Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies (WGST)

WGST 199. Writing in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall Only

Prerequisite(s): ENGL 101.

Description: Intermediate college writing course based on the subject and methodology of women's, gender and sexuality studies.

Note: Credit may not be earned for this course and ENGL 102.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 201. Women In American Culture - D1, AH3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

Description: Examination of women's experiences in 19th- and 20th-century America, focusing on issues pertaining to family, religion, economy, politics, law, race and class. (Humanities)

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 202. Seeing Gender: Introduction to Gender in Visual Studies - AH, D13 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring

Description: This course introduces students to the disciplines of Visual Studies and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies. It explores the many ways in which these fields intersect through a consideration of two primary, related concepts: the social construction of vision and its inverse, the visual construction of the social. The first highlights how humans are conditioned to see the way they do because they are social animals. The latter underscores the fact that it is equally true that social arrangements, such as gender and race, take the forms that they do because humans are seeing animals. This framework allows students to critically engage some of the central questions that have shaped both Visual Studies and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies. How does seeing impose itself upon the social construction of gender and other forms of identity, such as racial and sexual identity? What is the relationship between images and words, and how does that relationship affect the politics of how images are used? What are the mechanisms by which vision and visual images become gendered or racialized? Why is visual experience so fraught with anxiety and fantasy? How do visual encounters with other people (and with images and objects) inform the construction of social life as gendered and racialized?

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 203. Gender Issues in Public Dialogue - D1, OC3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring

Description: The objective of this course is to empower students to be persuasive and effective public speakers. Students will utilize gender analytics as a tool to examine the content and structure of public dialogue. Students will practice the skills they need to be successful in today's corporate, non-profit, and government arenas. (Humanities)

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 204. Digital Feminism - D2, SB3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

Description: As a Cardinal Core course in Social & Behavioral Sciences (SB) and Global Diversity (D2), this class is concerned with understanding how human behaviors, interactions and environments are shaped by historical, cultural, and social structures and process of stratification in U.S. and non-U.S. societies. Specifically, Digital Feminism studies the recent history and current landscape of gender, race, sexuality, and relation to digital media.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 207. Diverse Perspectives in Philosophy - AH, D23 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring

Description: Survey of historical canonical contributions to western philosophy juxtaposed with minority voices to understand how social, economic, and cultural situatedness affect bodies of knowledge.

Note: Cross-listed with PHIL 207 and PAS 207.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 240. World LGBTQ+ Cinema - D2, SB3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Spring Only

Description: This course examines LGBTQ+ culture around the globe through the lens of cinema.

Note: Cross-listed with M L 240.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 300. Sex, Gender and Culture3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

Description: A cross-cultural perspective on the interactions among sex, gender, and culture, including feminist/gender theory, the socially-constructed aspects of biological sex, intersex and gender-non-binary, masculinity studies, sexuality, and heteronormativity, with emphasis on US and non-U.S. cultures. Course work will include independent reading and writing assignments.

Note: Cross-listed with ANTH 309.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 301. Introduction to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Studies3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Spring Only

Description: Course focuses on defining the field of LGBTQ studies, examining the historical and social contexts of LGBTQ communities as well as the personal, cultural, and political aspects of LGBTQ life. (Social Sciences)

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 302. LGBTQ and Applied Healthcare3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: This course provides introductory exploration of health and healthcare as it applies to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community. Students will learn the foundations of inclusive healthcare and clinical skills to care for LGBTQ individuals competency, in addition to individuals born with differences of sex development (DSD; sometimes called intersex).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 303. Humanities and Gender - D2, AH3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

Description: Analysis of sex roles as embodied in classic works of philosophy, literature, history, drama, and art in ancient, medieval, modern and contemporary times. (Humanities)

Note: Cross-listed with HUM 331.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 312. Sociology of Women's Health3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: This course introduces students to key conceptual and substantive issues in the sociology of women's health and illness, drawing upon a variety of theories (including feminist and critical theories) and examining the intersections of gender identity, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, social structure, and power in the ways in which women experience health and illness and, how women's health care is structured. While the course is organized around specific biological conditions or illness, the focus of the course is on key sociological concepts including the doctor-patient relationship, help-seeking behavior, the socialization of health care providers, and the cultural and structural dimensions of the health care system. Drawing upon a broader context, recent policy responses related to U.S. women's and LGBTQ health also are addressed.

