This course will focus on the lives and work of American women, the significance and meanings of womanhood and manhood, the development of U.S. feminism and feminist theory, and the globalization of feminism and feminist concerns. Central to this course will be the ways in which place, race, ethnicity, sexuality, gender orientation, class, and age shape women’s experiences and the various socio-political meanings of gender. We will also examine the ways in which women (and some men) have resisted inequality and affected social and political change. This course will be interdisciplinary in its approach, meaning that we will read feminist essays from a wide range of disciplines, including cultural studies, economics, history, philosophy, political theory, psychology, and sociology. In addition, we will conduct several small sociological experiments and observations, and we will watch excerpts of videos and films.
For more information email womenst@niu.edu or call 815-753-1038.