MIT JUNCTION, Summer 2007: Introduction to Women’s Studies

Mon 5:30-7:30pm, Tues 5:30-7pm, Wed 5:30-7:30pm, Thurs 5:30-7pm

Building: 2Room: 146

Instructor: Bryan Godfrey Email: hone: (814) 602-1832

Course Texts:

  • Reading Packet (provided first day of class): Includes selections from Writing About the World, Women’s Voices Feminist Visions, Feminism is for Everybody, and many more!

Additional Required Materials:

  • Always bring a notebook or paper and a pen/pencil for in-class assignments
  • You will need to bring your Reading Packet to every class
  • You should keep any written assignments in a binder or notebook. This will serve as your portfolio for our class. Always keep all of your work with you, as you may be asked to refer to specific assignments throughout the course.

Course Summary:

“A woman's place in public is to sit beside her husband, be silent, and be sure her hat is on straight.”

—Bess Truman, 1945

“A woman with a voice is by definition a strong woman.”—Melinda Gates

What is a woman? How, and by whom, is she defined? What has been her historical role, and why? What is her role today, and how has it changed? These are just a few of the most basic questions of Women’s Studies, a highly interdisciplinary academic field that took root in the United States during the early 1970s. And while Women’s Studies scholars have offered plenty of new, refreshing, and often liberating answers, both in academia and in pop culture,many new questions have been proposed as well. In this six-week exploratory course, we will encounter questions both old and new in an attempt to understand the choices and experiences today’s women (and men) face in their everyday, personal, professional, and public lives.

Course Policies:

  • The classroom will be a safe and supportive learning environment, in which we will not be afraid to speak our minds in lively debate—or even argument. However, we will always be courteous and polite. I will not tolerate hate speech, personal insults, shouting matches, or anything else that will inappropriately disrupt the class.
  • We will respect everyone’s comments and opinions. It’s hard to stress this one enough: if you’re not open to new ideas, how can you ever learn anything new? You don’t have to agree with anything that is said, but you do have to listen—supportively, attentively, and patiently. Don’t worry, you’ll get a chance to respond.
  • When you are speaking, be aware of when others would like to contribute. Similarly, when you are listening, be sure you are actually listening rather than simply thinking about what you’re going to say next. Then everyone will listen just as carefully to you!
  • As per the pedagogy of educational theorist Peter Elbow, I do not give grades. However, your attendance and active participation in this class are required in order to pass.

COURSE OUTLINE

***Subject to Change!***

WEEK ONE ------

MonJuly 98:00-8:45 (45 min)

Introductory session. Meet one another, and have some fun! What is Women’s Studies/Gender Studies? What is feminism? What are the misconceptions, and what are some definitions?

  • “The first thing I want to say to you who are students is that you cannot afford to think of being here to receive an education; you will do much better to think of yourselves as being here to claim one.”—Adrienne Rich
  • Who are we? Why are we here? What do we hope to learn? (and other questions of life!)
  • “Women’s Studies” and “Feminism”: Terms and Definitions
  • The fundamentals of class discussion: debate and argument
  • Differing styles of pedagogy: traditional vs. feminist
  • Videos: “Men on the street”and “Are you a feminist?”

TuesJuly 105:30-7:00 (1.5 hours)

NO CLASS

WedJuly 115:30-7:30 (two hours)

History of feminism and women’s rights.

  • Early feminism: Mary Wollstonecraft’s A Vindication of the Rights of Woman
  • First Wave:Suffrage Timeline. Legal equality.
  • The “Cult of Domesticity”
  • Video: “Iron Jawed Angels” (1:33)
  • Video: “UVM-TV: Thoughts on Women’s Suffrage”
  • Video: “Ending Women’s Suffrage”
  • Second Wave:early 1960s to the late 1980s. Still legality, but also everyday life!
  • The Feminine Mystique, by Betty Friedan
  • Third Wave:early 1990s to the present. Focus off upper-middle-class white women; heavily influenced by postmodernism, queer theory, etc.
  • “White Feminism”

ThursJuly 125:30-7:00 (1.5 hours)

What is privilege? What is oppression? What is inequality? What do race, age, sexual orientation, ethnicity, and class have to do with Women’s Studies?Based on class interest, determine the subjects we will cover in this course.