Note: Cross-listed with SOC 343.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 313. Sociology of Gender3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

Description: This course examines the social construction of gender and the status of women and men in major social institutions such as education, family, the workplace, and the media. Students will be introduced to theoretical perspectives on the development of gender, discuss gender stereotypes, and examine scientific research and perspectives on gender differences and similarities. The course will also explore the structural foundations and theoretical explanations of gender inequality, as well as the intersectionality of gender and other social locations and identities, such as race, social class, sexual orientation, and age.

Note: Cross-listed with SOC 327.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 316. Gender, Sexuality & Law3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Prerequisite(s): POLS 201 or instructor consent.

Description: This course examines how legal policy both reflects and shapes norms related to gender and sexuality, and analyzes the public policy implications of court decisions related to gender and sexuality.

Note: Cross-listed with POLS 316.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 320. Women in Music: A History - AH, D13 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

Description: Addresses the historical and social contexts and social constructions of gender related to women and music, as well as the portrayal of women in musical works. Includes focus on Western art music as well as various genres of popular music.

Note: Cross-listed with MUH 320.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 323. Queer Politics3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Spring Only

Description: The course examines the political organization of gays, lesbians, and transgendered persons, forms of oppression they experience, forms of political activism they utilize,and their relationship to mainstream political institutions. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with POLS 323.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 324. Communication and Gender3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

Description: The course examines how gender identities, roles and norms have been structured within different modes of communication (e.g., interpersonal, mass media and institutional).

Note: Cross-listed with COMM 324.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 325. Women and Global Literature - D2, AH3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

Prerequisite(s): ENGL 102, or ENGL 105, or WGST 199, or equivalents.

Description: This course examines literatures by women writers and about women subjects from non-U.S. societies, exploring a variety of literary forms in relationship to social factors such as class, race, ethnicity, religion, sexuality and/or indigeneity.

Note: Cross-listed with ENGL 373.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 326. Gender, Race, Sexuality in Children's Lit - D1, AH3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

Prerequisite(s): ENGL 102, or ENGL 105, or WGST 199, or equivalents.

Description: Examination of how historical, social, and cultural structures and processes represented in British and North American literature for children/young adults from the late 19th century to the present shape our understandings of race, class, and gender. Historical period: Post-1900. (Humanities)

Note: Cross-listed with ENGL 374.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 331. The History of Women, 1700 to the Present3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall Only

Description: A comparative treatment of women's changing status, including material from European and American history. (Social Sciences)

Note: Junior standing recommended.
Note: Credit may not be received for this course and HIST 324.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 332. History of Childhood in America - WR, D1, SBH3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Summer

Description: An analysis of the impact of socioeconomic and ideological change in the experience of children and youth from the colonial period to the present, with attention to the effects of race, class, and gender on childhood experience. (Social Sciences)

Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).
Note: Credit may not be earned for this course and HIST 326.
Note: Cross-listed with HIST 326.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 333. Women in Latin American History3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Prerequisite(s): HIST 331 or HIST 332 recommended.

Description: Examines the history of women and gender in Latin America, with an emphasis on women's political participation. (Social Sciences)

Note: Credit may not be earned for this course and HIST 333.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 337. Motherhood and the Law3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: Motherhood and the Law will examine the various ways the legal system impacts and regulates mothers. Students will critically analyze the effect court decisions and laws have on mothers using an intersectional approach (as developed by Kimberle Crenshaw). The course begins with setting a theoretical framework - built on both theories of motherhood and legal analysis - and from there will study the interplay between the law and motherhood, from reproductive rights through raising their children. This course is designed to give students an understanding of how the justice system impacts mothers' lives, maintains systems of inequality, and regulates their bodies.

Note: Crosslisted with SOC 337.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 339. Black Women and the Criminology System3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: This course will examine the various ways the legal system impacts and regulates Black women. Students will critically analyze the effect court decisions and laws have on Black women using an intersectional approach of race, gender, economic class, differently abled bodies, sexual orientation, religion, and nationality. Students will first study legal standards and terminology as well as race and gender theory to develop a solid foundation on which to examine case law, constitutional standards and current events. This course is designed to give students an understanding of how the justice system impacts Black women's lives, maintains systems of inequality, and regulates their bodies. We will look at women lead the criminal justice reform movement both within and outside of the legal system.

