Guide to the Miriam Cooke papers, 1966-2017

John Hay Library, University Archives and Manuscripts
Box A
Brown University
Providence, RI 02912
Telephone: Manuscripts: 401-863-3723; University Archives: 401-863-2148
Email: Manuscripts: hay@brown.edu; University Archives: archives@brown.edu

Published in 2023

Collection Overview

Title:	Miriam Cooke papers
Date range:	1966-2017
Creator:	Pembroke Center for Teaching and Research on Women.
Extent:	2.5 Linear Feet 2 record center cartons and 1 file box
Abstract:	This collection contains the professional papers of Miriam Cooke, scholar of Islamic feminism and gender and war in modern Arabic literature, and Braxton Craven Professor of Arab Cultures at Duke University. Materials include correspondence, conference materials, teaching materials, and draft writings dating from 1966 to 2017.
Language of materials:	English
Repository:	John Hay Library, University Archives and Manuscripts
Collection number:	Ms.2014.019

Scope & content

This collection contains the professional papers of Miriam Cooke, scholar of Islamic feminism and gender and war in modern Arabic literature, and Braxton Craven Professor of Arab Cultures at Duke University. Materials include correspondence, conference materials, teaching materials, and draft writings dating from 1966 to 2017. This collection is arranged into 8 series.

Series 1, PERSONAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL, 1970-2015, contains awards, an interview of Cooke, photos of Cooke, and a print she purchased in Bethlehem. This series is arranged alphabetically by record type.

Series 2, CAREER DEVELOPMENT, 1992-2011, contains letters of recommendation for Cooke for a Rockefeller Grant application, as well as contractual materials, correspondence, and clippings, from Cooke's residency at the Qatar Islamic Art Museum. This series is arranged alphabetically by organization then by record type.

Series 3, ADMINISTRATIVE, 1981-2017, includes meeting materials, correspondence, clippings, and programs related to Cooke's work at Duke as well as the Modern Language Association. This series is arranged alphabetically by record type.

Series 4, CONFERENCES, 1983-2017, includes programs, flyers, and handwritten notes, from conferences attended by Cooke. Conferences include "Bridges not Walls: The Healing Power of Literature in the Middle East and South Asia," "Professionalism among Women: Malaysians and Americans," and War and Gender. This series is arranged alphabetically by conference title.

Series 5, TEACHING, 1983-2000, includes syllabi and teaching evaluations for courses taught by Cooke. Courses include Arab Culture and 9/11, Modern Arabic Literature, and Women in Arabic Literature. This series is arranged alphabetically by course title.

Series 6, WRITINGS, 1966-2015, includes typed, handwritten, and annotated drafts of articles, books, edited works, talks, and translations, authored by Cooke. Titles include: "Islamic Feminism Before and After September 11th," Blood Into Ink, Opening the Gates, "Arab Women Writers in the Twentieth Century," and "Women and the Arab Spring: A Transnational, Feminist Revolution." This series is arranged alphabetically by type of writing then by title.

Series 7, RESEARCH, 1989-2006, contains handwritten and typed notes for War's Other Voices and Women and the War Story and on topics including Jakarta and Indonesia and women's involvement in wars in Algeria, Lebanon, and Palestine. This series is arranged alphabetically by record type then by topic.

Series 8, AUDIO AND VIDEO RECORDINGS, 1990-2007, contains cassette tapes, CDs, VHS tapes. Content includes interviews and conference sessions. This series is arranged alphabetically by record type then by titles written on the carrier.

Access Points

Subject Organizations

• Pembroke Center for Teaching and Research on Women.
• Feminist Theory Archive.

Subject Topics

• Feminist theory
• Feminism -- Arab countries
• Women and Literature -- Arab countries
• Women writers
• Women and war

Arrangement

This collection is arranged into 8 series.

• Series 1. Personal and Biographical
• Series 2. Career Development
• Series 3. Administrative
• Series 4. Conferences
• Series 5. Teaching
• Series 6. Writings
• Series 7. Research
• Series 7. Audio and Video recordings

Biographical / Historical

Miriam Cooke is the Braxton Craven Distinguished Professor of Arab Cultures at Duke University. She received her Doctorate of Philosophy in Arabic Literature from St. Antony's College at Oxford in 1980. Cooke's main fields of interest are modern Arabic literature and culture, Islamic feminism, and war. Her publications include The Anatomy of an Egyptian Intellectual: Yahya Haqqi (1984), War's Other Voices: Women Writers of the Lebanese War (1988), and the novel Hayati, My Life (2000). She has also co-edited several volumes, including Opening the Gates: A Century of Arab Feminist Writing (1990) and Gendering War Talk (1993).

Access & Use

Access to the collection:	There are no restrictions on access except that the collection can only be seen by prior appointment. Some materials may be stored off-site and cannot be produced on the same day on which they are requested.
Use of the materials:	All researchers seeking to publish materials from the collections of the John Hay Library are requested to complete a Notice of Intent to Publish, available on the John Hay Library website or by request, prior to reproducing, quoting, or otherwise publishing any portion or extract from this collection. Although Brown University has physical ownership of the collection and the materials contained therein, it does not claim literary rights. It is up to the researcher to determine the owners of the literary rights and to obtain any necessary permissions from them.
Preferred citation:	Miriam Cooke papers, Ms.2014.019, Brown University Library.
Contact information:	John Hay Library, University Archives and Manuscripts Box A Brown University Providence, RI 02912 Telephone: Manuscripts: 401-863-3723; University Archives: 401-863-2148 Email: Manuscripts: hay@brown.edu; University Archives: archives@brown.edu

Administrative Information

ABOUT THE COLLECTION
Acquisition:	Gift of Miriam Cooke.
Processing information:	First accession processed by Kayleigh Mahan in 2014. Second accession processed by Amanda Knox in 2020.
ABOUT THE FINDING AID
Author:	Amanda Knox, on behalf of the Pembroke Center for the Teaching and Research on Women and the Brown University Library.
Encoding:	This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-02-07.
Descriptive rules:	Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Sponsor:	Curatorial work and processing provided by the Pembroke Center for Teaching and Research on Women on behalf of the Feminist Theory Archive, Brown University Library.

Additional Information

Inventory

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