I’m taking a class this quarter in college called “Women’s Studies”. The course material is all literature written by women. It’s an intriguing class, but going into it, I asked myself, “Why do we need a class on women in literature?”
My instructor asked the same question of the class on the first day and said that she hoped by the end of the quarter, we’d come to our own answers. That instantly won her my respect. I’ve been thinking on that question since the first day of class. I’ve been wondering why it’s important to know that Anne Bradstreet was the first author published in the United States. I’ve been wondering why I had never heard that before I stepped into this class. I’ve been wondering why we’re only told the good news about Phyllis Wheatley’s life in American History. Why don’t we know that she died broke and starving after she was freed?
Why don’t we know these things?
It’s a question to ponder, and apparently my class has been the subject of much debate on the part of Mr. Justus and Bill@Reason’s Edge.
After seeing that things like this are still happening in America, and having been the subject of misogynistic attitudes in my life, I do feel that it is important that we study women and their contribution to American history. I also feel that it is important that we respect everyone equally. Some times, the only way to do this is to study what we don’t understand.
My class, is largely made up of women, but I don’t really believe that the people in the class are the ones that need it. It’s the people who don’t and can’t believe that women are equal to men that need it.