Note: Cross-listed with SOC 339 and PAS 339.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 340. Women and Religion - D2, AH3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall Odd Years

Description: An historical survey of the relationship between the social-cultural roles of women and their representation in world religions.

Note: Cross-listed with HUM 340.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 342. Black Women Novelists - D2, WR, AH3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Prerequisite(s): ENGL 102 or ENGL 105.

Description: Selected novels by contemporary African, African-American and Caribbean women writers, in-depth and in-comparative study. Historical period: Post-1900. (Humanities)

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 342 and ENGL 342.
Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 343. Faces of Global Poverty - WR3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: Persistent poverty in the Third World and specific groups in the United States. Focuses on causes, consequences, solutions and survival strategies. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 392 and SOC 392.
Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 344. Black Lesbian Lives3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: Course focuses on black, lesbian-identified people cross-culturally, examining autobiographical accounts and visual culture within the context of LGBTQ politics and discourse. (Social Sciences).

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 344 and WGST 644.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 345. Women and Japanese Literature - WR3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall Even Years

Description: Explore traditional and modern Japanese cultural ideas through the perspective of female identifying authors from Japan. Study the role of gender, class, and historical events in the formation of Japan's distinct culture through its literature, translated into English, in various genres, from the Meiji period to contemporary Japan.

Note: Cross-listed with M L 345 and JPST 345.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 346. Women in Africa: Historical and Literary Perspectives3 Units

Description: Survey of the role of women in historical African societies, women under colonialism, in nationalist movements, and in modern African countries. Literature about and by women will be considered. Emphasis on African/female perspective. (Humanities)

Note: A prior course in PAS or WGST is recommended.
Note: Cross-listed with PAS 385.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 347. Racism and Sexism - D1, SB3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Summer Only

Description: The impact of racism and sexism on marginally-oppressed communities as well as their strategies of resistance. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 364.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 348. African-American Women - WR3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: Examination of the status and roles of African-American women from the slave era to contemporary times. Emphasis on migration, urbanization and labor force participation in familial contexts. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 332.
Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 349. Color Complex of Black Women3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall Even Years

Description: Study of phenotypes, body image, inter-/intra-gender relationships, media influences, and social norms, from slavery to present, on the development of black female identities, using theories in psychology, sociology, and deconstruction. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 331.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 355. Women in American Politics3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Summer

Description: A study of women's involvement in American politics as active political party members, as candidates for national, state, and local offices, as elected officials, and as appointees to government positions at all levels.

Note: Cross-listed with POLS 324.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 360. Feminist Philosophy - D1, AH3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall Only

Description: An intersectional approach to theoretical and applied issues in classical and contemporary feminist philosophy.

Note: Cross-listed with PHIL 318.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 364. Women's Health Issues - SB, D13 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring

Description: This course will identify a broad range of health issues that can be unique to women or of special importance to women throughout the world. The course will examine the roles women play as both providers and consumers of health care nationally and internationally. (Social Sciences)

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 373. Women Writers and Filmmakers - WR3 Units

Description: Explores issues relating to women's lives in their cinematic and fictional texts from 1970's until today; emphasis on foreign language films. Texts are read in English translation; films are either subtitled or dubbed (Humanities).

Note: Cross-listed with M L 365.
Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 375. LGBTQ Literature in the United States - D1, AH3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Prerequisite(s): ENGL 102, or ENGL 105, or WGST 199, or equivalent.

Description: This course examines LGBTQ literature by U.S. writers and explores the portrayal of LGBTQ identities through a variety of literary forms and in relationship to social factors such as class, race, ethnicity, and/or location.

Note: Cross-listed with ENGL 375.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 380. African-American Women in Theatre - WR, AH, D13 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: This course will explore the theatrical representation of African American women through the lens of African American playwrights, designers and theoreticians. Course content will focus on the works of African American women playwrights, designers and theoreticians and encourage critical discourse on the material covered. Assignments and activities will include Script Analysis, Discussion Board posts, Research Papers, and Quizzes. Assignments are designed to strengthen critical thinking skills, encourage perspective broadening dialogue and research, and enhance your understanding of the experience of the African Diaspora. (Humanities)

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 350 and TA 363.
Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 390. Topics in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Humanities3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

Description: Focuses on a specific topic related to women, gender or sexuality from an interdisciplinary, humanities perspective. Topics announced in Schedule of Classes. (Humanities)

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 391. Topics in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Social Sciences3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring

Description: Focuses on a specific topic related to women, gender or sexuality from an interdisciplinary, social sciences perspective. Topics announced in Schedule of Courses. (Social Science)

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 392. Topics in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Social Sciences - WR3 Units

Description: Focuses on a specific topic related to women, gender or sexuality from an interdisciplinary, social sciences perspective. Topics announced in the Schedule of Courses.

Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 393. Topics in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Humanities - WR3 Units

Description: Focuses on a specific topic related to women, gender or sexuality from an interdisciplinary, humanities perspective. Topics announced in the Schedule of Courses. (Humanities)

Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 394. Lectures in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies1-3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: A series of three or four public lectures in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies - with preparatory reading, a short writing assignment and post-lecture discussion for each lecture. Students will meet in a seminar to receive assignments and discuss the lectures. (Social Sciences)

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 395. Women, Media and Culture - AH, D13 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring

Description: The purpose of this course is to learn to evaluate critically how mass media communicates cultural understandings about gender, race, class and sexuality. We will consider the role of media images in supporting the social, political and economic status quo, as well as the ways media audiences consume, negotiate, and resist media messages. In addition, we will consider how changing technical, economic, and political contexts influence media representations. Through screenings, readings, discussions and writing exercises you will gain practical experience in media literacy and criticism.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 401. Community Internship3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

Prerequisite(s): 18 hours of WGST courses; for Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies majors only.

Description: Working with a Women's, Gender and Sexuality faculty member, the student will design a project based on volunteer work in a community organization related to WGST.

Course Attribute(s): CBL - This course includes Community-Based Learning (CBL). Students will engage in a community experience or project with an external partner in order to enhance understanding and application of academic content.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 410. Black Feminism in Action3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall Only

Description: The course examines the evolution of Black Feminist consciousness in the U.S. from the 1830s to the present. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 410 and WGST 610.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 411. Psychology of Women3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Spring Only

Prerequisite(s): PSYC 201.

Description: Analysis of scientific research and theory related to the psychology of women. Multiple theoretical perspectives will be considered (e.g., psychodynamic, social learning, cognitive, evolutionary, developmental). Specific topics evaluated will include: identity development, achievement, motherhood, work, family, aging, and menopause. Ethnicity, culture, and social class will be considered in the context of specific topics. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with PSYC 466.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 414. Gender and Work3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Prerequisite(s): SOC 201 and SOC 320; or 9 hours at 300+ level in one social science; or permission of instructor.

Description: This course explores paid and unpaid work and gender from a sociological perspective. It begins with theoretical frameworks: gender as a social structure that operates on the individual, interactional, and institutional levels; and an intersectionality perspective, which explores the intersections of gender with race/ethnicity, social class, sexuality, and nationality. The course focuses on U.S. women and men but will briefly analyze social policies in different nations. Throughout the course, the class will explore how social structures shape individuals' experiences of paid and unpaid work - but also stress human agency, the dynamic nature of work, and social change.

Note: Cross-listed with SOC 456.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 415. Sociology of Disabilities3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Prerequisite(s): SOC 201 and SOC 323; or 9 hours at 300+ level in one social science; or permission from instructor.

Description: This course examines the ways in which disability is socially defined, experienced, and addressed by policy. Incorporating theories from sociology, disability studies, and women's studies, this course adopts an intersectional perspective and explores disability through the lens of gender, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, and more. Topics may include: concepts of disability (including stereotypes), the history of disability in contemporary U.S. culture, the medical vs. social model of disability, chronic illness and disability, media and disability, disability politics, the disability rights movement(s), and socio-legal institutional and policy responses to disability.

Note: Cross-listed with SOC 442.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 416. Sexual Assault and the Legal System3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: Sexual Assault and the Legal System is designed to give students an understanding of how rape culture impacts the justice system, and vice versa. Students will critically analyze the effect stories about sexual assault have on the legal system using an intersectional approach of race, gender, economic class, differently abled bodies, sexual orientation, religion, and nationality. Students will first study legal standards and terminology as well as critical race and feminist theory to develop a solid foundation on which to examine case law, constitutional standards and current events. (Social Science)

Note: Cross-listed with SOC 416.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 417. Reproductive Justice3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: In this course Reproductive Justice and the Law, we will examine how the legal system impacts reproductive justice. We will break down the term reproductive justice and how it differs from reproductive rights. We will discuss the complex political, social, religious, and cultural dynamics that make reproductive justice one of the most controversial, and pressing, issues of our time. (Social Science)

