WEEK 3: The Monstrous, Grotesque Witch Body

Presentation 3: “The Monstrous, Grotesque Witch Body”
Jasmine will lead a visual presentation with opportunities to ask questions and discuss throughout.

• Introduction to The Grotesque as a creative genre
• Introduction to The Grotesque body and its features
• Examples of The Grotesque in art and literature
• The giant and the giantess in relation to the witch and The Grotesque
• The witch as monster, “as a beast in need of control”, the female body as monstrous
• The monstrous witch as a keystone to capitalism/economic prosperity

• We will discuss the main themes of Barbara Creed’s essay, “Horror and the Monstrous-Feminine: An Imaginary Abjection
• Using the key topics, participants will write a personal reflection on the concept of the Monstrous Feminine
• Following the writing, participants will then write a fictional witch story, using examples and/or themes from the previous classes and their personal reflections
• Jasmine will support participants during the writing exercise with guiding questions and quotes from the essay
• Depending on time, selected participants will have an opportunity to share their results with the class