10. Thigh Fencing and the Saffron Massage

In this episode, co-hosts Gretchen and Leigh will take you on a
tour of medieval Arabo-Islamic erotic literature and the many
delightful descriptions of queer female experience it contains.
Remember way back in episode two when ‘thigh fencing’ came up?
Well, that and other martial imagery for wlw sexual experience
come from medieval Arabo-Islamic poetry! Like shield banging,
jousting without a lance, or our new favorite---the saffron
massage. Plus, we’ll dive into cross-dressing heroines, the music
of love (moaning), and the first lesbian couple, Hind and
al-Zarqa’!


Outline


0:00 – Introduction
5:57 – Historical Context: Medieval Arabic Erotic Tradition More
Generally
25:52 – Historical Context: Arabic Literature and Western Courtly
Love Poetry
36:11 – Fun Segment: Word of the Week
42:38 – Tribadism and Queer Lady Love in Arabo-Islamic
Writing
1:03:17 – Tales of Cross-Dressing and Same-Sex Marriage
1:16:10 – People Examples
1:24:41 – Takeaways
1:30:25 – How Gay were They?
1:33:18 – Closing and Where to Find Us Online


 


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