Note: Cross-listed with SOC 417.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 418. Domestic Violence3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: Our course on Domestic Violence will examine the ways the legal system shapes and enforces domestic violence law. We will examine the jurisprudence behind criminal law in general and legal foundation of domestic violence laws in particular. We will examine not only the history of domestic violence, but also the human element, studying the role of individual discretion and how neuroscience illuminates why outcomes for individuals can vary so greatly within the same legal system. We will study specific laws (e.g., mandatory arrest) and we will apply an intersectional lens to all topics discussed. This class ultimately asks if the legal system is even capable of addressing the social harm of domestic violence, and if that answer is yes, how this is to be accomplished. (Social Science)

Note: Cross-listed with SOC 418.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 458. Women: International Perspective3 Units

Prerequisite(s): SOC 201 and SOC 327; or 9 hours at 300+ level in one social science; or consent of instructor.

Description: Examination of major social concerns of women around the world, such as issues related to labor and slavery, sex trafficking, religion, media representation, health, education, political involvement, and violence against women.

Note: Cross-listed with SOC 458.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 460. Gender in the Middle East3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Prerequisite(s): SOC 201 and SOC 327; or 9 hours at 300+ level in one social science; or permission of instructor.

Description: This course examines the ways in which gender shapes and is shaped by social, political, economic, and cultural processes in the Middle East, allowing students to identify similarities and differences among Middle Eastern countries in their approaches to gender policies and gender relations. As such, the course will explore the gender structure of societies (e.g., in the law, the media, the labor market, and schools); the relationship between gender, nationalism, religion, and secularism; and how social movements shed light on the agency of people in making changes within their own social contexts.

Note: Cross-listed with SOC 460.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 490. Topics in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Humanities3 Units

Description: Focuses on a specific topic related to women, gender or sexuality from an interdisciplinary, humanities perspective. Topics announced in the schedule of courses.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 491. Topics in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Social Sciences3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

Description: Focuses on a specific topic related to women, gender or sexuality from an interdisciplinary, social sciences perspective. Topics are announced in the Schedule of Classes. (Social Science)

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 492. Topics in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Social Sciences 3 Units

Description: Focuses on a specific topic related to women, gender or sexuality from an interdisciplinary, social sciences perspective.

Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 493. Topics in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Humanities - WR3 Units

Description: Focuses on a specific topic related to women, gender or sexuality from an interdisciplinary, humanities perspective.

Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 498. Senior Honors Thesis: Social Sciences - WR3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring

Prerequisite(s): Restricted to Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies majors and minors who have been admitted to departmental or college honors; permission of instructor required.

Description: An intensive examination from a social sciences perspective of a topical area in women's, gender or sexuality studies undertaken with a designated faculty advisor.

Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 499. Senior Honors Thesis: Humanities - WR3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring

Prerequisite(s): Restricted to Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies majors and minors who have been admitted to departmental or college honors; permission of instructor required.

Description: An intensive examination from a humanities perspective of a topical area in women's, gender or sexuality studies, undertaken with a designated faculty advisor.

Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 500. Senior Seminar in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Social Sciences - CUE, WR3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Prerequisite(s): Senior standing or consent of instructor.

Description: This course is designed to deepen students' understanding of the evolution of interdisciplinary research on gender and its intersection with other structures of power and privilege. Students will investigate and critique the politics of issue-framing, question-formation, and rules of evidence that shape knowledge-production about gender and power. Students will apply gender-informed analyses to the hierarchies of difference structuring contemporary society. This course will help students become skilled analysts of the nuanced complexities of social change in diverse fields such as medicine, government, media, non-profit organizations, law, and education.

Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

Course Attribute(s): CUE - This course fulfills the Culminating Undergraduate Experience (CUE) requirement for certain degree programs. CUE courses are advanced-level courses intended for majors with at least 90 earned credits/senior-level status.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 504. Community Engaged Research Methods3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall Only

Description: This course will examine the principles and methods of community-engaged research practices from a transdisciplinary gender studies framework and with two goals in mind. First, we will examine what it means to do community engaged scholarship in some branches of the social sciences and humanities through a) a brief survey of key canonical and experimental readings in histories, theories, ethics, and practices of community engaged scholarship, and b) a few models presented by other UL community engaged scholars whose work provides useful lessons learned. Second, the course will provide both an overview of key qualitative methods used in community engaged scholarship and hands-on opportunities for you to participate in, on a small scale, meaningful engaged research with a community partner (Muhammad Ali Center's Education Department). Together, this learning the literature and learning-by-doing are designed to help you imagine what it might be like for you to work in this tradition.

