Spring 2005 Course Offerings
Master of Arts Degree Program | Women's and Gender Studies

WGS 404 Topics in Feminist Theories: Global Women and Development
Joel Okafor DT MW 4:30-5:45
Through critical examination and analysis of scholarship, this course will explore: 1) the ways the contributions of women in global development have not been adequately acknowledged and rewarded, and 2) the ways a variety of feminist theories do address issues surrounding women and global development. Specifically, we will explore the following questions: What are the contending theoretical approaches in gender and global development.? What are some of the policy approaches, global, regional and domestic, used to address development problems? Why have women’s works not been given the respect and reward they deserve? What impact have women had on this issues of global development? What would the world of development look like if women’s contributions were appropriately acknowledged and rewarded? The answers to these questions will be sought through lectures, films, debates and assigned projects.

WGS 406 The African American Woman
Jacqueline Trussell DT M 1-3:30
This course focuses on the relationship of the African-American woman to institutions of society from slavery to present. Social policy issues related to legislation, employment, health care, child care, education, housing, and correction systems will be addressed.

WGS 407 Textile and Material Studies
Elyse Koren-Camarra DT T/TH 1-3:45
This term, this course will focus on metaphors of "surface" and "construction" with the intention of getting at issues of identity, gender, women’s work and ideas of place and space. Through the processes of planning and graphic design, surface design and embellishment, and grid structure/loop structure, students will develop both visual and hands-on languages with which to pursue both specifically assigned and free-ended art. The course will be rounded-out by field trips. Formal critiques and several small/ one final paper required.

ENG 409 Film and Gender
Janet Wondra DT W 6-8:30
This course examines both femininity and masculinity as they’re constructed through the medium of film, with race, class, and sexual orientation as contributing factors. Topics include representations of mothers and daughters, the mixed allure of the femme fatale, and recent depictions of "new masculinity." We’ll also put some focus on female directors from Dorothy Arzner to Jane Campion. Possible films include classics such as Mildred Pierce, Rebecca, Imitation of Life, and Touch of Evil; landmarks in women’s filmmaking, such as Dance, Girl, Dance, Daughters of the Dust, and Sally Potter’s Thriller; and more recent films with an emphasis on gender: Bound, Fight Club, and The Full Monty. Most films will be viewed outside of class. Prerequisites for 409: Eng. 406, 407, or consent of instructor.

ENG 430 Postcolonial Literature
Ellen O’Brien DT TH 1-3:30
In this course we will examine Anglophone literature written in the aftermath of the British empire, explore this literature as particularly "postcolonial" writing, and discuss the political and theoretical issues that arise when discussing literature from this particular perspective. In addition to analyzing the effects of colonization and de-colonization on class, racial, and national identities, we will consider the effects of empire on the dynamics of gender and sexuality (e.g. the feminization of the subaltern, hyper-masculinity, feminist resistance, sexual "othering") within colonial and postcolonial discourse. For a sample (but not final) syllabus: faculty.roosevelt.edu/OBrien

HIST 426 U.S. Gender Roles Since 1890
Wendy Maier SCH MW 10-11:15
This class will explore changing gender roles of American women and men since 1890. We will start with the progressive movement, examining how progressives like Jane Addams altered perceptions of existing gender norms, and will work our way through gender roles to present day, also taking a look at how images of gender in the USA were largely influenced by European trends until the end of the two World Wars, when Americans began influencing gender roles elsewhere. Gender roles in Hollywood will also be discussed, including analysis of how women and men were forced to hide their sexual orientation in public, but in private, often adopted androgynous roles. We will also study a Hollywood memoir, women’s and men’s magazines, and cookbooks and how gender was often defined by food production and consumption.

HIST 437 History of U.S. Reform Movements
Staff SCH SA 9:30-12
Anaylsis of reform movements, including abolitionism, populism, progressivism, the New Deal, the 1960s, and recent reform movements.

PSYC 445 Psychology of Women
K.Connor DT M 6-8:30
B. Ackles SCH TH 6:30-9
Psychological development of women viewed from social, cultural, and biological perspectives. Providing the fundamentals for study in the field of psychology of women, this course will address issues including, but not limited to, gender, abilities, work, ethnicity, women’s health, sexuality, victimization, and mental health.

SOC 440 Sex, Gender and the Social Order
Cherise Harris DT M 6-8:30
This course focuses on how notions of masculinity and femininity are created in American society and the impact these definitions have on individual lives. Specifically, we will look at how social institutions reflect and reproduce gender inequalities particularly in the family, the workplace, the justice system, and the mass media. At the end of the course, we will focus on contemporary social issues involving gender and sexuality including reproductive rights, affirmative action and welfare policy.