Lectures: T 1:30-4:15pm, Houghton House Library
Office Hours: M 11:30am-12:30pm, W 4:00-5:00pm, or by appointment, 106A Houghton House

How are the feminine and masculine represented in art? This seminar will consider the role of gender in Chinese painting, focusing on the Song and Yuan dynasties (spanning the tenth to fourteenth centuries). Topics will include the setting of figure paintings in gendered space, the coding of landscapes and bird-and-flower paintings as masculine or feminine, and ways that images of women (an often marginalized genre of Chinese art) help to construct ideas of both femininity and masculinity. Throughout, we will examine the differing roles of men and women as patrons, collectors, and painters. The course is cross-listed with Asian Studies and Women's Studies. It addresses Goals 5 (experience of a fine or performing art), 6 (an intellectually grounded foundation for the understanding of differences and inequalities of gender, race, and class) and 7 (knowledge of the multiplicity of world cultures).

Textbooks:
* Patricia Buckley Ebrey, The Inner Quarters: Marriage and the Lives of Chinese Women in the Sung Period (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1993).
* Burton Watson, ed. and trans., The Columbia Book of Chinese Poetry: From Early Times to the Thirteenth Century (New York: Columbia University Press, 1984).
*Diana Hacker, ed., A Pocket Style Manual, 4th ed. (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2004).
* RECOMMENDED: Marsha Weidner, ed., Flowering in the Shadows: Women in the History of Chinese and Japanese Painting (Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, 1990).

Coursepack: Available at Blackboard (many books also on reserve at the Library). It includes:
* Norma Broude and Mary D. Garrard, "Introduction: The Expanding Discourse," in The Expanding Discourse: Feminism and Art History, ed. Norma Broude and Mary D. Garrard (New York: IconEditions, 1992), 1-25.
* Lisa Raphals, "Yin and Yang" and "Nei-wai: Distinctions between Men and Women," in Sharing the Light: Representations of Women and Virtue in Early China (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1998), 139-168, 195-213.
* M. H. Abrams, "Figurative Language," "Imagery," and "Motif and Theme," in A Glossary of Literary Terms, 6th ed. (Fort Worth: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc., 1993), 66-70, 86-87, 121.
* Martin J. Powers, "Discourses of Representation in Tenth and Eleventh Century China," in The Art of Interpreting, ed. Susan C. Scott (University Park, Pa.: The Department of Art History, The Pennsylvania State University, 1995), 88-127.
* Lara C. W. Blanchard, "Lonely Women and the Absent Man: The Masculine Landscape as Metaphor in the Song Dynasty Painting of Women," in Gendered Landscapes: An Interdisciplinary Exploration of Past Place and Space, ed. Bonj Szczygiel, Josephine Carubia and Lorraine Dowler (University Park, Pa.: The Center for Studies in Landscape History, The Pennsylvania State University, 2000), 33-47.
* Richard Barnhart, "Figures in Landscape," Archives of Asian Art 42 (1989): 62-70.
* Susan Bush and Hsio-yen Shih, comp. and ed., "The Significance of Landscape" and "Figures in Landscape," in Early Chinese Texts on Painting (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard-Yenching Institute, Harvard University Press, 1985), 150-156.
* Burton Watson, "The Poetry of Reclusion," Chapter 5 of Chinese Lyricism: Shih Poetry from the Second to the Twelfth Century, with Translations (New York: Columbia University Press, 1971), 68-89.
* Hans H. Frankel, "Man in His Relations with Other Men," Chapter 3 of The Flowering Plum and the Palace Lady: Interpretations of Chinese Poetry (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1976), 33-40.
* Li Chi, "The Changing Concept of the Recluse in Chinese Literature," Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 24 (1962-1963): 234-247.
* Hui-shu Lee, "Art and Imperial Images at the Late Southern Sung Court," in Arts of the Sung and Yüan, ed. Maxwell K. Hearn and Judith G. Smith (New York: Department of Asian Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1996), 249-69.
* Robert E. Harrist, Jr., "Ch'ien Hsüan's Pear Blossoms: The Tradition of Flower Painting and Poetry from Sung to Yüan," Metropolitan Museum Journal 22 (1987): 53-70.
* Hsio-yen Shih, "Poetry Illustration and the Works of Ku K'ai-chih," in The Translation of Art: Essays on Chinese Painting and Poetry, ed. James C. Y. Watt (Hong Kong: Centre for Translation Projects, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1976), 6-29.
* Susan E. Nelson, "Tao Yuanming's Sashes: Or, The Gendering of Immortality," Ars Orientalis 29 (1999): 1-27.
*Julia K. Murray, “Didactic Art for Women: The Ladies’ Classic of Filial Piety,” in Flowering in the Shadows: Women in the History of Chinese and Japanese Painting, ed. Marsha Weidner (Honolulu: University of Hawai‘i Press, 1990), 27-53.
* Julia Ching, "Sung Philosophers on Women," Monumenta Serica: Journal of Oriental Studies 42 (1994): 259-74.
* Martin J. Powers, "Love and Marriage in Song China: Tao Yuanming Comes Home," Ars Orientalis 28 (1998): 51-62.
*Francesca Bray, “Fabrics of Power: The Canonical Meaning of Women’s Work,” in Technology and Gender: Fabrics of Power in Late Imperial China (Berkeley, Los Angeles and London: University of California Press, 1997), 183-205.
* Marsha L. Wagner, "Popular Tz'u Poetry in the Entertainment Quarters after 755," Chapter 4 of The Lotus Boat: The Origins of Chinese "Tz'u" Poetry in T'ang Popular Culture (New York: Columbia University Press, 1984), 79-103.
*Beverly Bossler, “Shifting Identities: Courtesans and Literati in Song China,” Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 62, no. 1 (2002): 5-37.
* Ellen Johnston Laing, "Chinese Palace-Style Poetry and the Depiction of A Palace Beauty," Art Bulletin 72, no. 1 (March 1990): 284-95.
* Anne M. Birrell, "The Dusty Mirror: Courtly Portraits of Woman in Southern Dynasties Love Poetry," in Expressions of Self in Chinese Literature, ed. Robert E. Hegel and Richard C. Hessney (New York: Columbia University Press, 1985), 33-69.
* Hans H. Frankel, "Lonely Women," Chapter 6 of The Flowering Plum and the Palace Lady: Interpretations of Chinese Poetry (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1976), 56-61.
* Stephen Owen, "The Snares of Memory," Chapter 5 of Remembrances: The Experience of the Past in Classical Chinese Literature, (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1986), 80-98.
*Shen C. Y. Fu, “Princess Sengge Ragi: Collector of Painting and Calligraphy,” trans. Marsha Weidner, in Flowering in the Shadows: Women in the History of Chinese and Japanese Painting, ed. Marsha Weidner (Honolulu: University of Hawai‘i Press, 1990), 55-80.
* Marsha Weidner, "Women in the History of Chinese Painting," in Views from Jade Terrace: Chinese Women Artists 1300-1912 (Indianapolis: Indianapolis Museum of Art, 1988), 12-29.

