Women Creating Culture
Next, as you examine how society has shaped these women’s lives and creativity, consider some of the following questions.
How did prescribed gender roles for women impact their creativity?
What images defined women (seductress, mother, virgin, etc.)?
Which images and roles were acceptable and which were outside the norm?
How did these narrowly-defined gender roles and images (such as the “nature of women”) shape the lives and work of your three key figures?
Some women may have outwardly conformed to these expectations while their work challenged the roles/images in subversive and creative ways while others openly rebelled. As you delve deeper into these issues, consider the dynamics of gender and
power in creative expression. For example, how does the subject matter in paintings and texts (or performance) reflect the dynamics of gender and power? Who has privilege? Who has power? How do these creative women sometimes deconstruct (break down)
