Women's and Gender Studies

Program Faculty: Sujata Moorti, (program director, on leave academic year), Laurie Essig (joint women's and gender studies and sociology/anthropology), Cheryl Faraone (joint women's and gender studies and theatre and dance on leave spring term), Margaret K. Nelson (joint women's and gender studies and sociology/anthropology),  Linda White (joint women's and gender studies and sociology/anthropology) Program Coordinator: Naomi Neff

Participating Faculty:Katherine Smith Abbott (history of art and architecture), Holly Allen (American studies), Febe Armanios (history, on leave academic year), Timothy Billings (English and American literatures), Louisa Burnham (history), Alison Byerly (English and American literatures, on leave academic year), Susan Campbell (psychology), Armelle Crouzieres-Ingenthron (French), James Davis (religion), Deborah Evans (American studies), Juana Gamero de Coca (Spanish), Rebecca Gould (religion, on leave academic year), Roman Graf (German), Heidi Grasswick (philosophy), Maria Hatjigeorgiou (religion), Brigitte Humbert (French), Rachel Joo (American studies), Bethany Ladimer (French), Antonia Losano (English and American literatures), Tamar Mayer (geography on leave academic year), Claudio Medeiros (theatre, on leave academic year),  Brett Millier (English and American literatures), Jason Mittell (American studies and film media), Amy Morsman (history), Kevin Moss (Russian), Kamakshi Murti (German), Ellen Oxfeld (sociology/anthropology), Nathalie Peutz (sociology/anthropology), William Poulin-Deltour (French), Paula Schwartz (French), Yumna Siddiqi (English and American literatures), Gail Smith (physical education), Almeta Speaks (music), Jacob Tropp (history), William Waldron (religion), Marion Wells (English and American literatures, on leave academic year)

The Women’s and Gender Studies Program is a vibrant and intellectually stimulating interdisciplinary arena of scholarship which was established in 1991. Originally organized to examine women’s contributions to society and the obstacles they have faced, this interdisciplinary program today has expanded to use gender as a basic category of analysis in a variety of social and historical contexts. Our courses investigate the operations of gender in family, popular culture, the labor market, globalization processes, political systems, and creative expressions. The Program in Women’s and Gender Studies at Middlebury provides students with the intellectual tools to investigate the intersections of gender with other forms of difference and power -- such as sexuality, race, class, and nation -- in local and transnational contexts. Our courses also help chart paths to social change through investigations of the forms of activism prevalent around the globe.

We understand women, gender, feminism, queer, masculinity, and transgender as politicized terms. Our curriculum and faculty research the constantly changing directions that multiple "first" and "third" world feminisms are taking today. Our program serves as a space for intellectual debate and a catalyst for student groups committed to addressing various forms of social inequalities. Students in our program are active members of the campus community and learn leadership skills through their activism.

Requirements for a Women's and Gender Studies Major: The major consists of four parts as outlined below:
     1) a solid grounding in the theories and methods of women's and gender studies,
     2) specialized expertise within a traditional discipline (the field requirement),
     3) a non-Western requirement, and
     4) senior work: The minimum requirement for the major is 10 courses; most students will require some additional courses.
     1. Women's and gender studies courses (10 courses, some of which may also serve the second and third requirements outlined below):
    *Two introductory-level courses in women's and gender studies: Students must take these courses in two different academic categories as described in the college distribution requirement. They may be chosen from among the list of courses indicated below, under introductory courses offered in departments. (Appropriate first-year student seminars may be substituted for an introductory course with the permission of the program director.)

