This course will explore the works of women writing the personal, the political, and the intersection between the two. It will also consider the way women writers, both historical and contemporary, are portrayed, and their works are read, in our current literary culture. Course requirements will include a significant reading load, active participation in class discussion, short writing assignments, and a final paper. The reading list is likely to feature Jane Austen, Emily Bronte, Emily Dickinson, Mary Shelley, Virginia Woolf, Sylvia Plath, Toni Morrison, and others.