WGST 124. Sex and the City: Gender and Urban History. 3 Units.

Gender is an identity and an experience written onto the spaces of the city. The urban landscape--with its streets, buildings, bridges, parks and squares--shapes and reflects gender identities and sexual relations. This course examines the relationship between gender and urban space from the 19th century to the present, giving special attention to the city of Cleveland. Using Cleveland as our case study, this course will explore some of the many ways in which cities and the inhabitants of cities have been historically sexed, gendered, and sexualized. We will explore the ways in which gender was reflected and constructed by the built environment, as well as how urban space and urban life shaped gender and sexual identities. The course is organized thematically and explores different aspects of city life such as prostitution, urban crime, labor, politics, urban renewal and decay, consumption and leisure and the ways in which sex and gender intersects with these issues. Offered as HSTY 124 and WGST 124.

WGST 201. Introduction to Gender Studies. 3 Units.

This course introduces women and men students to the methods and concepts of gender studies and feminist theory. An interdisciplinary course, it covers approaches used in literary criticism, history, philosophy, political science, sociology, anthropology, psychology, film studies, cultural studies, art history, and religion. It is the required introductory course for students taking the women's and gender studies major. Offered as ENGL 270, HSTY 270, PHIL 270, RLGN 270, SOCI 201, and WGST 201. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course.

WGST 219. Islam in America. 3 Units.

The United States is home to one of the most diverse Muslim communities in the world. Using a variety of primary and secondary sources, this course examines the rich history of Islam in the United States, from the 18th century to the present, as it relates to key moments within American politics, religion and culture, and to transnational developments in Islamic thought and practice. We will also explore important issues within contemporary Muslim communities, including gender, shari'a, and religious pluralism. In addition to studying the experiences of Muslim immigrants, students will also investigate the vital role of African-American Muslims and converts in the development of American Muslim institutions, beliefs and rituals. This course will also introduce students to the history of Islam in Cleveland, and provide them with the opportunity to contribute to original research on Muslim communities in our city. Offered as AFST 219, HSTY 279, RLGN 219, and WGST 219. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

WGST 227. Islam, Gender, and Sexuality. 3 Units.

Gender and sexuality are central to understanding Muslim societies, past and present. From debates about the veil to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, gendered concerns have been especially prominent in contemporary debates about Islam in the modern world. How are masculinity and femininity constructed in Muslim contexts? How have Muslim thinkers interpreted Islamic scriptures with respect to topics such as marriage, child custody, inheritance, and sexuality? In what ways do these interpretations reflect the political, economic, and social conditions in which they lived? How does gender structure authority and power in Muslim communities? How and why have Muslim women become so central to contemporary political debates? This course explores each of these questions, while inviting students to construct alternative narratives around Islam, gender, and sexuality. This course begins by examining gender and sexuality in the foundational Islamic texts, the Qur'an and Sunna (the practice of the Prophet Muhammad), and pre-modern interpretations of these texts. The course then turns to marriage and divorce in Muslim jurisprudence, in order to examine themes such as women's spiritual capacities, female leadership, sexuality, and slavery. Next, we will turn to the headscarf as a lens though which to explore modern configurations of gender and sexuality, as they intersect with conceptions of national belonging, religious identity, and individual freedom. Finally, we will study contemporary debates over polygyny, LGBTQ+ identities, and female religious authority. There are no prerequisites for this course. No prior knowledge of Islam is expected. Offered as RLGN 227 and WGST 227. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Communication Intensive course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course. Counts as a Moral & Ethical Reasoning course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.

WGST 228. Sociology of Sexuality. 3 Units.

This course analyzes the issues of sex and sexuality from a sociological point of view. It is centered on the notion that what we consider to be 'normal' or 'natural' about sex and sexuality is, in reality, socially constructed. One's viewpoint on the issues surrounding sexuality are influenced by the social context in which they live, as opposed to the purely biological viewpoint that presupposes some sense of normalcy or naturalness regarding sexual relations. A range of topics will be covered, including readings that discuss the variations of sexuality and the notions of sexual ''deviance" in order to explore the cultural and societal variation that exists along the lines of gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age and disability. Offered as SOCI 228 and WGST 228. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course.

