Although still life and landscapes became popular during the seventeenth century, the human figure remained not only the most esteemed but also the most depicted subject throughout Western Europe. This lecture course will first examine the biological view of sexual difference current at the time (the theory of humors). With this as a basis, we will compare seventeenth-century images of men and women to those from other periods. We will also compare differences between individual artists, including Caravaggio, Artemesia Gentileschi, Bernini, Rubens, Rembrandt, Vermeer, Velazquez, and Poussin. Evaluation based on midterm and 2 papers, one 5 pages, the other (due the last day of class) 10 pages. Prerequisites: ArtH 101-102.