Naming Medieval Sexualities (A Panel Discussion)

Sponsoring Organization(s)

Society for the Study of Homosexuality in the Middle Ages (SSHMA)

Organizer Name

Graham N. Drake

Organizer Affiliation

SUNY-Geneseo

Presider Name

Jennifer N. Brown

Presider Affiliation

Marymount Manhattan College

Paper Title 1

Panelist

Presenter 1 Name

Susannah Mary Chewning

Presenter 1 Affiliation

Union County College

Paper Title 2

Panelist

Presenter 2 Name

Ellen Friedrich

Presenter 2 Affiliation

Valdosta State Univ.

Paper Title 3

Panelist

Presenter 3 Name

Wan-Chuan Kao

Presenter 3 Affiliation

Washington and Lee Univ.

Paper Title 4

Panelist

Presenter 4 Name

Felipe Esteban Rojas

Presenter 4 Affiliation

Univ. of Chicago

Paper Title 5

Panelist

Presenter 5 Name

Lisa Weston

Presenter 5 Affiliation

California State Univ.-Fresno

Start Date

8-5-2014 10:00 AM

Session Location

Valley I Hadley 102

Description

The 2013 panel discussion, “Are We Post-Queer Yet?” sponsored by The Society for the Study of Homosexuality in the Middle Ages, raised multiple questions on nomenclature and labels: what happens when we name, categorize, or segregate expressions of sexuality in medieval texts? The work of scholars such as Karma Lochrie on the sexuality of the medieval Amazon, for example, or of Heloise and Abelard, demonstrates the difficulty of negotiating between “standard” categories in modern sexology and the descriptions and assumptions of medieval scientists or theologians. This panel discussion invites scholars working in fields ranging from literature to history to theology to investigate both the utility and the pitfalls of naming and classifying sexual experience, particularly same-sex and queer relationships, in the Middle Ages.

Graham N. Drake