Note: Cross-listed with WGST 604.

Course Attribute(s): CBL - This course includes Community-Based Learning (CBL). Students will engage in a community experience or project with an external partner in order to enhance understanding and application of academic content.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 508. Queer Performance3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: What constitutes queer performance? Is queer who you are or what you do? Is sexuality all we mean by queer? What are the historical, aesthetic, and political aspects of queer performance? Integral to our theoretical discussions will be questions of practice and production: Where is queer performance staged and how is it received? How is it produced, for whom, by whom, and with what funds? Is queer inherently or even necessarily radical? Within rigid Western notions of gender, the "Queer Performer," is a gender outlaw; an individual who pushed at the edges of gender, forcing us to recognize that gender has little to do with our biological sex. Their performances of their gender(s), race(s), and/or sexuality(ies) challenges our prevailing notions of what it means to be Queer and what it means to perform identity. This course will examine the artistic and aesthetic performances of various Queer Performers to foster an understanding and appreciation of the rich diversity of the forms of performance styles and practitioners that might be called "lesbian," "gay," "transgender," and "queer," among others. Secondly, it will motivate students to examine the broad social, political, religious, and cultural contexts in which queer performance takes place. Lastly, this course will allow students to contemplate what it means to be a spectator of performance through a queer perspective, regardless of one's identity, or sexual orientation.

Note: Cross-listed with WGST 608 and HUM 608.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 509. Women and Medicine3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: In this course we will focus on women and medicine in the United States from the early 19th century to the 21st century. We will be concerned with women as patients, caretakers, and practitioners, and the sexual and racial politics of health care.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 511. Transnational Feminism3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring

Description: Transnational Feminism in Theory and Praxis is both an introduction to transnational feminism and a methods class. Using a mix of recent and older texts, we will examine how scholars in our field of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGST) innovatively link research questions with methods, sources, and interlocutors. In the process, we will reflect on the relationship between what we value as knowledge, and how we pursue and construct knowledge: in other words, the relationship between feminist epistemology and methodology. With an eye towards praxis - the theoretically informed application of knowledge - we will ask ourselves, for whom do we research?

Note: Cross-listed with WGST 611.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 512. Gender, Race, Work, and Welfare3 Units

Prerequisite(s): 9 hours of social sciences work at the 300 level or above; or consent of instructor.

Description: Introduction to theory and research on labor market and welfare state with focus on gender race/ethnicity as they influence women's experiences of and ideas about work and welfare.Credit may not be earned for both PAS 512/PAS 512 and SOC 612/WGST 612/PAS 612.

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 612, PAS 512, WGST 612, and SOC 612.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 513. U.S. Social Justice Movements of the 20th Century3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring

Prerequisite(s): Junior standing.

Description: Course will begin with abolitionism, then concentrate on social justice upsurges of the 20th century, with emphasis on women in the civil rights and Black liberation movements. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with HIST 513, PAS 513, SCHG 513, WGST 613.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 520. Women's Personal Narratives3 Units

Prerequisite(s): ENGL 102, or ENGL 105, or WGST 199, or equivalent.

Description: Course examines issues such as race, class, religion, geography, and sexual orientation surrounding the writing/reading of women's personal narratives (e.g., diaries, letters, autobiographies, oral histories, biographies, and films) from the 19th and 20th centuries. (Humanities)

Note: Cross-listed with ENGL 554.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 522. The Body in Popular Media - WR3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Prerequisite(s): One WGST course or permission of instructor.

Description: Examines the relationship between culture and the body, focusing on how Western philosophy, as well as gender, race and class, have constructed popular images of and attitudes toward the body. (Humanities)

Note: Approved for the Arts & Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).
Note: Credit may not be earned for both WGST 522 (does not carry graduate credit) and WGST 622.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 523. Gender and Popular Music - WR3 Units

Description: Course explores the way gender structures the production, distribution, and consumption of popular music, including variety of genres in the past and present, with attention to the intersectional roles of race, class,and sexuality. (Humanities).

Note: Approved for the Arts & Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 525. Art and Trauma3 Units

Prerequisite(s): ARTH 270 and ARTH 325, or permission of instructor.

