstrated,
the quality of engagement with course issues/texts, the strength of the specific arguments
or questions presented, the development of arguments/questions, and the quality of the
writing. You will get feedback from class members on a draft of your seminar paper.
Collaborative Oral Presentation:
Each group will research, prepare a selection of readings on, and give an interactive
presentation (about one hour) on one of five topics: 1) feminist literary theory, 2) feminist
rhetoric and composition theory, 3) feminist linguistics theory, 4) feminist creative
writing theory, 5) feminist theory and the K-12 classroom. Your presentation could give
an overview of your topic or could focus on one aspect of your topic. You’ll pass out
your reading packet (50-100 pages) to class members the week before your presentation.
The presentation itself should not be a lecture, and must engage class members
interactively with the reading. I’ll evaluate each presentation on your selection of
materials, how well you present the materials, how well your group members collaborate,
and how effectively you engage the class members with the materials. Groups are
welcome to meet with me to discussion their presentation plans.
Some Resources to Get You Started:
Feminist Rhetoric and Composition Theory:
 Jarratt, Susan C., and Lynn Worsham, eds. Feminism and Composition Studies:
In Other Words.
 Joeres, Ruth-Ellen B., and Elizabeth Mittman, eds. The Politics of the Essay:
Feminist Perspectives.
3





Lunsford, Andrea A., ed. Reclaiming Rhetorica: Women in the Rhetorical
Tradition.
Rhodes, Jacqueline. Radical Feminism, Writing, and Critical Agency: From
Manifesto to Modern.
Ronald, Kate, and Joy Ritchie, eds. Available Means: An Anthology of Women’s
Rhetoric(s).
---. Teaching Rhetorica: Theory, Pedagogy, Practice.
Sheridan-Rabideau, Mary P., et al, eds. Feminism and Composition: A Critical
Sourcebook.
Feminist Literary Theory:
 Belsey, Catherine, and Jane Moore, eds. The Feminist Reader: Essays in Gender
and the Politics of Literary Theory.
 Christian, Barbara. Black Women Novelists.
 Donovan, Josephine, ed. Feminist Literary Criticism: Explorations in Theory.
 Dooling, Amy D. Women’s Literary Feminism in Twentieth Century China.
 Eagleton, Mary, ed. Feminist Literary Theory: A Reader.
 Evans, Mari, ed. Black Women Writers, 1950-1980: A Critical Evaluation.
 Gallop, Jane. Around 1981: Academic Feminist Literary Theory.
 Gilbert, Sandra M., and Susan Gubar, eds. Feminist Literary Theory and
Criticism: A Norton Reader.
 Gilbert, Sandra M., and Susan Gubar. The Madwoman in the Attic: The Woman
Writer and the Nineteenth-Century Literary Imagination.
 Greene, Gayle, and Coppélia Kahn, eds. Making a Difference: Feminist Literary
Criticism.
 Kowalski-Wallace, Elizabeth, ed. Encyclopedia of Feminist Literary Theory.
 Moi, Toril. Sexual/Textual Politics: Feminist Literary Theory.
 Rooney, Ellen, ed. The Cambridge Companion to Feminist Literary Theory.
 Showalter, Elaine. A Literature of Their Own.
 Showalter, Elaine, ed. The New Feminist Criticism: Essays on Women,
Literature, and Theory.
 Warhol, Robyn R., and Diane Price Herndl, eds. Feminisms: An Anthology of
Literary Theory and Criticism.
 Zimmerman, Bonnie. The Safe Sea of Women: Lesbian Fiction, 1969-1989.
 Zimmerman, Bonnie. “What Has Never Been: An Overview of Lesbian Feminist
Literary Criticism.” Feminist Studies 7.
Feminist Linguistics Theory:
 Cameron, Deborah. Feminism and Linguistic Theory.
 Cameron, Deborah, ed. The Feminist Critique of Language: A Reader.
 Lakoff, Robin Tolmach. Language and Women’s Place.
 Litosseliti, Lisa. Gender and Language: Theory and Practice.
 Spender, Dale. Man-Made Language.
4
Feminist Creative Writing Theory:
 Anzaldúa, Gloria E. Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza.
 Cixous, Hélène. The Book of Promethea.
 Cixous, Hélène. “The Laugh of the Medusa.” French Feminism Reader. Ed.
Kelly Oliver.
 DuPlessis, Rachel Blau. The Pink Guitar: Writing as Feminist Practice.
 Haake, Katharine. What Our Speech Disrupts: Feminism and Creative Writing
Studies.
