Divinity School at the University of Chicago

Faculty

Wendy Doniger

Mircea Eliade Distinguished Service Professor of the History of Religions in the Divinity School; also in the Department of South Asian Languages and Civilizations, the Committee on Social Thought, and the College

M.A., Ph.D. (Harvard University)
D.Phil. (Oxford University)

Wendy Doniger's research and teaching interests revolve around two basic areas, Hinduism and mythology. Her courses in mythology address themes in cross-cultural expanses, such as death, dreams, evil, horses, sex, and women; her courses in Hinduism cover a broad spectrum that, in addition to mythology, considers literature, law, gender, and psychology. Among her many books published under the name Wendy Doniger O'Flaherty are three Penguin Classics: Hindu Myths: A Sourcebook, Translated from the Sanskrit; The Rig Veda: An Anthology, 108 Hymns Translated from the Sanskrit; and The Laws of Manu (with Brian K. Smith). She has also published Siva: The Erotic Ascetic; The Origins of Evil in Hindu Mythology; and several books with the University of Chicago Press: Women, Androgynes, and Other Mythical Beasts; Dreams, Illusion, and Other Realities; Tales of Sex and Violence: Folklore, Sacrifice, and Danger in the Jaiminiya Brahmana; and Other Peoples' Myths: The Cave of Echoes. Under the name Wendy Doniger, she has published Splitting the Difference: Gender and Myth in Ancient Greece and India; The Bedtrick: Tales of Sex and Masquerade; The Implied Spider: Politics and Theology in Myth; a new translation of the Kamasutra (with Sudhir Kakar); The Woman Who Pretended to Be Who She Was; and The Hindus: An Alternative History. In progress are Faking It: Narratives of Circular Jewelry and Deceptive Women; a novel, Horses for Lovers, Dogs for Husbands; and a memoir, The Late Rita Doniger.