MEDI 360 topic: Queer Middle Ages

Curious about gender beyond the binary in the medieval world? Wondering what two medieval women could do (or what cisgender men thought they could do) under the covers? Ready to say your prayers to the transmasculine saint of your dreams?

This course is designed to open the (closet) door to the Middle Ages. It will explore gender fluidity, trans* representation, and non-binary bodies as well as representations of queer desire. It will also invite you to begin thinking queerly about medieval cultures more broadly and orient you to the current scholarship being done in queer medieval studies. Through an intersectional, interdisciplinary exploration of queerness in medieval cultures, you will get in touch with queer representations from the premodern past that have resonance with modern orientations and embodiments. Pay close attention, though, because sometimes the medieval can teach us new things about queerness in return.

Instructor: Baylee Woodley