Why have women been underrepresented in literature and film? Are there “boy stories” and “girl stories,” or are there simply “human stories”? What are we missing by not hearing women’s stories? In this lesson, students consider the representation of women in the curriculum and discuss their experiences reading books by and about women. Then, they examine images of women from all over the globe, bring them to life by crafting stories that reveal their humanity, and reflect on why women’s stories are worthy of examination.
1. Project “Stories of Our Times”
2. After students complete the sheet individually, read each story synopsis as a class and elicit responses as to whether they think each person is male or female and why. What expectations do students have of stories about male or female protagonists?
3. Then, reveal that all of these stories are about women and invite student reaction. Ask: Were you particularly surprised that any of the characters is female? If so, why? Why do many people have certain expectations of women’s stories? How do these particular stories subvert your expectations of “women’s literature”? How do you react when you are assigned a book by or about a woman? Why? For those who tend not to be interested in women’s stories, do any of the Times stories interest you?
4. If you’d like to explore the stories on the handout further, they are drawn from the following features, in order: “Mother and Medic,” “Alexandra Elman: The Blind Wine Taster,” “Ra Ruiz: The Pier Kid,” “Amy Rapkiewicz: The Pathlogist” and “Breaking Through the Ranks”.
5. Next, have students list the works they remember reading as part of their English curriculum over the past two years in their journals. Then have them identify which ones were by or about women. Invite students to share their lists; record titles on the board. As a class, reflect on this list. Ask:
How many of these works were written by women?
How many by men?
Which ones feature female protagonists?
Which ones feature male protagonists?
Are there such things as “boy stories” or “girl stories”?
Which ones, if any, would you classify as “boy” stories? Why? What characterizes them?
Which ones, if any, are “girl” stories? Why? What characterizes them?
Do you think women have been underrepresented in our school curriculum? Why or why not?
Is it important that school reading lists balance gender of authors and protagonists? Why or why not?
Homework Collected: None
Homework Given: Occasional Paper due by December 7th, NWP – Post something by the 17th of November - can be something you’ve already written, One Pager due on Friday, November 6th
Handouts given out: None
To Read: None
