Gender in America Spring 2009

Sociology 851 Section 6 Tu/Th 1:10-2:30 Anderson Hall Room 6 Instructor: Rosemary M. Feeley Office: Gladfelter Hall Room 609 Office Hours: Tu/Th 11:45-12:45 or by appointment Phone: (215) 204-7768 E-mail: rfeeley@temple.edu (best way to reach me) COURSE DESCRIPTION This course examines gender roles in contemporary United States society. It reviews theories of the social construction of gender, how our culture attaches meaning to gender, and the way masculinity and femininity are assigned. It looks at the role of socialization in (re)producing gender roles and how our own embodiment of gender influences interactions in our daily lives. The course will analyze how gender works through language and how gender roles are performed at the level of the individual. At the societal level, the course reviews the function gender plays in negotiating power and inequality in social institutions such as the family, work, education and media systems. Throughout the course, attention will be paid to the complex interaction between gender and race, ethnicity, sexuality, and age. The goals are to have students think critically about gender and the way gender is experienced in the society in which we live. REQUIRED READINGS Hochschild, Arlie Russell. 2003 The Second Shift. (earlier editions may be acceptable please see me). SS Kimmel, Michael S. 2008. The Gendered Society Reader. 3rd Edition. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. GSR Morrison, Toni. 1973. Sula. New York, NY: Knopf. Additional readings posted to Blackboard BB SULA

Class Preparation and Class Participation. You are expected to do all of the reading on time and be prepared to discuss it in class. Reading the material carefully before class is important to your overall success in various ways. We will not cover all the material in all the readings in class. Having the background of the readings will make the class discussion more meaningful and more comprehensible. Sometimes in class we will do small group work or in-class writing that presupposes that you have read the assignment. The exams will be easier for you if you keep up with the readings.

STUDENT ASSESSMENT Course assignments are designed to allow students to think critically about the course material in relationship to their gender construction, how gender is presented in web-based formats and novels, and how material/physical forces have interacted with social forces to shape gender identities over time. There are three papers assigned as part of the class and two exams. Grades will be calculated based on the following percentage distributions. Theory and the Gendered Me Paper Midterm Exam Gender Identity Formation and the Internet Exercise Fictionalized Gender Paper Final Exam 20% 25% 10% 15% 30%

Midterm and Final Exam: There will be two exams for this class: a midterm and a final exam. The examination structure will consist of a mix of multiple choice, short answer, and essay questions covering the material presented in that section of the class. Students will be given some sample essay questions in the class before the exam to aid in your preparation. The final will focus on the material from the midterm until the end of the course but will also include general material from the first half of the course. Theory and the Gendered Me Paper: This assignment is designed to have students address theoretical perspectives and how they connect to students experience of gender construction in their own lives. Gender Identity Formation and the Internet Exercise: This exercise is designed to have students explore how gender identity is critically influenced by information on the internet and to evaluate the credibility and legitimacy of different web sites. Students will bring information on web sites and they will be discussed and analyzed in a group setting. Also, a paper is required. Fictionalized Gender Paper: This paper is intended to have students address the novel assigned in this class and assess how this portrayal of gender reflects contemporary conflicts over gender roles and identity. Disability disclosure statement: Any student who has a need for accommodation based on the impact of a disability or other impairment to learning should contact me privately to discuss the specific situation as soon as possible. Students with documented disabilities should contact Disability Resources and Services (100 Ritter Annex) at 215- 204-1280 to coordinate reasonable accommodations. Statement concerning the Student and Faculty Academic Rights and Responsibilities Policy: Freedom to teach and freedom to learn are inseparable facets of academic freedom. The University has a policy on Student and Faculty Academic Rights and Responsibilities (Policy #03.70.02) which can be accessed through the following link: http://policies.temple.edu/getdoc.asp?policy_no=03.70.02.

Unless noted otherwise on the schedule below, all readings are due on Tuesday of the week listed, and written assignments are due on Thursday of the week listed. The midterm will take place on Thursday, March 5. If there are any necessary changes to the schedule, I will inform you in class.

WEEK

TOPICS

READINGS

EXAMS AND ASSIGNMENTS

1 Jan 20, 22 2 Jan 27, 29

How Gender Matters Theories of Gender

3 Feb 3, 5

Theories of Gender

4 Feb 10, 12 5 Feb 17, 19

Theories of Gender Gender and Intimacy, Love, Marriage Gender and the Family Gender and the Media Gender and Education

6 Feb 24, 26 7 Mar 3, 5 8 Mar 17, 19

GSR: Believing is Seeing. Testosterone Rules (Readings due Thursday) GSR: Sex and Temperament in Three Primitive Societies The Gender Similarities Hypothesis The Exotic-Becomes-Erotic Theory of Sexual Orientation GSR: Boundaries, Negotiation, Consciousness: Reconceptualizing Gender Relations Doing Gender Beards, Breasts, and Bodies GSR: Introductions to Parts1-4 GSR: Hooking Up The Feminization of Love. Modern Marriage: Revising the Cultural Script GSR: Household Labor and the Routine Production of Gender SS: Preface; Chapters 1-4 GSR: Contested Images of Femininity. Guilty Pleasures GSR: Being a Girl and Being a Boy Spice Girls, Nice Girls Making a Name for Yourself BB: Thorne excerpts

Theory and Gendered Me Paper Due

Midterm Exam

9 Mar 24, 26

Gender and Work

10 Mar 31, Apr 2 11 Apr 7, 9

Intersections, Masculinities, and Femininities Intersections, Masculinities, and Femininities

GSR: Hierarchies, Jobs, Bodies: A Theory of Gendered Organizations Bringing the Men Back In: Sex Differentiation and the Devaluation of Womens Work The Class Escalator: Hidden Advantages for Men in the Female Professions Sula: entire book

Gender Identity Formation and the Internet: Paper Due and In-class assignment

GSR: Doing Difference BB: Connell Fernandez-Kelly and Garcia GSR: The Body and the Reproduction of Femininity Masculinities and Men's Health The Many Faces of Gender Inequality Transgendering BB: TBA Fictionalized Gender Paper Due

12 Apr 14, 16

Gender and the Body

13 Apr 21, 23 14 Apr 28, 30 15 Exam Week

Concluding Debates Concluding Debates and Semester Review

Final Exam