Course description
An introduction to the interdisciplinary field of Women’s Studies, this course surveys the historical marginalization of women and the development of feminist thought in Western society, focusing on the range of forces and experiences that have shaped, limited and liberated women in their lives. Students will be introduced to gender and feminist theory in order to explore the nature and extent of women’s disenfranchisement and the common and diverse ways women have sought to challenge and redefine their place in Western society.
Course content
Course content will include:
- representative classic works of Western feminist thought;
- academic/scholarly studies of historical and/or contemporary women’s experiences;
- some literary works (such as novels, journals, life-writings, poetry, drama) relating to historical or contemporary periods.
Course content may also include:
- exploration of contemporary pop culture and its representations of women (as expressed in film, advertising, and other media);
- required attendance at an off-campus event (literary, political, theatrical, activist, religious).
Learning activities
The course will employ a number of instructional methods to accomplish its objectives, including some or all of the following:
- small and large group discussions;
- audio-visual materials;
- internet exploration;
- interviews;
- seminar presentations;
- instructors’ comments on students’ written work;
- lectures (including guest lectures).
Means of assessment
Evaluation will be carried out in accordance with 51 policy and will include both formative and summative components. Evaluation will be based on some or all of the following:
- journal writing;
- participation in class discussion;
- essays;
- research papers;
- oral presentations (individual and/or group);
- community life research;
- tests or quizzes;
- essay-type exams.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course, successful students should be able to:
- understand what is meant by the silencing of women;
- discuss the effects of the silencing of women (psychological and societal);
- discuss and apply an understanding of gender theory to an analysis of women’s lives and their own experiences;
- discuss the experiences of women with, and the intersections among, class, age, race, sexuality and sexual orientation, and appreciate the diversity of women’s voices and experiences;
- understand a variety of feminist voices and the development of feminist thought in Western society;
- begin, through written reflection, to articulate the relevance of course materials to their own lives and experiences
Textbook materials
A list of required textbooks and materials is provided on the Instructor’s Course Outline, which is available to students at the beginning of each semester.
Sample textbooks:
- Ibsen, Henrik, The Doll’s House
- Jenainati, Cathia & Judy Groves, Introducting Feminism
- McKay, Ami, The Birth House
- See, Lisa, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
- Woolf, Virginia, Room of One’s Own
Sample Course-pack readings:
- de Beauvoir, “Woman as Other”
- hooks, bell, “Talking Back”
- Johnson, Allan, excerpts from The Gender Knot
- Kingston, Maxine Hong, “The Misery of Silence”
- Ruth, Sheila, “An Introduction to Women’s Studies”
- Spender, Dale, “Man Made Language”
- Walker, Alice, “In Search of Our Mothers’ Gardens”
- Wollstonecraft, “A Vindication of the Rights of Woman”