A Medieval Woman's Companion

My Amazing Students did it again–totally impressed me with projects and writings I never could imagined save for their brilliance! I was touched by my student Elizabeth’s point concerning her short story, “Revelation”: “The main driving force of this creative project was my desire to see women’s experiences used as an authoritative tool to heal … More My Amazing Students: Creativity that Heals, Provokes, and Amuses

No one wants to be silenced. Forced silence oppresses. Yet some literary characters chose to be silent. They do so as a form of self-empowerment. “Self-chosen silence can be more powerful than speech in many circumstances.” Last semester I taught my class called The Sounds of Silence: A Biodiversity of Mute and Quiet Women in … More Silent and Quiet Women: Silence as a Tool for Empowerment

It’s hard to believe that Judy Chicago’s iconic feminist artwork, “The Dinner Party,” was once panned by a New York Times art critic. Fortunately, those days are past (I hope). A recent retrospective article in the NYT examines the history of reactions to Chicago’s work, now housed at the Brooklyn Museum.     Chicago has … More Let’s Dig In! Judy Chicago’s “The Dinner Party”

I was a German major in college and lived in Munich, Berlin, and the Black Forest. I also taught in East Germany in the 1980s. So it is especially exciting for me to announce that A Medieval Woman’s Companion is published in German as Frauen des Mittelalters: Künstlerinnen – Herrscherinnen – Denkerinnen by Verlagshaus Römerweg … More Schnell! Now in German!

This week in my Medieval Women Writers class, we are reading the letters of Heloise and Abelard. Is it a coincidence this excellent post on the Medieval Histories site appeared on Valentine’s Day listing major publications about them? Check it out!    

Two courses I teach, Medieval Women Writers and The Sounds of Silence: A Biodiversity of Mute and Quiet Women in a World of Brutal Noise,*  seem even more timely than ever now that the revelations — fearlessly spoken by heroic female athletes — of sexual abuse they endured have rocked the world. One of my … More Our Duty

“The feeling you get after leaving as a female–like a badass.” A favorite student evaluation. It’s the effect of reading about amazing women, historical and fictional…

#metoo The historic loss of Roy Moore in Alabama teaches us about many things, including the importance of listening to women, who are too often silenced. Each time I teach my class called The Sounds of Silence: A Biodiversity of Mute and Quiet Women in a World of Brutal Noise,*  I learn so much from … More Responding to Silence Boisterously

That Julian of Norwich! All shall be well, according to her, and indeed it was the other day. I saw an email from a friend I hadn’t had contact with in years. Work, motherhood, moving thousands of miles away–all these had separated us–though not our hearts. Hélène and I worked together when we were young … More How Julian of Norwich still works miracles

I’m delighted to announce that A Medieval Woman’s Companion: Women’s Lives in the European Middle Ages has been awarded a number of honors. Winner: Gold Medal in College Nonfiction from Literary Classics as well as being awarded a Seal of Approval. Their review, which you can read in full here, calls the book “Compelling…fascinating.” It … More Awards: Gold Medal in College Nonfiction and Bronze Medal in Women’s Studies