please read the following before class:
- betancourt, transgender lives, 89-120
worksheet questions (remember to include quotes from the texts):
- what are two things that stood out to you from this chapter and why?
- how does betancourt navigate the range of terminology? why does this discussion matter? what’s at stake?
- why might these narratives have been so popular (and for whom)? what, if anything, might complicate the fact of their popularity? (*remember not all byzantine christians thought alike, and go beyond the superficial)
- in several occasions, betancourt refers to individuals as “real or legendary/imagined”; what is he implying with this caveat and does it matter? why or why not?
- what can we learn about byzantine christians’ view of the human body from this discussion of asceticism and eunuchs in this chapter?
