Tuesday 11:00-12:00, 5:00-6:00

Weds 1:30-2:30: Assistant to the Acting Head of the Department hours (located in Lang 326)

Thursday 11:00-12:00

Friday 1:00-2:00

Office Phone: 273-2714

Mailbox: Lang Hall 326

e-mail: palczewski@uni.edu

Acknowledgements: This syllabus is informed by the work of many faculty in the WGS program, including: Phyllis Baker, Barbara Cutter, Victoria DeFrancisco, Cynthia Goatley, Deidre Heisted, and Martie Reineke.

Course Objectives:

1. To provide a comparative approach to feminist theory which exposes students to some of the recent literature in feminist theory from different areas of the world. Special attention will be paid to issues of race, class, and gender, and the intersections between these three categories of analysis in our study of feminist theories throughout the semester.

2. To provide a solid theoretical base for the M.A. degree, encompassing a variety of feminist theories and methodologies.

3. To provide a common base for inquiry and reflection among all M.A. students in their first year of course-work.

4. To introduce M.A. students to core and affiliate graduate faculty and to familiarize students with faculty research specialties in content and methods.

5. To support students in their discovery of their own specific research interests in women's and gender studies, to prepare them for choosing an area of interest for their thesis, and to assist each student in claiming her or his unique voice as a scholar.

6. To promote the development of each student’s voice as a scholar and to improve each student’s command of a writing style that may be used throughout the M.A. career.

7. To promote active learning and a sense of responsibility for and ownership of one’s education.

Course Description:

This seminar typically is taken during the first semester of the Women's Studies Master's Program at UNI. The course is taught from an interdisciplinary perspective.

The course is composed of two parts, although they at times may occur synchronically. In the first part, we focus on feminist readings from a variety of disciplines that address comparative feminisms. That this issue is addressed first demonstrates the importance Women's and Gender Studies places on the study of feminism to include global issues, as well as race, class, and other social identities. The writings of diverse women (e.g. women of color, lesbians, "third world" women, and working-class women) demonstrate that gender cannot be studied separately from the other social categories and that these categories create unique oppressions, privileges, and experiences.

In the second part, faculty in such areas as sociology, history, English, philosophy and religion, and communication studies will visit to provide further interdisciplinary perspectives as they share their research and teaching tied to gender, race, and class. The course is intended to acquaint students with "cutting edge" research in women's studies through representative readings across a broad spectrum of disciplinary approaches. Students also are strongly encouraged to attend the monthly Current Research on Women (CROW) Forum at UNI to gain more exposure to faculty work. Through these means, students will become acquainted with faculty with whom they might choose to study further.

Throughout the course, each student focuses on choosing, articulating, and justifying her or his unique stance as a scholar. At the conclusion of the semester, each student should be prepared to express in written form her or his own understanding of what it means for her or him to be a feminist scholar or a scholar who conducts research on gender from a women's and gender studies perspective as part of a larger prospectus for the MA thesis. Questions each student addresses include: who one studies, what one studies, how one studies (methodological issues), as whom one studies, and why one studies women/gender. This document serves subsequently as a theoretical foundation to the thesis project.

This course typically is a part of a two-semester sequence (part two is one credit in the spring semester). At the conclusion, students should be well on their way to achieving focus in the program that will enable them to choose their elective courses and a thesis topic. Part one offers theoretical and writing experience, part two offers research skill development and application. Meetings in the research class will be to share progress reports and problem-solve on student projects, to include design, data collection, analysis, and writing. At the conclusion of the two-part seminar, students should have a solid base for their thesis project.

Required Texts:

Reading linked to the syllabus and/or provided by instructor

Style Manual (one that is from your academic discipline)

Mohanty, Chandra Talpade. (2003) Feminism without borders. Durham: Duke University Press.

Price, Janet and Shildrick, Margrit, eds. (1999). Feminist theory and the body. New York: Routledge.

Butler, Judith and Scott, Joan W. (1992). Feminists theorize the political. New York: Routledge.

Fuss, Diana. (1989). Essentially speaking. New York: Routledge.

recommended:

Sonya Andermahr, Terry Lovell and Carol Wolkowitz, A Concise Glossary of Feminist Theory (London, Arnold, 1997)

Timeline project link

Course Requirements

1. Précis (20 points, 10 @ 2 points each). On 10 Thursdays, you will be expected to turn in a short (3 pages) writing assignment that will form the basis for class discussion. (11 Thursdays are available: September 2, 9, 16, 23, 30; October 7, 14, 21, 28; November 4, 11; December 2. You get to pick which ones you wish to write on. Should you choose to write on more than 10, you earn the top 10 grades).

