AAAS 533 - Women in PreMod JPN Lit/Cult

Credits: 4

This seminar explores the life and work of women in premodern Japan, from a literary and cultural perspective. Aristocratic women are the authors of important narratives and diaries from the Heian period, and much is known about their lives. However, recent work by historians and philologists has uncovered a wealth of information on women of different social classes and different eras of Japanese history. The seminar includes primary and secondary materials drawn from literature, history, visual and performing arts, and religion. Topics include: gender and class in premodern Japan, women and travel, family practices, divorce, women’s salvation, the sin of literature, nun culture.