Description: Representations of Trauma in the Visual Arts is an advanced exploratory seminar examining the changing relationships between trauma and its representation in the twentieth century. Beginning with the Holocaust, the course charts a trajectory from this most profound of collective traumas, to the refinement of clinical definitions of trauma (e.g., PTSD) in the wake of the Vietnam War, the development of trauma studies in the humanities in the 1990s, to the recent "pictorial turn" within scholarship on trauma. This historical framework will be brought to bear upon the dynamics of how trauma and visuality have been approached by scientists, scholars, and artists. Each week's reading and viewing materials will offer students an example of historical or clinical account of trauma, a secondary or applied analysis, and its artist's original work that responds to the particular traumatic event under consideration. In this regard, students will be encouraged to negotiate the discursive relationships between history, theory, and practice.

Note: Cross-listed with ARTH 525.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 530. Feminism in Western Civilization, 1790-1920 - WR3 Units

Description: Comparative analysis of feminist movements in the United States, Britain, and Europe, stressing intellectual background, social composition, goals and political strategies. (Social Sciences)

Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).
Note: Credit may not be received for WGST 530 or HIST 588 and WGST 630.
Note: Junior-standing recommended.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 531. Women in the Twentieth Century in Europe and the U.S. - WR3 Units

Prerequisite(s): Junior standing.

Description: The history of women in Western society, including Europe and the U.S. in the twentieth century. Includes political, economic, social, and cultural developments. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with HIST 583.
Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).
Note: Credit may not be earned for WGST 531/HIST 583 and WGST 631.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 532. History of American Sexualities - WR3 Units

Prerequisite(s): Junior standing.

Description: The course focuses on sexual behaviors and meanings in America from the colonial period to the late twentieth century and how sexual meanings impact people's identities, choices, and social positions. The course also concerns the interaction of gender, race, and class. (Social Sciences)

Note: HIST 211 and HIST 212 is recommended.
Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).
Note: Credit may not be earned for this course and HIST 589.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 533. Women in 19th Century America - WR3 Units

Prerequisite(s): Completion of ENGL 102 or ENGL 105, or the equivalent.

Description: Course focuses on material conditions, ideologies, and knowledge-systems that shaped American women's lives in the 19th century, with attention to race, class, and regional differences.Credit may not be earned for both WGST 533 and WGST 633.

Note: Approved for the Arts & Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 538. Woman and Sport3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: An effort to understand the role of the American woman in sport. Studies concepts about women, sport, and society in contemporary and historical perspectives. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with SPAD 529.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 540. Women's Health in Africa - WR3 Units

Prerequisite(s): Senior standing.

Description: Examination of population growth, early marriage, family size and cultural and religious beliefs on reproductive health of contemporary African women. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 562.
Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).
Note: Credit may not be earned for both WGST 540/PAS 562 and WGST 640/PAS 662.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 541. Feminism and Science Fiction3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: This class will examine the science fiction genre through the lens of gender and feminism. The course will develop students' critical reading, thinking, writing and presentation skills. Reading works of science fiction with and against classic readings in feminist theory, students will develop an understanding of the ways writers, particularly women writers, have worked within the genre to explore issues related to gender, race, class, and sexuality. Students will be asked to consider the ways the science fiction writers have participated in on-going dialogues within larger culture, within the SF community, and within feminism, related to gender roles, gender and sexual identity, and hegemonic social structures.

Note: Cross-listed with HUM 541.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 542. African American Women and the History of Reproductive Justice3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall, Spring

Description: Course explores the fight for reproductive justice within African American communities. Using Loretta Ross' reproductive justice framework, the course examines how race, gender, class, sexuality and ability have impacted African American women's right to reproductive decision making. The course introduces primary and secondary sources that contextualize African American women's position as autonomous beings with the right to choose if, when, how, where and with whom to have children. The course discusses the following major themes: reproductive lives of enslaved Black women with a focus on gynecological acts of resistance; medical exploitation and the beginning of modern gynecology; development of eugenic health initiatives focused on African American women and girls; intersectional activist collectives; maternity and survival within carceral spaces; intersections of LGBTQ and reproductive justice movements; ethical use of reproductive technologies.

Note: Cross-listed with WGST 642.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 543. Black Women's Voices - WR3 Units

Prerequisite(s): At least 6 credit hours in Social Science or Humanities or consent of faculty.