WGST 243. Bollywood, Social Justice, Gender and Sexuality: Contemporary Bollywood Movies with a Social Message. 3 Units.

India, where over-the-top, melodramatic films dominate, produces more than 1,000 films a year. With lavish action sequences punctuated by periodic songs in picturesque locales, these films, popularly referred to as Bollywood, traditionally have been known for depicting imaginary worlds, very far from reality. Among these are movies that are deeply immersed in issues of religion, religious conflict, caste, and social injustice and that connect with gender and sexuality, and sexual orientation. This class will be looking at a number of Bollywood films with focal points of matters pertaining to social justice. Students will learn about the foundations of these inequalities and intolerances so that they can more completely understand the themes addressed in the movies. The class will thus focus on the religion(s) of cultures outside the United States. It will address in a substantive way ethnic, gender, sexual, religious, or other cultural practices outside the United States, so as to provide students with fresh perspectives on their own cultural assumptions, traditions, and experiences. Offered as ETHS 243 and RLGN 243 and WGST 243. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Communication Intensive course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.

WGST 252. Soul Murder: Religion and Sexual Abuse. 3 Units.

"Soul murder" is a term that psychologists and survivors use to describe the way that clergy sexual abuse destroys a child's network of relationships. In addition to sexual, developmental, and psychological harm, victims of religious abuse also experience intense theological, moral, and familial suffering. This course analyzes these topics through religious, legal, medical, and anthropological case studies. What are the cultural, racial, and gendered dynamics of religious abuse? How is it different than sexual assault in non-religious contexts? How has abuse shaped Christian and Hindu sexual ethics? These are some of the questions that you will be able to answer by the end of this seminar. Offered as RLGN 252 and WGST 252. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course. Counts as a Moral & Ethical Reasoning course.

WGST 257. Women's Histories in South Asia. 3 Units.

This course traces the history of women in South Asia from pre-colonial times to the present. Themes explored in the course will include (but not be limited to): the historical transformations of institutions shaping women's lives such as state, family, religious and legal traditions; the impact of colonialism, nationalism, and decolonization on women, as well as the history of women's movements in various parts of South Asia. As we acquaint ourselves with the vibrant historiography on women in South Asia, we will also examine the theoretical and methodological challenges involved in writing histories using the analytical lens of gender. While a significant portion of the readings will focus on South Asia, we will occasionally bring in insights from histories of women in other parts of the world to help develop comparative perspectives and evaluate the South Asian cases and examples within the broader field of women's history. Offered as HSTY 157 and WGST 257. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

WGST 268. Women in the Bible: Ethnographic Approaches to Rite and Ritual, Story, Song, and Art. 3 Units.

Examination of women in Jewish and Christian Biblical texts, along with their Jewish, Christian (and occasionally Muslim) interpretations. Discussion of how these traditions have shaped images of, and attitudes toward, women in western civilization. Offered as RLGN 268, WGST 268, and JWST 268.

WGST 273. Race and Gender in Popular Culture. 3 Units.

This course explores how notions of race and gender have been constructed, reflected and contested through American popular culture from the nineteenth century to the present. A special focus will be given to the reciprocal relationship between culture, politics and the economy, and the ways in which class, gendered, and racial identities reflected and shaped them. We will examine how different forms of popular culture, broadly defined as both cultural artifacts and as cultural practices provide us with new types of historical sources and how historians are using them to rethink historical questions such as labor struggles, empire, immigration, and democracy. Readings includes both primary and secondary documents and topics are organized chronology. In considering the multifaceted aspects of popular culture, we will examine how it became a useful prism to shape, express and influence notions of gender, sexuality, and race. Offered as HSTY 273 and WGST 273. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

WGST 280. The Politics of Beauty and Literature. 3 Units.

Does having a tattoo hurt your chances of receiving your dream job? Does wearing lipstick make you look less intelligent? Why is it so important to have a good hair day? These are some questions taken up by the authors we are reading in this course -- and the answers to which require a complex consideration of one's social position in terms of gender, race, social class, sexual identity, and ability. In this communication-intensive course, we will examine how literary authors engage with the politics of beauty and appearance in their works in order to call attention to important issues of equality and access to opportunity. We will read the works of poets, short story writers, and novelists, alongside those of cultural critics, philosophers, and filmmakers who call attention to the specifically-political nature of body size, hair, skin tone, modes of dress, and other body issues. Our ultimate goal is to uncover and analyze the complex, intersectional power relations involved in past and present beauty standards. Offered as ENGL 280 and WGST 280. Counts as a Communication Intensive course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course.

