Courses in Gender & Sexuality Studies

This course provides students with critical frameworks for thinking about the social construction of gender at the personal and institutional levels. Emphasis is placed on diverse women’s significant contributions to knowledge and culture; to other areas of gender studies, including men’s studies, family studies and the study of sexuality; and to the intersections of various forms of oppression both within and outside of the U.S. The course includes both scholarly as well as personal texts, visual as well as written text. This counts toward the introductory requirement for the major. This course paired with any other 0.5 unit WGS/GSS course counts toward the social science diversification requirement. No prerequisite. Offered every semester.

This course is designed to help students develop a critical framework for thinking and writing about intersectional issues related to sexuality, sex, gender identity and gender expression. The course takes a broad view of examining queer and transgender issues from sociopolitical, legal, psychological, biological, cultural, ethical, philosophical and historical frameworks. We look at the fields of queer theory and LGBTQ+ studies out of which some of the most innovative and challenging developments in modern cultural studies are arising. Additionally, we examine the ways in which society interacts with queer and transgender identities in a number of spheres, including politics, health care, the arts, the sciences and more. This counts toward the introductory and diversity and globalization requirements for the major. This course paired with any other 0.5 unit WGS/GSS course counts toward the social science diversification requirement. No prerequisite.

This course examines how popular culture (e.g., media) represents gender through making observations, reading background theory, examining content analysis research and conducting our own research. We examine the extent to which popular culture depicts gender-stereotyped behavior, the content of the gender stereotypes, the possible reasons that stereotypes are portrayed, and the likely effects of these stereotypes on the behavior of individuals and the structure of society. To the extent possible, we examine the intersection of stereotypes about gender with those associated with race/ethnicity, social class, age and sexuality. This course satisfies the quantitative reasoning requirement because students learn about descriptive statistics and put them to use by conducting their own content analysis (in a small group) and presenting and writing about the results of their research. In a service-learning component to the course, students develop a media literacy lesson for high school students based on what they learn about their topic. This course is designed for first-year students. This counts toward the introductory requirement for the major. This course paired with any other 0.5 unit WGS/GSS course counts toward the social science diversification requirement. No prerequisite. Offered occasionally.

Through focus on a specific topic, this course explores how men’s lives are shaped by and shape the gendered social order. Macro and micro perspectives guide discussions focusing on how men behave in particular contexts and how they perceive themselves, other men and women in diverse situations. Specific topics investigating the production of masculinities take into account the interplay among the cultural, interpersonal and individual layers of social life while considering how men’s efforts are enabled or constrained by key socially relevant characteristics (primarily age, race/ethnicity, class and sexual orientation) through investigations, for instance, of particular sites (e.g., playgrounds, work space, home, schools, athletic venues, prisons). This course paired with any other 0.5 unit WGS/GSS course counts toward the social science diversification requirement. No prerequisite. Offered occasionally.

This course examines the impact of globalization on feminist discourses that describe the cross-cultural experiences of women. Transnational feminist theories and methodologies destabilize Western feminisms, challenging notions of subjectivity and place and their connections to experiences of race, class and gender. The course builds on four key concepts: development, democratization, cultural change and colonialism. Because transnational feminisms are represented by the development of women's global movements, the course considers examples of women's global networks and the ways in which they destabilized concepts such as citizenship and rights. We also examine how transnational feminisms have influenced women's productions in the fields of literature and art. Key questions include: How does the history of global feminisms affect local women's movements? What specific issues have galvanized women's movements across national and regional borders? How do feminism and critiques of colonialism and imperialism intersect? What role might feminist agendas play in addressing current global concerns? How do transnational feminisms build and sustain communities and connections to further their agendas? This counts toward the diversity and globalization requirement for the major. This course paired with any other 0.5 unit WGS/GSS course counts toward the social science diversification requirement. Prerequisite: Any GSS course. Offered every other year.

In this course, we read both historical and contemporary feminist theory with the goal of understanding the multiplicity of feminist approaches to women’s experiences, the representation of women and women’s relative positions in societies. Theoretical positions represented include liberal, cultural, psychoanalytic, socialist and poststructuralist feminism. We explore the relationship of these theories to issues of race, class, sexual preference and ethnicity through an examination of the theoretical writings of women of color and non-Western women. This counts toward the concentration and the mid-level requirement for the major. This course paired with any other 0.5 unit WGS/GSS course counts toward the social science diversification requirement. Prerequisite: any WGS/GSS course, approved departmental course. Offered every other year.

This course examines feminist critiques of dominant methodologies and theories of knowledge creation in the sciences, social sciences and humanities. It focuses on the following questions: How do we know something? Who gets to decide what counts as knowledge? Who is the knower? In answering these questions, this class explores how power is exercised in the production of knowledge, how the norms of objectivity and universalism perpetuate dominance and exclusion, why women and other minority groups are often seen as lacking epistemic authority, and what it means to have knowledge produced from a feminist standpoint. Students learn a variety of methods and use these methods in a community-based research project. This project involves working with community partners in Knox County and may require student participation outside of the scheduled class time. In addition, we discuss various ethical issues that feminist researchers often encounter and what responsibilities feminist researchers have to the broader political community. This course has a community-engaged learning (CEL) component. Students may be required to travel off-campus for site visits. This counts toward the mid-level requirement for the major. This course paired with any other 0.5 unit WGS/GSS course counts toward the social science diversification requirement. Prerequisite: any WGS/GSS course, approved departmental course or permission of instructor. Offered every other year.

