Teaching French Women Writers of the Renaissance and Reformation
considers the issues critical to teaching recently rediscovered writers,
such as Hélisenne de Crenne, Pernette Du Guillet, and Louise Labé, who
have enriched the literary canon by offering alternative perspectives on
the social, political, and religious issues of early modern France.
Addressing topics from law and medicine to motherhood and aesthetics,
these women wrote in nearly every genre, and their works include several
literary firsts: the first book of Christian emblems ever published by a
woman (Georgette de Montenay), the first published collection of private
letters between women in French (the Dames Des Roches), and the first
full-length memoir by a woman in French (Margaret of Valois).The volume
considers techniques for reading women's writing alongside the texts of
their male contemporaries and offers guidance on incorporating a range
of resources into the classroom. Essays in part 1 explore the background
and contexts so crucial for helping students understand how these
writers negotiated their entry into the public world of writing. In part
2, contributors discuss specific genres. Part 3 describes critical
methodologies that are useful in the classroom and demonstrates the
benefits of teaching certain pairings of texts and authors. The fourth
and final part recommends a range of electronic and print resources.