WGST 285. Embodied Politics: Contemplative Practices and Social Justice. 3 Units.

The incorporation of contemplative practices (e.g. yoga, sitting and walking meditation, mindfulness, ceremony, pilgrimage, etc.) in civil and social justice movements is a growing trend. Scholars and activists, especially those interested in racial and gender equity, over the past two decades have raised interest in a broad set of contemplative practices that can address suffering and social justice issues in teaching, research and activism. What role does contemplative practices and spiritual activism play in efforts for social justice and social change? What might practices of social transformation look like when rooted in love and compassion? This course explores these questions among others, and examines the role of contemplative practices and spirituality for individuals and collectivities engaged in transformative social justice work. We explore the increasing incorporation of contemplative practices and 'self-recovery' approaches into current social justice movements including Black Lives Matter, indigenous land claims, feminism, LGBTQ rights, etc. In turn, we also examine how activists bring new insights and questions to traditional practices and use practices rooted in decolonizing efforts. In particular, we focus on the work of contemporary feminist, womanist and women of color scholars and activists. We also explore the writings and practices of contemplative practices from a range of traditions. Offered as AFST 285, RLGN 285, and WGST 285. Counts as a Full-Semester Wellness/Non-movement course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course.

WGST 286. Literature, Gender, and Sexuality. 3 Units.

This course focuses on how writers engage with the complex subjects of gender and sexuality in their works. We will read works by novelists, short story writers, playwrights, and poets, focusing on gender's multiple intersections with sexual identity, race, social class, and abilities. Throughout the course, we will keep in mind the following questions: What techniques do writers use to engage with the issues of gender identity and sexuality in their works? How do writers protest against -- or participate in -- the reproduction of gender ideologies? How might literary works provide unique spaces of resistance for reimagining gender roles and identities? How is literary authorship itself gendered and how might authors employ innovative strategies to write beyond binary roles? Students will complete five critical responses, write a midterm essay, and complete multimedia final projects accompanied by a critical essay, and a final short reflection paper to be included in the Experience Portfolio. Recommended preparation: Passing grade in an Academic Inquiry Seminar or a SAGES First Seminar. Offered as ENGL 286 and WGST 286. Counts as a Communication Intensive course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course.

WGST 302. The Lemonade Class: Religion, Race, Sex and Black Music. 3 Units.

Charles Long suggests that black musical forms are creative responses to the particular circumstances of black peoples' presence in the U.S and black notions of the sacred. In April of 2016, Beyoncé released her visual album Lemonade two days after the death of Prince. This course is organized around the album's title cuts and links these two artists together in an examination of religion and musical performance as creative response to the racial and gendered conditions of black life. The course investigates how both artists have used music as a platform to explore issues of race, gender, commerce, sexuality, power and divinity. The course also looks at examples from the works of earlier artists who address similar themes such as Ma Rainey, Bessie Smith, Muddy Waters, Billie Holiday, Nina Simone, Little Richard, James Brown, Marvin Gaye, and Aretha Franklin. Offered as AFST 302, ETHS 302, MUHI 316, RLGN 302, RLGN 402, and WGST 302. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

WGST 308. Immigration and the Paris Experience. 3 Units.

Three to one-week immersion learning experience living and studying in Paris. The focus of the course is the culture, literature, and the arts of the African, Arab, and Asian communities of Paris. At least half of the course looks at issues surrounding immigration that affect women in particular. Students spend a minimum of fifteen hours per week visiting cultural centers and museums and interviewing authors and students about the immigrant experience. Assigned readings complement course activities. Students enrolled in FRCH 308/408 do coursework in French. WLIT 308/408, ETHS 308, and WGST 308 students have the option of completing coursework in English. Graduate students have additional course requirements. Offered as FRCH 308, WLIT 308, ETHS 308, WGST 308, FRCH 408, and WLIT 408. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Local & Global Engagement course.

WGST 315A. International Bioethics Policy and Practice: Women's Health in the Netherlands. 3 Units.

