SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY
SEX, POWER AND POLITICS/WMNST 375
TTH: 12:30 pm - 1:45 pm
AH 2112
Ph.: 594-6662
Dr. Pat Washington
Ofc: Adams Humanities 3167
Ph: 594-6662
washing3@mail.sdsu.edu
Office Hours:
TTH: 2:00pm - 3:00 pm
W: 9:30am - 10:30am
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course deals with social, economic and political factors influencing women's status in the U.S. and abroad. Topics include, but are not limited to, institutionalized systems of power and domination; gender and sexuality socialization as they relate to political status; and women's individual and collective struggles for positive social change. Ongoing attention will be given to the interrelationship of race, gender, sexual orientation and class. Primary emphasis will be on how the quality of life experienced by various groups of women (and men) is diminished or enhanced through individual and/or group strategies for political and social change. Format will be a mixture of lecture; discussion; student group presentation; guest speakers; films; and electronic mail discussions and activities.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
- to understand some of the intricacies of historical and contemporary tensions
between, as well as coalitions among, various strands of U.S. women's (and
other) movements
- to examine some of the political issues addressed by contemporary feminists,
especially as they intersect or conflict with national and/or international policies
and practices
- to explore the role of U.S. political attitudes and practices, institutions and
structures, in the perpetuation of systems of gender-based inequality within the
U.S. and abroad
- to assess the effectiveness of individual and group efforts at creating positive
social change
- to interrogate "the personal as political": to understand the role of the individual
in maintaining or dismantling ongoing systems of inequality within the U.S. and
abroad
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Regular attendance, timely completion of reading assignments, quality oral and written class participation, three examinations, announced & unannounced quizzes, and group presentation. Additionally, all students are required to subscribe to and actively participate in the electronic mail listserv (WS375@lists.sdsu.edu) established for this course.
GRADING POLICY/PROCEDURE
Incomplete grades and make-up examinations will be given only in exceptional cases. Missed examinations require officially documented reasons (e.g., authorized medical excuse for day of exam). Late completion of required work may result in a grade reduction. Plus/minus grading will be used. Final grades will be calculated on 4.0 scale, with percentage weights assigned as follows, for a total of 100%:
Three exams at 25% each 75%
Group Presentation 15%
Class Participation 5%
Quizzes 5%
REQUIRED TEXTS
- Albertson, M. 1995. Mothers in Law: Feminist Theory and the Legal Regulation of
Motherhood. NY: Columbia University Press.
- AMPO. 1996. Voices from the Japanese Women's Movement. NY: M. E. Sharpe.
- Darcy, R., Susan Welch, and Janet Clark. 1994. Women, Elections and
Representation. NE: University of Nebraska Press.
- Enloe, Cynthia. 1990. Bananas, Beaches and Bases: Making Feminist Sense of
International Politics. CA: University of California Press.
- Huckle, Patricia. 1991. Tish Sommers, Activist. TN: University of Tennessee Press.
- Kahn, Karen. 1995. Frontline Feminism, 1975-1995. CA: Aunt Lute Books.
SUPPLEMENTAL READINGS
Occasionally during the semester, the instructor may provide students with additional, short readings on selected course topics. Students should treat supplemental readings as they would any other assigned texts--i.e., be prepared to discuss them in class and/or on exams.
EXAM DATES
March 6, April 15, and May 20
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