This course offers a sociological analysis of the status of women in American society. Special emphasis is placed on the role culture and socialization play in determining women's interaction patterns and society's repsonse to them. The course will use an interdisciplinary approach, drawing on the social sciences and the humanities to determine how women develop cultura, sociological, and historical realities. Offered alternate years. This course offers an interdisciplinary, team-taught examination of issues that are significant in influencing women's lives.
Participants examine women's roles under a variety of social conditions.
Consideration of such seemingly disparate areas as sport, religion, education, and science function as the background against which both differences and similarities between women are brought into relief. The primary goal of this examination is to consider explanations for the representations of women that emerge in these areas. Concepts central to feminist theory are introduced as preparation for continued work in women's studies. This course is a requirement for both the major and minor in women's studies. How these three systems of oppression intersect and structure the opportunities and constraints of people's lives, how they are incorporated into the cultural construction of individual and national identities, as well as how they are reproduced will be considered.