  • Privilege, Domination, and Oppression chart
  • Finders vs. Looters – an example of racism?
  • hooks, “Race and Gender”
  • “When I Was Growing Up” by Nellie Wong
  • Video: “Gay Black Men Speak”

WEEK TWO ------

MonJuly 165:30-7:30 (two hours)

Who are you? How do we construct ourselves? How does society construct us?

  • Video: How do you define a woman?
  • Poem: “I’m a Woman”
  • From Woman, Native, Other: should we be defining “woman” at all? Can we?
  • Activity: Rank the importance of defining your identity based on: sex, race, national origin, sexuality, physical ability, education, age, attractiveness, class, religion, etc.
  • The Kathy and Mo Show: “Angels” and “Dating”
  • Video: The Stanford Prison Experiment

TuesJuly 175:30-7:00 (1.5 hours)

What is sex? What is gender? Who gets to decide, and why does it matter so much?

  • “The Eye of the Beholder”
  • Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex: “Women as Other”
  • “Two Sexes Are Not Enough” and “The Social Construction”
  • Audio: Dar Williams – When I Was a Boy

WedJuly 185:30-7:30 (two hours)

Gender, Privilege, and Power: Masculinity and Femininity.

  • Helene Cixous - the male/female dichotomy is everywhere!
  • Video: “A Woman’s Role, 1930s”
  • Video:TransYouth Family Advocates
  • Activity: Have you ever wanted to be the opposite sex? The tomboy or sissy survey.
  • Activity: Difficult questions—you be the parent!
  • “Boys will be Boys” (this article appears earlier, 9 page turns into the packet)

HOMEWORK: Read ““The Xanith: A Third Gender Role?” for Thursday.

ThursJuly 195:30-7:00 (1.5 hours)

How do gender and culture interact? How do other cultures understand gender? Are two genders enough?

  • “World Report 2002”
  • “The Xanith” (assigned as homework)
  • “No Name Woman”
  • “Why Do I Wear Hijab?”
  • Video: “The Veil Diaries”
  • Video: “Unveiled Women Invite Rape” (Excerpts from a debate between Egyptian author Muna Hilmiand lawyer Nabih Al-Wahsh. Dream2 TV, Egypt, February 2, 2005)
  • Video: “How Can She Drive a Car”
  • Saudi Cleric Dr. Abd Al-'Aziz Al-Fawzan Explains Why Women Should Not Be Allowed to Drive. Excerpts from an interview with Saudi cleric Dr. Abd Al-'Aziz Al-Fawzan which was aired by Al-Majd TV on June 17, 2005.

WEEK THREE ------

MonJuly 235:30-7:30 (two hours)

Gender transgressions: options and consequences

  • “Homophobia: A Weapon of Sexism”
  • Transgender (catch-all), Transsexual (M is F, etc.) and Transvestite (cross-dresser)
  • Video: “TransGender 101”
  • Videos: “Eddie Izzard – Dressed to Kill 1 and 2”
  • “Biphobia”
  • Video: “Paternal Instinct – Gay Men and a Baby”

TuesJuly 245:30-7:00 (1.5 hours)

What is beauty? What is ideal beauty? Who gets to decide? How is beauty constructed? How does ideal beauty interact with gender?

  • Activity: list five things you love and five things you hate about your body. Compare lists as a group: what’s most popular? Why?
  • Trends – “Most young women unhappy with bodies”
  • hooks-“Beauty within and without”
  • Activity: Body Image Quiz
  • The Kathy and Mo Show: Getting ready for the day!

WedJuly 255:30-7:30 (two hours)

Eating disorders and disordered eating. Body alteration and plastic surgery.

  • Video “Eating Disorders”
  • Video: “Eating Disorder case in point?”
  • Video: “Anorexia – An Outsider’s Perspective”
  • Video: “Anorexia – An Outsider’s Perspective (Kat’s reply)”
  • “Eating Disorders in Preadolescent Children”
  • “China’s Cosmetic Surgery Craze”

ThursJuly 265:30-7:00 (1.5 hours)

Other standards of beauty: A look at some differing ideals, past and present, here and abroad.

  • “Body Ethics and Aesthetics among African American and Latina Women”
  • “Media Consumption, Body Image andThin Ideals in New Zealand”
  • “Cultural Expectations of Thinness in Chinese Women”

WEEK FOUR------

MonJuly 305:30-7:30 (two hours)

Learning to love your body!

