(BYU Zoom login: 931 6373 0830)
In the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, many societal forces limited women’s access to education. Debates circulated about whether women were capable of learning and whether it was appropriate to educate them. Not surprisingly, women writers of the time held strong opinions about their own learning, about what kinds of knowledge women should be taught, and about women’s capabilities to learn and contribute. Dr. Hegstrom will describe what early women writers from Spain and Portugal had to say about learning and relate it to problems we face today as we strive to educate women and men.
Valerie Hegstrom received her PhD from the University of Kansas. Her research focuses on the recovery of literary works by Early Modern women who wrote in Spanish and Portuguese. She is the coordinator of the BYU Global Women’s Studies Program and faculty advisor to the Women’s Studies Honor Society.
