Introduction to Women's and Gender Studies

Calendar

Class	Topic	Key Dates
1	Introduction to the Course and to the Field of Women’s and Gender Studies
2	The Roots of Contemporary Gender Mobilization: The Legacy of Seneca Falls (1848)	Homework 1 due
3	Everyday Justice and the 19th Century U.S. Women’s Movement	Homework 2 due
4	Historical Strategies for Gender Change: Male Allies of the Women’s Rights Movement; “Direct Action Voting” / Civil Disobedience	Homework 3 due
5	Gender, Race, Class, and Suffrage	Homework 4 due
6	Gender, Race, Class, and Suffrage, cont.
7	Gender, Race, Class, and Suffrage, cont.: Resistance or Illness? Discourses of Women, Medicine, and Madness in the 19th Century U.S.	Homework 5 due
8	Repression, Resistance, and Female Consciousness: Debating Themes of Madness and Liberation in a Classic American Literary Text	Homework 6 due Submit oral presentation dates and preferences
9	Gender Changes in 1940s America: A Seedbed of Feminism?	Homework 7
10	Beyond Suffrage: The Roots of the “Second Wave” of the U.S. Women’s Rights Movement: World War II and the Postwar Era Presentation: Jen Greenleaf, Women and Gender Studies Library at MIT	Essay 1 version 1 and cover letter due before class 11
11	The Birth of the “Second Wave” of U.S. Feminism: 1960–66	Homework 8 due
12	The “Second Wave” of Women’s Rights Activism (1963–present): A Multivocal Intersectional Movement
13	The “Second Wave” and Beyond: A Multivocal Intersectional Movement, cont.	Homework 9 due
14	Introduction to Socialization and Gender Roles; Culture Interprets Biological Differences	Homework 10 due
15	Socialization: Race, Ethnicity, Nationality, and Gender Roles; Implications for Education and Careers
16	Representation of Gender in Advertising and Popular Visual Media	Homework 11 due Revision of essay 1 and a revision cover letter due before next session
17	Representations of Gender in Popular Visual Media/Television	Homework 12 due
18	Sexualities and Gender; The Right to Same-Sex Marriage In-class writing: Goodridge decision
19	Crossing Gender Boundaries: Transgender and Gender Equality Movements	Homework 13 due Essay 2 due with cover letter before next session
20–21	Sexual Self-Determination, Contraception, Reproductive Choice; The Legacy and Defeat of Roe v. Wade	Homework 14 due
22	Gender in the Workplace; Women in STEM	Homework 16 and 17 due
23–24	Gender Equality Issues in the Workplace: Gender and STEM	Homework 18 due
25	Gender, Work, and Families—National and Global Dimensions In-class Writing: “Love and Gold”	Assignment 3 and final reflection due
26	Global Issues; Contemporary Feminism; Course Wrap-Up.