 Marks, Elaine, and Isabelle de Courtivron, eds. Creations section in New French
Feminisms.
 Mason, Carol. Break Every Rule.
 Norton, Lou, and Camille Robinson, eds. RESURGENT: New Writing By Women
 Olsen, Tillie. Silences.
 Russ, Joanna. How to Suppress Women’s Writing.
 Shields, Carol. Unless.
 Trinh T. Minh-ha. Woman, Native, Other.
 Woolf, Virginia. A Room of One’s Own.
Feminist Theory and the K-12 Classroom:
 Cohee, Gail E., et al, eds. The Feminist Teacher Anthology: Pedagogies and
Classroom Strategies.
 Feminist Teacher (journal).
 Radical Teacher (journal).
Overviews and Surveys of Feminist Theory:
 Andermahr, Sonya, et al. Concise Glossary of Feminist Theory.
 Humm, Maggie. The Dictionary of Feminist Theory.
 Humm, Maggie. Modern Feminisms.
 Jackson, Stevi, and Jackie Jones, eds. Contemporary Feminist Theories.
 McCann, Carole, and, Seung-Kyung Kim, eds. Feminist Theory Reader: Local
and Global Perspectives.
 Nye, Andrea. Feminist Theory and the Philosophies of Man.
 Pilcher, Jane, and Imelda Whelehan. 50 Key Concepts in Gender Studies.
 Whelehan, Imelda. Modern Feminist Thought: From the Second Wave to “PostFeminism.”
5
Tentative Schedule
Tuesday, 8/28/07
Introduction to the course
The state of feminist theory
Discuss syllabus and assign presentation
In-class writing
Introductions
Tuesday, 9/4/07
Reading due: This Bridge Called My Back
The feminist “sex wars”
Watch and discuss Madonna music videos
Bring your presentation preferences to class
Tuesday, 9/11/07
Reading due: Feminism/Postmodernism Introduction and Chapters 1-4 (Chap. 5 optional)
Draw presentation dates and meet with presentation group members
Tuesday, 9/18/07
Reading due: Feminism/Postmodernism Chapters 6, 8-12 (Chap. 7 optional)
Meet with presentation group members
Introduction to French feminist theory
Tuesday, 9/25/07
No class meeting--research and prepare for presentation
Tuesday, 10/2/07
Reading due: The Lesbian Body
Pass out reading packet for next week’s presentation
Discuss reading selections for remaining presentations
Tuesday, 10/9/07
Collaborative oral presentation
Reading due: packet for presentation plus Mohanty, “Under Western Eyes: Feminist
Scholarship and Colonial Discourses” (in Course Reader)
In-class debate on feminist representations of cliterodectomy
Pass out reading packet for next week’s presentation
Tuesday, 10/16/07
Collaborative oral presentation
Reading due: packet for presentation plus Mulvey, “Visual Pleasure and Narrative
Cinema” (in Course Reader)
Pass out reading packet for next week’s presentation
Mid-semester evaluations of course
6
Tuesday, 10/23/07
Collaborative oral presentation
Reading due: packet for presentation
Pass out reading packet for next week’s presentation
Watch film (part 1)
Discuss mid-semester evaluations of course
Tuesday, 10/30/07
Collaborative oral presentation
Reading due: packet for presentation
Pass out reading packet for next week’s presentation
Watch film (part 2)
Tuesday, 11/6/07
Discuss film
Collaborative oral presentation
Reading due: packet for presentation
Tuesday, 11/13/07
Reading due: Gender Trouble
Watch film: Judith Butler: Philosophical Encounters of the Third Kind
Assign seminar paper
Tuesday, 11/20/07
Reading due: Pedagogies of Crossing, Introduction and Chapters 1-5
Discuss topics for seminar paper
Post a draft of your seminar paper on WebCT by 5 p.m. on 11/27/07
Tuesday, 11/27/07
Meet in computer lab for workshops on seminar papers
Reading due: Pedagogies of Crossing, Chap. 6 (Chap. 7 optional)
Tuesday, 12/4/07
Reading due: Feminist Accused of Sexual Harassment
Course synthesis/rupture
Party?
Tuesday, 12/11/07
Place your seminar paper in the box outside my office door by 4:30 p.m. Enclose your
paper in a self-addressed, stamped envelope if you want me to return it to you
with comments.
Thanks to Kate Haake, Amy Shinabarger, Anne D’Arcy, and Aneil Rallin for assistance
with this syllabus.