• WAGS 0200
• WAGS 0400

At least five other women's and gender studies courses in the 0200-to 0500- level range (in at least two different academic categories). These five courses may also serve the second and third requirement outlined below.  
     Students will take four to six courses in a discipline of their choice (the requirements for each discipline participating in the program are listed below). At least one of these courses must be a course that is cross-listed in women's and gender studies (if none is available then an independent study should be arranged). In choosing a discipline, students must also consult with the WAGS program director as well as with an adviser from their field. If a discipline is not listed below, students may construct a disciplinary focus, in consultation with an adviser from the field and the WAGS program director. (Note: the field requirement is satisfied automatically by joint majors).
     2. Field Requirements:
     American Studies:AMST 0210, AMST 0211, one or two other AMST courses, each with a gender component.
     Film: FMMC 0131, FMMC 0231, FMMC 0232, FMMC 0340, or FMMC 0347; one foreign national or international cinema course, and FMMC 0230
     French: any four courses above FREN 0205, including one course cross-listed in WAGS. Some, but not all of the courses may be taken in English.
     Geography: GEOG 0100, two of the following: GEOG 0206, GEOG 0210, GEOG 0212, GEOG 0213, GEOG 0310 or 0320, GEOG 0410.
     German: any four courses above the 0200-level, including one course cross-listed in WAGS. Some, but not all of the courses may be taken in English.
     History: one 0100-level course, a research seminar (any course in the 0450's), and three other history courses, at least two of which should focus directly on women and/or gender.
     History of Art: HARC 0100 or HARC 0102, four courses at the 0200-level or above, one of which must be HARC/WAGS 0209.
     English and American Literatures: ENAM 0103 or from the literature program LITP 0101. Two of the following courses: ENAM 0205, ENAM 0206, ENAM 0207, ENAM 0242, ENAM 0270, ENAM/WAGS 0260, ENAM/WAGS 0114. Other literature courses may be substituted with approval.
     Music: one course cross-listed in WAGS, four courses above the 0200-level, and two semesters in a departmental ensemble or approved ensemble.
     Religion: RELI 0110 or RELI 0120, one cross-listed course in WAGS, one 0400-level seminar, and one elective (these courses should be in either the Eastern or Western tradition.
     Philosophy: five courses, including PHIL/WAGS 0234, one course in history of philosophy, one course in ethics and/or social and political philosophy, and one 0400-level philosophy seminar. Additionally, both PHIL 0150 and PHIL 0180 are strongly recommended.
     Psychology: PSYC 0105, PSYC 0203, two of the following courses: PSYC/WAGS 0307, PSYC/WAGS 0420, and 0429, and one other PSYC course.
     Sociology/Anthropology: SOAN 0103, SOAN 0105, SOAN 0301 or 0302, SOAN 0305 or 0306, and one elective cross-listed in WAGS.
     Theatre: THEA 0102 (Acting 1), THEA/WAGS 0206, three other courses in theatre of which one must be cross-listed in WAGS.
     3. Non-Western requirement: At least one non-Western course. This must be satisfied by a course in the field discipline or by a designated women's and gender studies course.
     4. Senior work: Students are required to complete a one-semester senior essay (WAGS 0700) or a two-semester senior thesis (WAGS 0710) applying the methods learned in the field course work and in WAGS 0400. A thesis adviser may be selected from among any of the program faculty. Students engaged in senior work will meet with their advisers regularly during the semester.
     Honors: To qualify for honors, a major must have at least a B+ average in all courses taken in the women's and gender studies program and the field requirements. The degree of honors will be based on senior work, normally a student must write a thesis to qualify for honors. Honors: thesis grade of B+; high honors: thesis grade of A-; highest honors: thesis grade of A.
     Minor in Women's and Gender Studies: The women's and gender studies minor consists of five courses, including: at least one introductory course in WAGS from among ENAM/WAGS 0114, SOAN/WAGS 0191, or an appropriate first-year student seminar, with the approval of the program director; WAGS 0200, WAGS 0400, and two electives.

Women's and Gender Studies Courses

WAGS 0200 Foundations in Women's and Gender Studies (Fall, Spring)
This course provides an introduction to the interdisciplinary field of women's and gender studies. Examining gender always in conjunction with the categories of race and class, the course foregrounds how inequalities are perpetuated in different fields of human activity and the creative ways in which groups have resisted these processes. The course is organized in sections to illuminate the effects of particular social institutions and structures on our gendered lives. Each section will introduce a broad overview of feminist interventions in different fields of inquiry. Cumulatively, the course reveals the importance of gender as an analytical category to understand social reality and to comprehend important areas of culture. SOC CMP (L. White)

WAGS 0223 Introduction to Gay and Lesbian Studies (Spring)
This course will provide an introduction to the interdisciplinary field of gay and lesbian studies. We will explore three topics: the construction and representation of homosexuality in history, queer culture before and after Stonewall, and queer theory. Readings will include works by Martin Duberman, Lillian Faderman, Oscar Wilde, Radclyffe Hall, Tony Kushner, Sarah Schulmann, Eve Sedgewick, and Michel Foucault. SOC NOR (K. Moss)

WAGS/SOAN 0262 Mobile Women: Transnational Work Patterns (Not offered 2008-09)
The course examines women's work in the formal labor sectors to offer a critical perspective on contemporary local and global patterns.  The materials will cover concerns that are central to women in the United States such as the glass ceiling, the wage gap, and the pink-collar ghetto.  The course will also offer a transnational perspective through an analysis of the central role migrant female laborers have come to play in the global economy.  This section will cover issues such as the traffic in domestic workers, nannies and sex workers.  We will interrogate how feminist theories are able to accommodate the uneven development of women's rights at the global and local levels.  Through a few case studies students will also be introduced to alternative work patterns established by groups such as the greenbelt movement in Kenya and SEWA in India. SOC CMP

WAGS/ENAM 0372 Gender and the South Asian Diaspora (Not offered 2008-09)
In this interdisciplinary course we will trace social, political, and economic experiences as well as the aesthetic expressions of South Asians dispersed around the world.  Beginning with a theoretical exploration of the concept of diaspora we delineate the historical specificity of the subcontinental experience. The key topics we will consider are labor, the politics of gender and sexuality, cultural production of desi identity, and religion.  The course will include literary texts, films, art, and multimedia production.  Some of the authors we will consider are: Anita Rau Badami, Jhumpa Lahiri, Shyam Selvadurai, and M. G. Vassanji.  The films will include Bhaji on the Beach, My Beautiful Laundrette, My Son the Fanatic, When Mother Comes Home for Christmas, and Bollywood Productions. LIT AAL CMP