Stories of sexual violence against women serve as foundational myths of a Western culture that bases its prestige upon the rule of law. This course examines some of those narratives, beginning with medieval ideals of courtly love, alongside of legal discourse on sexual assault. The aim is to unpack the parallel practices by which literary and legal narratives are mutually implicated in the system of gender relations that sustains sexual assault, and those that cordon off implementation of sexual assault law from cultural practices that continue to encourage sexual assault (rape culture). Because contemporary American scripts about sex and romance arguably go back to the ideologies of romance, courtship, and seduction represented in courtly love literature of the Middle Ages, there is much to be gained by looking at literature in tandem with legal procedures. To explore the complementary roles of law and literature in sustaining and challenging sexual assault, we use the recent history of Title IX. We are interested in the ways that the existing legal order challenges, but also contributes to--perhaps even perpetuates--the disempowerment and devaluation of women. As sexual assault deprives women of physical, spiritual and psychic integrity, we return throughout the course to narratives of resistance, justice, survival and healing. This class engages difficult, often deeply personal issues. We approach all material, topics and content from an academic perspective, but it will engage difficult topics that may elicit a highly emotional response. This course counts toward the elective requirement for the major. No prerequisites.

This course provides the opportunity for those students taking WGS 481 in the spring to plan the course. Students select a topic, order books, plan the syllabus and design a project. In addition, they read about course design and pedagogy so that they are prepared to take responsibility for collaboratively teaching the course in the spring. Offered only on a credit/no credit basis. This course is required for the major. This interdisciplinary course does not count toward the completion of any diversification requirement. No prerequisite. Senior standing.

The senior colloquium is organized around a theme determined by senior majors and concentrators in consultation with the instructor during the semester prior to the beginning of the course. Previous topics include "Women and Madness," "The Politics of the Bathroom" and "Gender and Tourism." This course is required for the major. Prerequisite: GSS 480 or permission of instructor. Offered every spring.

Individual study enables students to examine an area not typically covered by courses regularly offered in the program. The course can be arranged with a faculty member in any department but must conform to the usual requirements for credit in the program: Gender is a central focus of the individual study, and the course draws on feminist theory and/or feminist methodologies. The amount of work should be similar to that in any other 400-level course. Individual study courses may be used toward the major or concentration. To enroll, a student should first contact a faculty member and, in consultation with that professor, develop a proposal. The proposal, which must be approved by the program director, should provide a brief description of the course/project (including any previous classes that qualify the student), a preliminary bibliography or reading list, an assessment component (what will be graded and when) and major topical areas to be covered during the semester. The student and faculty member should plan to meet approximately one hour per week or the equivalent, at the discretion of the instructor. Because students must enroll for individual studies by the end of the seventh class day of each semester, they should begin discussion of the proposed individual study by the semester before, so that there is time to devise the proposal and seek departmental approval. This interdisciplinary course does not count toward the completion of any diversification requirement.

The major who wishes to participate in the Honors Program must have an overall GPA of 3.33 and a GPA of 3.5 in the major. The candidate in honors completes all requirements for the major, the Senior Capstone and two semesters of independent study and designs and completes a research project. This project should integrate feminist theory and methodologies as well as the student’s chosen disciplinary or interdisciplinary cluster. Each honors student prepares an annotated bibliography on the chosen project midway through the fall semester. After approval, the senior honors project is undertaken in consultation with a project advisor. Students are encouraged to think boldly and innovatively about the kinds of projects they undertake and about how those projects interact with and benefit their communities. Senior honors projects might include gender-focused sociological or historical studies undertaken locally; exhibitions, productions or installations of gender-exploratory art, music or theater; or political, social and/or environmental service-oriented or activist work. Students are closely mentored throughout their projects and, in the spring, are evaluated by an external evaluator and faculty in the program and in relevant disciplines. The evaluators assess the strength of the students’ overall work, as well as the strength of their self-designed, project-appropriate public presentations of that work. Permission of instructor and department chair required.

The major who wishes to participate in the Honors Program must have an overall GPA of 3.33 and a GPA of 3.5 in the major. The candidate in honors completes all requirements for the major, the Senior Capstone and two semesters of independent study and designs and completes a research project. This project should integrate feminist theory and methodologies as well as the student’s chosen disciplinary or interdisciplinary cluster. Each honors student prepares an annotated bibliography on the chosen project midway through the fall semester. After approval, the senior honors project is undertaken in consultation with a project advisor. Students are encouraged to think boldly and innovatively about the kinds of projects they undertake and about how those projects interact with and benefit their communities. Senior honors projects might include gender-focused sociological or historical studies undertaken locally; exhibitions, productions or installations of gender-exploratory art, music or theater; or political, social and/or environmental service-oriented or activist work. Students are closely mentored throughout their projects and, in the spring, are evaluated by an external evaluator and faculty in the program and in relevant disciplines. The evaluators assess the strength of the students’ overall work, as well as the strength of their self-designed, project-appropriate public presentations of that work. Permission of instructor and department chair required.