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WELLESLEY, Mass. -- On Thursday, Nov. 13, at 4:15 pm
in Pendleton West 212, historian Caroline Winterer will
present a lecture, “Venus on the Sofa: Classicism
and Femininity in Early America.”
Winterer will interpret the symbolism of women reclining
on sofas and reveal what these images may say about femininity,
education and women’s access to classical culture
in early America. An associate professor of history at
San Jose State College and a National Humanities Center
and an ACLS Fellow, she will discuss female classicism
in the making of American national identity from 1770-1870
through depictions of the goddess Venus in visual art and
literature.
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She will describe what she calls the ‘Venus conversation’ and
contrast the ‘energetic transits’ of black
female bodies, as slaves, with the ‘lassitude’ of
the imagery of white females reclining on sofas in Venus-like
positions,” said Barbara Beatty, education. “She
has discovered a literature about sofas, and wonders about
its meaning. ‘Was the sofa a site of rest and meditation,
or of labor and anxiety?’ This lecture will illuminate
the symbolism of the sofa as a cultural artifact and explore
the female world of classical learning in early America
and the intersections of classicism and femininity in literary
and visual culture.”
Sponsors for the lecture include Classical Studies, CLCE,
Education, English, History and Women’s Studies.
For more information, call x3235.
Since 1875, Wellesley College has been a leader in providing
an excellent liberal-arts education for women who will
make a difference in the world. Its 500-acre campus near
Boston is home to 2,300 undergraduate students from all
50 states and 68 countries.
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