WAGS 0400 Women and Gender: Interdisciplinary Perspectives (Not offered 2008-09)
Open to students who have completed two introductory courses in women's and gender studies, this seminar is designed to prepare majors in the women's and gender studies program for senior work. It also serves as an advanced reading seminar for other students with course work in women's and gender studies. The class will explore how the category of gender shapes academic scholarship across the disciplines and informs public debate over women's issues. What themes, research goals, and problems unify the work of women's and gender studies across the disciplines? How is the category of gender related to other categories of identity and/or social location? Topics may include legal and political reform, language, reason and emotion, sexuality, and visual representations of the body. (WAGS 0200) 3 hrs. lect.

WAGS 0500 Independent Study (Fall, Winter, Spring)
(Staff)

WAGS 0700 Senior Essay (Fall, Spring)
(Staff)

WAGS 0710 Senior Thesis (Fall, Spring)
(Staff)


COURSES OFFERED BY DEPARTMENTS

Introductory Courses

Appropriate First-Year Seminars (Please consult program chair)

WAGS/ENAM 0105 Victoria's Secrets: The Two Faces of Nineteenth-Century Fiction (Not offered 2008-09)
See Department of English and American Literatures for course description. (Formerly WAGS/ENGL 0105) LIT EUR 

WAGS/ENAM 0114 Reading Women's Writing (Not offered 2008-09)
See Department of English and American Literatures for course description. (Formerly WAGS/ENGL 0114) LIT 

WAGS/SOAN 0191 Introduction to Sociology of Gender (Fall)
See Department of Sociology/Anthropology for course description. SOC CMP (L. Essig)

WAGS/WRPR 0201 Writing For Social Change (CW) (Spring)
See Program of College Writing for course description. ART LIT (C. Wright)

WAGS/THEA 0206 Contemporary Women Playwrights (CW) (Not offered 2008-09)
See Department of Theatre and Dance for course description. ART LIT

WAGS/HARC 0209 Women in the Visual Arts (Not offered 2008-09)
See Department of History of Art and Architecture for course description. ART HIS CMP

WAGS/SOAN 0212 The Family in Contemporary Society (Fall)
See Department of Sociology/Anthropology for course description. SOC NOR CMP (M. Nelson)

WAGS/MUSC 0224 The Legacy of Black Art (Fall)
See Department of Music for course description. ART NOR (A. Speaks)

WAGS/GRMN 0226 To Veil or Not to Veil: Germany and Islam (in English) (Fall)
See Department of German for course description LIT SOC CMP (K. Murti)

WAGS/GRMN 0228 Women's Fictions in German-Speaking Countries (in English) (Not offered 2008-09)
See Department of German for course description. LIT SOC EUR

WAGS/AMST 0230 Gender Images in American Popular Culture (Not offered 2008-09)
 See Program in American Studies for course description. 3 hrs. lect. NOR

WAGS/AMST 0231 Space, Place, and Gender (CW) (Spring)
See Program in American Studies for course description. SOC NOR (R. Joo)

WAGS/PHIL 0234 Philosophy and Feminism (CW) (Fall)
See Department of Philosophy for course description. PHL CMP (H. Grasswick)

WAGS/JAPN 0245 Josei Undo: Women’s Activism in Contemporary Japan (Not offered 2008-09)
See Department of Japanese for course description. SOC AAL

WAGS/JAPN 0250 Gender in Japan (in English) (Fall)
See Department of Japanese for course description. LIT  AAL (L. White)

WAGS/ENAM 0254 American Women Poets (Not offered 2008-09)
See Department of English and American Literatures for course description. (Formerly WAGS/AMLT 0265) LIT NOR

WAGS/RUSS 0255 Gender and Sexuality in Russian Culture (in English) (Not offered 2008-09)
See Department of Russian for course description. LIT EUR

WAGS/SOAN 0269 Gender and Class in the Contemporary Middle East (Spring)
See Department of Sociology/Anthropology for course description. SOC AAL (N. Peutz) 

WAGS/ENAM 0270 Postcolonial Literatures: Passages from India (Fall)
See Department of English and American Literatures for course description. LIT CMP (Y. Siddiqi)

WAGS/SPAN 0458 Narratives of Love in Modern Spain (Not offered 2008-09)
See Department of Spanish for course description. LNG SOC

WAGS/LITP 0460 Sexing the Canon (Spring)
See Program in Literary Studies for course description. LIT CMP EUR (R. Graf)

WAGS/SPAN 0478 Spanish Women Writers: Expanding the Canon (Not offered 2008-09)
See Department of Spanish for course description. EUR