Reconstructing Womanhood: A Future Beyond Empire

This year marks the twentieth anniversary of the publication of Hazel Carby’s Reconstructing Womanhood, a touchstone of scholarship in the fields of Literary and Cultural Studies, African Diaspora Studies, Gender Studies, and Post-Colonial Studies.

With a one-day symposium on November 2, BCRW joins the Institute for Research on Women and Gender at Columbia University, the Columbia University Libraries, and Barnard’s Department of Africana Studies in reexamining the importance of this work as it relates to a set of issues that are no less timely now than they were in 1987. Hazel Carby, along with scholars Lisa Lowe, Anne McClintock, Robert Reid-Pharr and Rinaldo Walcott, will lead us in reflecting on the production of “disposable life,” refashioning masculinities and queer sexualities, and imagining a future beyond empire.

This event is part of the Feminist Classics series, hosted by IRWaG throughout 2007/08, and designed to revisit the scholarly, artistic, and activist works responsible for shaping second-wave feminism. Other events include:

Monday, 10/01, 8:00 pm
Adrienne Rich Reads from her Work
Schermerhorn 501, Columbia University

Tuesday, 10/02, 12:50-2:00 pm
A Conversation with Adrienne Rich
Heymann Center Common Room, Columbia University

In this spirit, the series continues with an event exploring Erica Jong’s Fear of Flying and transgressive feminist writing, a panel on the plays of feminist dramatist Caryl Churchill, and a discussion on classic works of feminist art. For more information, contact IRWaG at 212.854.3277.