This course will explore the fantastic short fiction of several women writers. What promises does this genre, fantastic fiction, make? How does it keep them? What are its limits? What about length? How do short texts work their magic? What is the difference between fantastic fiction and magical realism? Does fantastic fiction offer a special opportunity for displaying empathy towards the experience of girls and women? These are some of the questions we will raise together. The course may include works by Octavia Butler, Elena Garro, Juan Rulfo, Clarice Lispector, Aimee Bender, Angela Carter as well as some of the classic writings to which their work is responding. Students will get a chance to write both stories and literary criticism. This course counts toward the Gender Studies minor.