Week 1. Jan. 17. Introduction: an outline of Song and Yuan history.

Week 2. Jan. 24. Setting the terms: Western and Chinese theories of gender and representation.
Text: Broude and Garrard 1992; Raphals 1998; Abrams 1993; Powers 1995.

Week 3. Jan. 31. Gendered space.
Text: Inner Quarters, 21-44; Blanchard 2000.

Week 4. Feb. 7. Men on the road: court and literati paintings of landscapes and river scenes.
Text: Barnhart 1989; Bush and Shih 1985.

Week 5. Feb. 14. Reclusion and homosociality: landscapes of scholars in the wilderness.
Text: Watson 1971; Frankel 1976a; Li 1962-63; Columbia Book 129-131, 134-136, 142-143.

Week 6. Feb. 21. Bird-and-flower paintings as feminine or masculine.
Text: Lee 1996; 2.0.CO;2-O">Harrist 1987; Columbia Book 54-66.

Week 7. Feb. 28. The immortal figure.
Text: Shih 1976; Nelson 1999; Columbia Book 54-66, 116-121.

Week 8. Mar. 7. Marriage and motherhood: representations of female virtue.
Text: Inner Quarters 114-130, 152-187; Murray 1990 (in Flowering in the Shadows, 27-53); Ching 1994; Powers 1998; Columbia Book 82-92, 320, 365.

[Mar. 10-19, SPRING BREAK]

Week 9. Mar. 21. Marriage, motherhood and women's work: representations of female virtue.
Text: Bray 1997; Inner Quarters 130-151;Columbia Book, 176.

Week 10. Mar. 28. Transgression and femininity: courtesans, concubines and female musicians.
Text: Wagner 1984; Bossler 2002; Inner Quarters, 217-254; Columbia Book 249-252.

Week 11. Apr. 4. Loneliness and femininity: abandoned women.
Text: Laing 1990; Birrell 1985; Frankel 1976b; Columbia Book 176.

Week 12. Apr. 11. Female patrons and collectors.
Text: Owen 1986; Fu 1990 (in Flowering in the Shadows, 55-80).

Week 13. Nov. 25. Female painters in Song and Yuan texts.
Text: Weidner 1988.

Weeks 14-15. Apr. 25-May 2. Presentations.

Finals Week. May 9. Research papers due.