This 3-credit course allows students to familiarize themselves with social policies and practices related to women's health in the United States and the Netherlands. Issues covered in the course include birth control and family planning, abortion, prenatal testing, childbirth, health care disparities, cosmetic surgery, prostitution and trafficking in women. This course also addresses the US and Dutch national policies regarding the public provision of health care for women. The course places an emphasis on the ways in which social norms shape policies over time, which political actors are involved in shaping women's health policy, and the balance between women's health as a matter of the public good or individual responsibility. This course substantively explores gender-specific cultural values and practices in relation to women's health in the United States and the Netherlands and will help students develop the analytical skills necessary for evaluating social policy and ethical issues related to women's health. Offered as BETH 315A, BETH 415A and WGST 315A. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

WGST 318. History of Black Women in the U.S.. 3 Units.

This course focuses on the history of black women in the United States. Moving from enslavement to the present, this course is designed to give you an overview of the lived experiences of women of African descent in this country. This course will focus on themes of labor, reproduction, health, community, family, resistance, activism, etc., highlighting the diversity of black women's experiences and the ways in which their lives have been shaped by the intersections of their race, gender, sexuality, and class. Throughout the course, students will be exposed to lectures, readings, films, and class discussion that will enable them to analyze the impact of various forms of human difference on lived experiences and individual and collective choices made by black women throughout American history. Offered as AFST 318, ETHS 318, HSTY 318, and WGST 318. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course.

WGST 325. Philosophy of Feminism. 3 Units.

Dimensions of gender difference. Definition of feminism. Critical examination of feminist critiques of culture, including especially politics, ideology, epistemology, ethics, and psychology. Readings from traditional and contemporary sources. Offered as PHIL 325, PHIL 425 and WGST 325. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Prereq: PHIL 101.

WGST 326. Gender, Inequality, and Globalization. 3 Units.

Using a sociological perspective, this course examines how major societal institutions, including the economy, polity, medicine, religion, education and family, are structured to reproduce gendered inequalities across the globe. Attention is given to the intersections of race/ethnicity, social class, gender and sexuality in social systems of power and privilege. Of critical importance is how gender figures in the relationship between Economic North and Economic South countries. We will elucidate how gender norms vary by culture and exert profound influence on the daily, lived experiences of women and men. The course will be informed by recent scholarship on feminism, women's movements, and globalization. Offered as SOCI 326 and WGST 326. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course. Prereq: SOCI 101 or permission of program director.

WGST 342. Latin American Feminist Voices. 3 Units.

Examination of the awakening of feminine and feminist consciousness in the literary production of Latin American women writers, particularly from the 1920s to the present. Close attention paid to the dominant themes of love and dependency; imagination as evasion; alienation and rebellion; sexuality and power; the search for identity and the self-preservation of subjectivity. Readings include prose, poetry, and dramatic texts of female Latin American writers contributing to the emerging of feminist ideologies and the mapping of feminist identities. Offered as SPAN 342, SPAN 442, ETHS 342, and WGST 342. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

WGST 345. Topics in LGBTQ Studies. 3 Units.

This course will focus on selected topics in the study of LGBTQ literature, film, theory, and culture. Individual courses may focus on such topics as queer theory, LGBTQ literature, queer cinema, gay and lesbian poetry, LGBTQ graphic novels, the AIDS memoir, AIDS/Gay Drama, and queer rhetoric and protest. Maximum 6 credits. Recommended preparation: Academic Inquiry Seminar (AIQS) or SAGES First Seminar. Offered as ENGL 345, ENGL 445 and WGST 345. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

WGST 346. Women, Power, and Politics. 3 Units.

Women, Power, and Politics involves a critical examination of the impact of gender on the forms and distributions of power and politics, with primary reference to the experience of women in the United States. Major concerns of the course include the political meanings and import of "sex," "gender," and "politics;" the relationship between women and the state; how women organize collectively to influence state policies; and how the state facilitates and constrains women's access to and exercise of political power. The course is organized around four foci central to the study of women and politics. The first section of the course focuses on the meanings of "women," "gender," and "politics." In this section, we will consider how these concepts intersect and the ways in which each may be used to deepen our understanding of the workings of governments and political systems, and of women's relative political powerlessness. The second section of the course employs these concepts to understand the (re) emergence of the US feminist movement, its meanings, practices, and goals, and its transformation across US political history. In the third section, we turn to conventional electoral politics, focusing on women's candidacies, their campaigns, and women's voting behavior. In the final section of the course, we consider those general factors that might provide for increased gender equality and improved life status for women, in global, comparative perspective. Offered as POSC 346, POSC 446 and WGST 346. Counts as a SAGES Departmental Seminar course.