Description: Global synopsis of black women's studies and social thoughts. Highlights roadblocks and bridges experienced. Captures race, gender, class and spatial dimensions. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 542.
Note: Approved for the Arts & Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).
Note: Credit may not be earned for both WGST 543/PAS 542 and WGST 643/PAS 643.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 545. Southern Women: Black and White3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: Course focuses on questions of identity for southern women, black and white, by contrasting stereotypes and ideals with realities for these women in the slave, Jim Crow, and modern South. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 545.
Note: Credit may not be earned for this course and WGST 645 or PAS 645.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 547. Language, Race, Class, and Gender3 Units

Prerequisite(s): Junior standing.

Description: Course investigates the intersections of linguistic behavior with questions of race,class and gender. Students will gain an understanding of the multiple characteristics of communication. (Humanities)

Note: Cross-listed with PAS 547.
Note: Credit may not be earned for this course and PAS 547.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 556. Feminist Theory - WR3 Units

Description: Survey of the history and scope of the feminist tradition with emphasis upon liberal, radical, Marxist, socialist, psychoanalytic, and postmodern approaches to feminist theory. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with POLS 568.
Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).
Note: Credit may not be earned for both WGST 556/POLS 568 and WGST 656/POLS 668.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 558. Women in Developing Countries - WR3 Units

Description: Follows the progress of the international women's movement by focusing on the emergence of women leaders and their work in developing countries since the First World Conference on Women, 1975 to the present. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with POLS 563.
Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 560. Feminist Philosophical Literature3 Units

Prerequisite(s): Junior standing.

Description: Examination of central works by feminist philosophers in such sub-disciplines as ethics, political philosophy, and epistemology. (Humanities)

Note: Cross-listed with PHIL 518.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 571. Francophone Women Writers - WR3 Units

Prerequisite(s): Faculty consent.

Description: Readings of literary and non-literary texts by women of the French-speaking world. (Humanities)

Note: Cross-listed with M L 506.
Note: Approved for the Arts & Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 582. Health and Social Justice3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Fall Even Years

Prerequisite(s): For students enrolled in BETH 682/PHIL 682, admission to a graduate program in Applied Philosophy or Health Care Ethics, or consent of instructor.

Description: An interdisciplinary approach to a wide array of issues pertaining to health and health care that arise at the intersection of gender, race, sex, disability, class, and culture.

Note: Cross-listed with PHIL 682, WGST 682, PHIL 582, BETH 682.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 584. Women in East Asian History3 Units

Description: The history of women in China from ancient times to the twentieth century, with comparisons to women's experiences in Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. (Social Sciences)

Note: Cross-listed with HIST 584.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 589. Independent Study: Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies-Humanities1-3 Units

Prerequisite(s): Restricted to students who have a 3.0 cumulative GPA and have completed a minimum of 12 hours in WGST courses; permission of instructor.

Description: Provides opportunity for a student to do advanced interdisciplinary, humanities work on a Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies topic.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 590. Independent Study: Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies-Social Sciences1-3 Units

Prerequisite(s): Restricted to students who have a 3.0 cumulative GPA and have completed a minimum of 12 hours in WGST courses; permission of instructor.

Description: Provides opportunity for a student to do advanced interdisciplinary, social sciences work on a Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies topic. Topics announced in Schedule of Courses.

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 591. Topics in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Social Sciences3 Units

Term Typically Offered: Occasionally Offered

Description: Provides advanced study of a special topic related to women, gender or sexuality from an interdisciplinary, social sciences perspective. Topics announced in Schedule of Courses. (Social Science)

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 592. Topics in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Social Sciences - WR3 Units

Description: Provides advanced study of a special topic related to women, gender or sexuality from an interdisciplinary, social sciences perspective. Topics announced in Schedule of Courses.

Note: Approved for the Arts and Sciences upper-level requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 593. Topics in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Humanities3 Units

Description: Provides advanced study of a special topic related to women, gender or sexuality from an interdisciplinary, humanities perspective. Topics announced in Schedule of Courses. (Humanities)

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes

WGST 594. Topics in Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies: Humanities - WR3 Units

Description: Provides advanced study of a special topic related to women, gender or sexuality from an interdisciplinary, humanities perspective. Topics announced in Schedule of Courses.

Note: Approved for the General Education requirement in written communication (WR).

For class offerings for a specific term, refer to the Schedule of Classes