On Thursday, Oct. 20, from 4 – 5 p.m. Cornell students and faculty will have the opportunity to attend a Chat in the Stacks book talk at Olin Library with Julia Chang, an Assistant Professor in the College of Arts and Sciences, in which she will speak about the contents of her upcoming book: Blood Novels: Gender, Caste, and Race in Spanish Realism. The book talk will be accessible both in person in Olin Library 107 and on Zoom.
The book talk will focus on the significance of blood in Spanish literature and culture, predominantly in the late-nineteenth century. Chang’s book offers a new perspective on the use of blood in Spanish literature, arguing that blood can be viewed as an analytical tool to explore and understand the role that gender and race plays in Spanish society.
While Chang has a long list of academic publications to her name, Blood Novels: Gender, Caste, and Race in Spanish Realism is her first published book, now available via University of Toronto Press.
During her talk, Chang will dive into the subjects of feminist theory, theories of race and whiteness, literary criticism and medical literature facilitated by a discussion of the “blood novels” of late-nineteenth century Spain.
This talk hopes to provide students with a chance to explore a new area of study and develop new perspectives on subjects with which they may not have been previously familiar. While centered around Spanish literature and culture, the discussion will offer important points of view on issues central to modern society, such as gender subjectivity and socially-ingrained racial and class hierarchies.
The talk’s subject is central to Chang’s areas of study, as she works as an assistant professor of Spanish in the Department of Romance Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences and is a core faculty member in Feminist, Gender and Sexuality studies.
While the book talk may seem particularly enticing to humanities students majoring in Literature or Spanish, it is open to any and all interested individuals on campus. Light refreshments will be provided for in-person attendees.
Students interested in attending can sign up for the event, either in-person or virtually via Zoom, on the Cornell events website. On the website, students can also peruse and sign up for other events offered at Cornell University.