Introduction

For our project, we decided to focus on the correlation between pain, pleasure, and healing, through the lens of gender. More specifically, our pieces were chosen in order to reflect a modernized version of this theme that was not necessarily Eurocentric. Through the discipline of biology, we can see how male and female subjects perceive pain and pleasure differently, as well as how pain is physically blocked or healed. Additionally, historical context can allow us to see how time and space alter experiences of pain and pleasure according to gender. Comparative Literature explores all of these facets as well as using literary analysis to explore further dimensions of the works.