Writing Feminism into Narrative

In this course, we'll read feminist texts across genres — including academic writing, essay, memoir, short fiction, and reportage — and examine how each form's tools can be harnessed to craft thought-provoking narratives. We'll read works by writers spanning feminist currents and regions, including Amia Srinivasan, Leïla Slimani, Virginie Despentes, Susan Faludi, Rachel Aviv, Alice Munro, Elena Ferrante, Rita Segato, and Angela Davis. We'll practice writing our own pieces, weaving intimate experiences with feminist ideas and the social, political, and economic currents around them.

Session 1. "The Personal Is Political": Intro

We will discuss how to turn a slogan into prose. I will walk students through how I did this with my own book, Sex and Dissent, combining character-driven storytelling with a history of feminist movements across the 20th and 21st centuries and broader social, political, and economic currents.

Session 2. Theory: The scaffold

Before we can write feminist narratives, we need a theoretical base and the vocabulary to name what we're seeing. We will look at examples of academic texts that provide a conceptual toolkit.

Texts:

Rita Segato, The Writing on the Body of Murdered Women

Angela Davis, selection from Women, Race, and Class

Session 3. Essay: Making an argument

Building on theory, we’ll examine how to construct a rigorous argument that raises both intellectual and emotional stakes.

Texts:

Amia Srinivasan, selection from The Right to Sex

Session 4. Workshop 1

We will workshop a writing exercise focused on academic writing and/or essay.

Session 5. Fiction: Showing, not telling

We’ll explore how character and subtext can universalize personal experiences without using academic jargon.

Texts:

Alice Munro, selection from Runaway

Elena Ferrante, selection from My Brilliant Friend

Session 6. Reportage: Using fiction's tools with nonfiction's rigor

We’ll look at how the elements and techniques of fiction can bring an investigation to life.

Texts:

Rachel Aviv, selected longform

Leïla Slimani, selection from Sex and Lies

Session 7. Workshop 2

We will workshop a writing exercise focused on fiction and/or reportage.

Session 8. Memoir: Adding personal perspective

We’ll examine how the writer's own experience and perspective can create a deeper connection with the reader.

Texts:

Susan Faludi, selection from In the Darkroom

Cristina Rivera Garza, selection from Liliana's Invincible Summer

Session 9. Accessibility and poignancy: How humor and irreverence fit in

Feminist narrative doesn't have to be solemn to be serious; humor and irreverence can be just as effective. A final discussion on tone.

Texts:

Virginie Despentes, selection from King Kong Theory

Patricia Lockwood, selection from Priestdaddy

Session 10. Workshop 3

We will workshop a writing exercise incorporating personal perspective and experimenting with tone.