WGST 347. Buddhism, Gender, and Sexuality. 3 Units.

Historian Joan Wallach Scott once warned that scholars could not simply insert gender into their research as though adding a new room on a house already built; they would have to begin again from the bottom. Considering gender as a cultured way of being in, understanding, and interacting with the world within which we are situated, this seminar queries the conceptualization of gender and sexuality in Buddhism and Buddhist communities across space and time, with particular emphasis on those located in Asia. What does it mean to be a woman, a man, someone of the third sex, or none of the above? What are the Buddhist idea(l)s about femininity, masculinity, and personhood? How do these idea(l)s change with translation and transmission? We will explore together the theories and practices of gender and sexuality expressed by Buddhist communities from its beginnings to the present day. Buddhism's major conversation partners throughout history -- Hinduism, Confucianism, and Daoism -- will also be brought into discussion. Previous knowledge of Buddhism is preferred but not required. Offered as RLGN 347, RLGN 447, and WGST 347. Counts as a Communication Intensive course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.

WGST 348. Japanese Women Writers. 3 Units.

One thousand years ago, women writers, poets, and diarists dominated the Japanese literary world. These women explored themes of love, loss, jealousy, and rivalry in various genres, all of which eschewed dry factualism. The erotic desire of waiting for a lover to return, the profound grief of bereaved consorts, lists of things lovely, tales of idealized romantic encounters, episodes of jealousy and resentment resulting in spirit possession -- these form the foundations of Japanese women's writing. The plot lines begun by these early female writers contributed to the development of modern Japanese women's literature, as these themes continue to expose real experiences of living in Japanese cultures. In this course we will explore Japanese women writers and their multilayered works in the context of the changing socio-political conditions that shaped women's positions in Japanese societies. All material is in English translation. The course is conducted in English. Offered as JAPN 345, WGST 348, and WLIT 345. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Communication Intensive course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course. Prereq: Academic Inquiry Seminar (AIQS) or SAGES First Seminar.

WGST 349. The Arab World Experience. 3 Units.

Taught and led by Case faculty, The Arab World Experience is a spring semester course with a spring break study abroad component in a Middle Eastern or North African country supplemented by course meetings before and after travel. It will rotate among countries such as Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, etc. and be taught by faculty with appropriate area expertise in Arabic, Women's and Gender Studies, and/or Ethnic Studies. The course focuses on topics such as history, politics, culture, and gender relations within the society of study. Workload and learning outcomes are commensurate with a semester-long three credit hour course. Guest lectures in the host country are an important component of the course as they bring a fresh, authentic perspective to the aforementioned topics discussed. There will be three three-hour meetings prior to travel, required reading, and one three-hour meeting after travel. In the host country, students will spend seven days (five-eight hours per day) in seminars, discussions, and site visits. Student grades are determined on the basis of participation, attendance, a daily experiential learning journal, interviews with guest speakers, and a final exam. Offered as ARAB 349, ETHS 349 and WGST 349. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

WGST 352. African Feminisms. 3 Units.

This course traces the history of African feminism from its origins within traditions through to a more contemporary theoretical analysis of gender, marriage, and motherhood seen from a Afrocentric perspective. Approaches studied are those that pertain to anthropology, history, literature, sociology, and culture. African feminist theory of scholars such as Filomina Steady, Cheikh Anta Diop, Buchi Emecheta, Ifi Amadiume, Obioma Nnameka, Oyeronko Oyewumi, and Calixthe Beyala will be studied and there will be some comparative analysis of Western theories to show how African feminisms are clearly distinct. Theories on these feminisms will be presented, and in the process, students will look at cases of women in Cameroon, Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, and Senegal. It is commonly believed that African women were defined for a long time according to constructs of Western anthropology. This course will thus look at social institutions such as woman-to-woman marriage, matriarchy, and various women's rituals in order to identify African constructs of gender, family, kinship, marriage, and motherhood. Offered as ETHS 352 and WGST 352. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

WGST 353. In Her Shoes Part I: Multicultural U. S. Women's History, 1600-1877. 3 Units.