  • Some strategies
  • “Dancing Toward Redemption”
  • Can one be a feminist and still be a stripper, housewife, etc.? Why do you make the choice you do? Are so many choices good for us?
  • “Ways to Learn to Love Your Body”

TuesJuly 315:30-7:00 (1.5 hours)

How are women portrayed in advertising?

  • Sample advertisements and analysis
  • Kids and ads, ageism, racism, consumerism, and much, much more
  • Video: “Jean Kilbourne Killing Us Softly”

HOMEWORK:Read “Gender Portrayals – Broadcast Commercials” for Wednesday

WedAugust 15:30-7:30 (two hours)

Media representations of women (and men): television, film, video games, etc.

  • “Shirts vs. Skins:Clothing . . . in Video Games”
  • “Playing the Game”
  • Video: “Masculinity in Disney Films”
  • “From Margin to Centre? Images of African-American WomeninFilm”
  • “GenderPortrayals – Broadcast Commercials” (assigned as homework)

ThursAugust 25:30-7:00 (1.5 hours)

Do representations of women in advertising and the media matter? Are viewers influenced?

  • “The effect of media analysis on . . . body image”
  • Media Influences and Body Dissatisfaction in Young Women

Changing times: What’s changed? What’s stayed the same? Is further change needed?

  • Video: “The Good Wife’s Guide, 1955”
  • Video: “The Trouble with Women, 1959”
  • Video: “Dove Campaign”
  • Video: “Women in Today’s Ads”
  • Video: “My TiVo Gets Me”

WEEK FIVE------

MonAugust 65:30-7:30 (two hours)

What is prejudice? What is a stereotype? How and why are such things formed? Do you have hidden biases? What are your assumptions? Can they be changed?

  • “Protesting Miss America” Stereotype of feminists (bra burning)
  • “Challenging your Assumptions”
  • Constructing the Other
  • Video: “East Constructs the West”
  • Video: “Indoctrinating Hate”

TuesAugust 75:30-7:00 (1.5 hours)

What does language have to do with Women’s Studies? Why does language matter? What is “being PC”—and have we gone too far?

  • “Qualification in Male Language”
  • “Challenging the Pseudogeneric ‘Man,’”
  • “Little Red Riding Hood – Politically Correct”
  • “Non-sexist Language”
  • “Respectful Disability Language”

WedAugust 85:30-7:30 (two hours)

CLASS CHOICE:

ThursAugust 95:30-7:00 (1.5 hours)

CLASS CHOICE:

WEEK SIX------

MonAugust 135:30-7:30 (two hours)

What is the situation for women today?

  • “Where Women Rule”
  • “20 Leading Occupations of Employed Women”and “Selected Nontraditional”
  • “Women and Agriculture”: Wages and earnings worldwide
  • Video: “Paid for Housework – Fox News”
  • “Women at Work”: bell hooks
  • Video: “Role of Saudi Women”

TuesAugust 145:30-7:00 (1.5 hours)

What is the state of feminism today? Does feminism still matter? Where do we go from here? What is activism? Is there still a need for change? Can one person really make a difference?

  • Video:Addie Stan on the State of Feminism in 2006
  • The Kathy and Mo Show: Feminist performance art
  • The Kathy and Mo Show: Outside the women’s clinic
  • “Fear of Feminism,” “A Day Without Feminism,”and “Denials of Inequality”
  • “U.N. Millennium Development Goals”
  • What would a “feminist” seek to change in the world?
  • “Warning” and “A Day with Feminism”

WedAugust 155:30-7:30 (two hours)

CLASS CHOICE:

ThursAugust 165:30-7:00 (1.5 hours)

CLASS CHOICE:

ENJOY THE REST OF YOUR SUMMER!

Possibilities for Class Choice days (you are not limited to these!)

Women’s rights in Islam

Constructing the Other

Feminist spirituality

Romantic love

Gay marriage

Women’s suffrage (film, Iron Jawed Angels)

Affirmative action

Dixie Chicks controversy

Feminist activism

Men and feminism

Feminist performance and art

Feminist literary theory and deconstruction

Women in education and the “Mrs.” degree

Internalization of patriarchy

Dichotomies and continuums

Nature vs. nurture