LARTS 374 — History of American Women and Gender

3 credits
Summer
Lisa Andersen

Prerequisite: LARTS 112 . This course will introduce students to some of the key people, events, and movements in American women’s history from the time previous to European settlement to the rise of women’s liberation in the 1960s and 1970s. Students will explore changes over time in women’s social roles and gender ideologies by asking: How is gender constructed? What difference do ethnicity, race, and class make in women’s experiences? What is the relationship between sex, gender, and sexuality? How does gender function in family life, the work force, and political institutions? To investigate these questions, students will read primary source documents from women’s private lives and social movements. They will then evaluate these documents in the context of gender theory, academic writing, and class lecture.