The images and realities of women's social, political, and economic lives in early America. Uses primary documents, biographies, historical monographs and period fiction and poetry to observe individuals and groups of women in relation to legal, religious, cultural, and social limitations and freedoms. Offered as HSTY 353, WGST 353, and HSTY 453. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Communication Intensive course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course. Counts as a Moral & Ethical Reasoning course.

WGST 354. In Her Shoes Part II: Multicultural U.S. Women's History, 1865-1945. 3 Units.

This seminar course covers intersectional American women's history from the end of the Civil War to the end of World War II. Students will engage in original research as well as delve into primary materials as historical detectives in search of understanding American women's past. Offered as HSTY 354, WGST 354, and HSTY 454. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Communication Intensive course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course.

WGST 355. Hindu and Jain Bioethics: Special Focus on Women's and Gender Studies. 3 Units.

This course will provide both an introduction to basic Hinduism and Jainism and an introduction to Hindu and Jain bioethics. We will focus primarily on bioethical issues that pertain to women and that are gender related. These issues include abortion, menstruation, surrogacy, intersex, and other topics of controversy. Offered as ETHS 353, RLGN 353, RLGN 453, and WGST 355. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

WGST 360. Global Politics of Reproduction. 3 Units.

This course offers an anthropological examination of reproductive politics around the world. It explores historical, cultural, socioeconomic, political, and technological factors contributing to reproductive activities. After introducing the anthropological approaches to the study of reproduction, the course will delve into the practice of fertility regulation and sex education in historical and contemporary times, fertility choices, state and institutional control over reproduction, assisted reproductive technologies, and reproductive ethics. Offered as ANTH 360, ANTH 460, and WGST 360. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course. Counts as a Moral & Ethical Reasoning course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.

WGST 363. Gender and Sexuality in America. 3 Units.

This multicultural seminar uses a mixture of historical text, gender theory, personal biography, and artistic expression to explore changing notions of gender and sexuality over the past two centuries in the United States. Offered as HSTY 363, HSTY 463 and WGST 363. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

WGST 365F. Afrofuturism and the Black Imaginary: Legacies and Futures. 3 Units.

This course explores the theoretical, literary and cultural expressions of Afrofuturism. The term Afrofuturism was developed in 1993 by scholar Mark Dery and is an all-encompassing term used to describe creative work - literature (especially science fiction), music, art - that focuses on Afro-diasporic ways of being and knowing. The course explores the multiple meanings and expressions of Afrofuturism and how it expands various literary traditions. Traditional speculative fiction canons have often distorted and/or erased the existence of people of color in the future. This course recenters these experiences. Readings will delve into the legacies of slavery, colonialism, entrenched inequalities to understand their impact on real and imagined technological futures. Students will spend time exploring how Afrofuturist writers and cultural workers imagine new possibilities that expand our sense of liberation and justice. Recommended preparation: Academic Inquiry Seminar (AIQS) or SAGES First Seminar. Offered as AFST 365F, ENGL 365F, ETHS 365F, RLGN 365F, WGST 365F and WLIT 365F. Counts as a Communication Intensive course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course.

WGST 372. Work and Family: U.S. and Abroad. 3 Units.

Covers the impact on human lives of the interface between work and family; the different ways gender structures the experience of work and family depending upon racial and ethnic background, social class, age, and partner preference; the impact of historical context on work-family experiences; work-family policies in the United States and other countries. Offered as SOCI 372, WGST 372, and SOCI 472.

WGST 373. Women and Medicine in the United States. 3 Units.

Students in this seminar will investigate the experiences of American women as practitioners and as patients. We will meet weekly in the Dittrick Medical Museum for discussion of texts and use artifacts from the museum's collection. After a unit exploring how the female body was viewed by medical theorists from the Galenic period to the nineteenth-century, we will look at midwives, college-trained female doctors and nurses, and health advocacy among poor populations. We will then look at women's experiences in terms of menstruation, childbearing, and menopause, before exploring the cultural relationship between women and psychological disorders. Offered as HSTY 373, HSTY 473, and WGST 373. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

WGST 374. American Women's Poetry. 3 Units.

