Korea, Oct. 10:  This presentation group will provide information that will help us to contextualize and understand the book Comfort Woman.  In order to do this, you will need to spend some of your presentation time discussing Japan’s colonization of Korea and their use of Korean women as enforced prostitutes during WWII.  You may also choose to examine the roles women’s groups played in the democratization of South Korea.

Sweden, Oct. 24:  Sweden is often lauded as a country that is truly feminist, but there has been significant dissent about this assessment.  Read Susan Faludi’s “Swedish Sojourn” (you can find it on ProQuest) for a good overview of this debate.  As you assess Sweden’s progressive social policies, you may want to consider, as well, the country’s treatment of immigrants and GLBT (gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender) populations.

Afghanistan, Nov. 5:  The status of women in Afghanistan has been in the national news since Sept. 11, but before this time, most American’s were oblivious to the existence of the Taliban, and they certainly have little idea of what Afghan women’s lives were like before the Taliban. Watch the films Shroud of Silence and Beneath the Veil (both in the library), and read Janelle Brown’s articles in the archives of Salon.com as a starting point.

India, Nov. 7:  This is a huge country with a vast history, so you’ll need to focus in your class presentation.  Your presentation will help prepare the class to discuss Jasmine, so to that end you may want to inform the class about the Muslim/Hindu conflicts in Northern India, especially the Punjab region where the main character originates.  You may also want to discuss and describe Hindu goddesses, as this is a thematic element of the book.