Joan M. Ferrante

Barnard BA, 1958, Columbia PhD, 1962.   Faculty member of the department 1963-2006. 
Field:  Comparative Medieval Literature including Dante, Provençal Lyric, Allegory, Epic, Romance, Medieval Women; also taught Women, Religion, and Human Rights. 
Books:  Woman as Image in Medieval Literature (1975); To the Glory of her Sex:  Women’s Roles in the Composition of Medieval Texts (1997); The Political Vision of the Divine Comedy (1984); The Conflict of Love and Honor:  The Medieval Tristan Legend (1973).  Translations:  Guillaume d’Orange:  Four Epics (1974); The Lais of Marie de France, with Robert W. Hanning (1978); The Romance of Thebes, with Robert W. Hanning (2018).  Database of medieval women’s correspondence, Epistolae (https://epistolae.ctl.columbia.edu/).
Professional Service:  [first woman] President of Dante Society of America (1985 -1991); President of Medieval Academy of America (2000-2001), Fellow since 1982; President of National Society of Phi Beta Kappa (1991-1994).