Course Requirements

1. Class Participation (20%). This includes regular and punctual attendance (see attendance policy) and participating in class discussions, especially important in a seminar! I grade participation on a daily basis, as follows: A for speaking up in class (even to ask a question or to answer one of my questions incorrectly), B for showing up to class but not speaking, C for not paying attention or coming in late, 0 for not coming to class at all.

2. Discussion (10%). Once in the term you will lead a discussion of one of the readings.

3. Response papers (20%). Throughout the semester you will write several one-page papers responding to some of the readings. More details to follow.

4. Research paper (30%), due Tuesday, May 9, 4:00pm. This is to be a long research paper. More details to follow.

5. Presentation (20%), Apr. 25 or May 2, TBA. This is to be a slide presentation based on your research paper. More details to follow.

Office Hours
I am happy to meet with you outside of class during my office hours (see top of syllabus), or at another time that is convenient for you, in 106A Houghton House. The best way to reach me to set up an appointment is by e-mail.

Attendance Policy

I consider attendance in a seminar to be mandatory. Asian art history is a challenging subject; don't make it impossible by skipping class! That said, if you have a reasonable excuse for missing a class, I expect you to notify me as soon as possible--preferably in advance--and to turn in a one-page essay on the topics covered on the day of your absence, within a week. Not doing so will directly impact your participation grade. If you are absent three times or more, you should be prepared for me to notify the Deans about your performance. I will be taking attendance daily. NOTE: leaving early for or returning late from Spring Break does not count as an excused absence.

Format for Written Work
One of the things you will learn in an art history class is the importance of presentation. This applies to your written work as well:

1. Type all work in a 12-point font.
2. Double-space.
3. Leave one-inch margins on all sides.
4. Number your pages.
5. Staple your work.
6. Put your name on every page and the date on the first page.
7. Check that your spelling, grammar and punctuation are correct--these are crucial to effective communication of your ideas. I will lower your grade if you have excessive errors. A Pocket Style Manual has helpful chapters titled "Clarity," "Grammar," "Punctuation," and "Mechanics." Read them.
8. If you cite another source, you may use either parenthetical references or footnotes. (See A Note about Cheating and Plagiarism below.) Make sure that you follow one of the documentation styles explained in A Pocket Style Manual (MLA, APA or Chicago-Style).
9. Include a picture with a caption if appropriate (and please attach it to a clean sheet of paper--do not give me a loose postcard, an illustration torn from a magazine, or a copy of the book you found the picture in. Black-and-white photocopies are okay).

A Note about Cheating and Plagiarism
I will not tolerate any form of academic dishonesty. Not only does it destroy the trust that I have in you to do your best, it is unfair to the other students, and obviously you will not learn anything if you resort to cheating. If I find that you have cheated on any coursework, you will receive a zero for the assignment and I will contact the Deans and/or the Committee on Standards about your case.

Now, just in case you are not clear about what plagiarism is: plagiarism is the use of someone else's words or ideas without giving that person credit. In application, this means that in your writing assignments, you need to cite your sources. When quoting directly from a text--say, five words or more in succession--you need to put those words in quotation marks and include a parenthetical reference or footnote citing the source. When rewriting a passage from a text in your own words, you don't need the quotation marks but you do still need the parenthetical reference or footnote. If you don't understand exactly what constitutes plagiarism, or how to use parenthetical references or footnotes, please ask me. I would prefer to explain what it is and how to avoid it before it happens rather than after.

Grading
PLEASE NOTE: I mark down one-third of a grade (for example, from A to A-) for each calendar day that a paper is late. I also mark down one-third of a grade for every ten mechanical errors (except on the first assignment to be turned in); notice what kinds of mistakes you tend to make on that first assignment, and try not to repeat them.

The research paper and presentation will receive a letter grade. Response papers and discussions will not receive a letter grade, but a check, check-plus or check-minus. Make-up written assignments, which count as part of your participation grade, will receive a check or a check-minus. If you are unsatisfied with a grade, please prepare a written statement explaining what grade you think you should have received and why, and submit it to me along with the assignment for review.

Assignments are due during the class period on the due date. You may bring your assignments to class or send them to me via e-mail before class (not during, and not after!). Again, I mark down for lateness. If you think you will need an extension, you should talk to me as early as possible. If you have trouble printing out your paper, you should use the e-mail option instead.

A Note about the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL)
Hobart and William Smith Colleges encourage you to seek the academic collaboration available to you to demonstrate your best work. Students who would like to enhance their study skills or writing skills or have any academic inquiries can contact the CTL. If you are a student with an identified disability and you would like to receive accommodations, please provide me with the notification form from the CTL at the start of the semester, so that I can best accommodate your needs (students with disabilities have to register at the Center). CTL staff encourages every student to stop by Harris Hall to learn what is available to you at this academic resource. Please contact the CTL at x3351 to make an appointment or stop by the second floor of Harris Hall (on South Main, next to Merritt Hall) to meet with Center Staff.