Teaching Feminist Theory through James Joyce in Korea

Teaching Feminist Theory through James Joyce in Korea

This essay purposes to examine the problems and objectives in teaching feminist theory through James Joyce in classroom. Teaching feminist theory in English literature class provides a different lens through which students are encouraged to reflect on their views of the world with a different perspective. Good pedagogy of feminist theory teaching in class may be a result of forethought and consideration of each students' personal agenda and what influence this can have on the theoretical messages communicated to students. This essay deals with Luce Irigaray's thinking on the ethics of sexual difference in conjunction with a brief survey of Joyce's engagement with the woman question typically characterized in his "The Dead" from Dubliners and "Penelope" from Ulysses. This essay attempts to highlight Joyce's thought-adventure that goes beyond what we may call equalitarian feminist discourse on sexual difference. Foretelling Irigaray's project on the feminism of 'difference in equality', Joyce addresses one of the most important issues of modem civilization: how do we acknowledge and respect the other sex's singularity and difference? Joyce's fictions may be considered as an excellent example to find an answer to this question of the ethics of sexual difference. This is a reason for Joyce's standing as a good case for our teaching and learning feminist theory in class.