Reading & Composition

The girl-child, as we find her in literature, embodies far more than sugar, spice, and everything nice. She is simultaneously the gateway of the imagination, inspiring (mostly male) authors to project themselves into her daydreams and create whole new, surreal worlds. She is likewise the object of erotic fascination: corruptible, enigmatic, ripe for the picking. At the same time, she becomes a powerful figure for (mostly female) authors seeking to reinstate her sexual agency; they show us a version of the girl-child who is herself desirous, playful but quick-witted, and self-aware.

This course will use texts such as Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Nabokov’s Lolita, and Duras’ The Lover to examine, through literature, girlhood as a construct, a retelling, and a fantasy. We will close read graphic novels, video clips and visual art as well as short stories, novels, and plays. Creative activities will supplement analysis. Be aware that we will cover and discuss potentially sensitive material, such as sexuality. Since this course is an R1B, we will focus not only on reading but also on writing and research. Students should come prepared for daily writing workshops and extensive revision.

Reading List

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll

A Young Girl Dreams of Taking the Veil, Max Ernst

Lost Girls, Melinda Gebbie and Alan Moore

How I Learned to Drive, Paula Vogel

Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov

Eugénie de Franval, Marquis de Sade

The Lover, Marguerite Duras