This course surveys American women's poetry from the seventeenth century to the present. We will read a range of poetry illustrating the roles of women poets in the development of the nation's literary, cultural, and social history. We will pay close attention to how women poets use traditional and innovative poetic forms to represent lived experiences and to engage the political realities of their varying historical moments. Recommended preparation: Academic Inquiry Seminar (AIQS) or SAGES First Seminar. Offered as ENGL 373, ENGL 473, and WGST 374. Counts as a Communication Intensive course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course.

WGST 381. Gender, Sexuality, and Queer Culture in Israel. 3 Units.

How do people talk about sex in Israeli culture? How have Israeli authors, artists, and filmmakers approached gender and sexuality? How do the categories of gender, sexuality, and identity map onto questions of collective memory, religion and nationalism? Since its revival at the end of the nineteenth century, issues of gender and sexuality have stood at the forefront of Hebrew literature and culture. In this course, we discuss literary texts (short stories, novels and poems), visual art (photos, artwork and sculpture), and film that foreground the role of gender in the Israeli project of nation-building and identity construction. We track how attitudes towards gender, sex, and sexuality shifted from an implicit, coded approach to more explicit forms of expression. This shift took place across a century of Jewish immigration to Palestine/Israel and establishment in the country, and the focus on gender and sexuality allows us to discuss this history from a cultural perspective. The course also focuses on the LGBTQ+ community in Israel and its struggle for same-sex rights and gender equality, exploring the tensions between this struggle for equality and Israel's self-identity as a democratic and Jewish state. Offered as JWST 81, WGST 381, and WLIT 381. Counts as a Communication Intensive course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.

WGST 384. Sociology of Sex(es), Gender(s) and Sexuality(ies). 3 Units.

Gender is an organizing principle of society and affects every element of social life. Ideas about gender and sexuality shape identity and suffuse interactions, institutions and the societies within which we live. These ideas vary from individual to individual, but also across time and place. This course surveys research on sex, gender and sexuality with the goal of providing students with a theoretical grounding for analyzing sex, gender and sexuality from a sociological perspective. We will explore outdated theories like essentialism and biological determinism, and newer theories rooted in social constructionism. Central to this course is intersectionality, a theoretical perspective that reveals ways in which race/ethnicity, class, gender, sexuality and other social categories are inextricably connected and form interlocking systems of inequality. Additional topics to be explored include: the sexual revolution, the hook-up culture, gendered families, gendered health, occupational segregation, sexual harassment and gendered violence, reproduction, social change and feminist activism. Offered as SOCI 384, SOCI 484, and WGST 384. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course. Prereq: SOCI 101.

WGST 391. Leadership in Diversity and Inclusion: Towards a Globally Inclusive Workplace. 3 Units.

This course addresses workforce diversity issues from individual, group, and organizational perspectives. The focus is on innovative ways of utilizing today's culturally expanding workforce. Emphasis is on the "what and how" for managers in developing a corporate culture that embraces diversity, helping them in learning to work with, supervise and tap the talent of diverse employees within their organizations. Included are methods for modifying systems to attract, retain, develop, and capitalize on benefits of the new workforce demographics. Offered as ORBH 391 and WGST 391. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course.

WGST 396. SAGES Capstone. 3 Units.

Capstone experience in the fields of Women's and Gender Studies for an in-depth, independent project of particular interest to the student. Students are strongly encouraged to work with a WGST program faculty member, but some projects may be supervised by faculty in other areas or by other qualified professionals. All capstones require a WGST faculty advisor's approval of the proposal prior to registration. Open to juniors and seniors majoring in Women's and Gender Studies. Counts as a SAGES Senior Capstone course. Prereq: WGST 201; Junior or Senior standing with major/minor in WGST.

WGST 399. Independent Study. 1 - 3 Units.

Independent research project in the fields of Women's and Gender Studies. Project proposals must be approved by a WGST faculty advisor. Students are strongly encouraged to work with a WGST program faculty member, but some projects may be supervised by faculty in other areas for by other qualified professionals with a WGST faculty advisor's approval. Credit varies with the scope and depth of the project. Prereq: WGST 201.