This assignment asks you to write a brief summary of the main points of the reading and synthesize your preliminary reactions to the text. Your précis should be coherent and thoughtful. They are not meant to be "book reports" or mere descriptions of the readings. You should engage the readings: summarize, highlight, agree, disagree, apply, extend, rework, combine, synthesize, play. The goal of précis writing is to practice developing thoughts that will be incorporated in revised and refined form in the final essay for this course. An additional goal of this assignment is to help you develop your individual voice as a scholar.

When you write these papers think about the following issues: evaluate the authors’ arguments, think about what theoretical frameworks authors are using. What do you find useful in the readings? What limitations do you see in their theoretical approaches? What relationships do the authors posit between theory and feminist practice? How do these texts relate to others we have already read this semester? How are they building on, altering, and arguing against previous readings? How could you use previous readings to shed new light on the current reading? These papers are meant to get you thinking about the implications of various arguments, to open up ideas that you can work through further in class discussion and throughout the semester. You should not have all the answers yet: you should be beginning the process of working through complicated theoretical issues.

Students will receive a maximum of two points on each précis (for a total of 20 points). If a student receives 2 points, that means that were they to present work of like quality on the final essay they would receive an A. Students who receive below 1.8 points on a précis are not yet doing work that would warrant an A if it were submitted as part of the final essay. They need to follow suggestions for improvement offered by the instructor. Please note that students do not always progress on a steady curve. Improvement nearly always happens, even though the curve may vary dramatically in pattern. In the past students have experienced dramatic changes in their writing and critical reflection when they keep up with the assignments. The number of points awarded for each précis is intentionally low to encourage students to use the number as a diagnostic indicator of their progress rather than as definitively harming or helping their final grade. However, students who do not take the précis assignments seriously have a difficult time doing well on the final paper. While it appears that most of the final grade rests on the final paper, this figure is deceptive since the work is cumulative.

I do not expect polished work for the précis; they are work in progress. However, I DO expect work that has been proofread and edited. A paper rife with typographical, grammar, or citation errors will be returned ungraded. Students who do not establish a strong basis for the final paper by writing the précis are extremely unlikely to do well on the final paper. In the spirit of learning writing skills, when students cite sources in their précis, they should attach a list of references using the proper bibliographic format from their style book (APA, MLA). Précis should be typed and double-spaced.

You should collect these short papers in a notebook or binder because we will ask you to turn them all in at the end of the semester. You must turn in the original papers, including the comments, when you turn in your final paper.

Generally, you might want to think about the following themes as you write the précis:

from what position do I write?

what is woman/man, are women/men?

what is sex? gender?

why do I write?

why do I write about the topics I write about?

on what basis can social change be achieved?

how does one contest and deploy power/privilege?

These questions are not exhaustive, and you may end up not writing about any of them. But, if you are looking for a starting place, these might serve as that.

My grading of your papers will emphasize three things:

1. Distinctive voice: Is your writing distinctive? Can I tell it is you? Are you present?

2. Precision: Precision does not mean formality. It does mean that you make distinctions, think carefully about word choice, and use vivid language. Bring ideas alive.

3. Argument: Make an argument. Do not talk about the readings; talk to them, with them, through them.

You should collect these thought papers in a notebook or binder because I will ask you to turn them all in at the end of the semester. Students in the WGS M.A. program must turn in the original papers, including the comments, when they turn in the final paper.

2. Final Paper/Prospectus: (40 points) Students will write a final paper for the course, 20-25 pages in length, integrating and synthesizing materials studied throughout the semester. This means that the final essay is built on the preceding précis and gives students an opportunity to revise, update, refine, and supplement précis assignments. This paper is due and will be presented some time on December 15 (Wednesday, 1:00-2:50). YOU ALSO MUST SEND YOUR PAPERS AS AN EMAIL ATTACHMENT TO CATE AT palczewski@uni.edu. Your papers will not be considered "turned in" until you send them as an email attachment and until you also turn in all the peer edits done of your paper. You should have 4 edtis to turn in (2 from Nov 18 and 2 from Dec 2/9)

In this paper you will do two things. First, explain as you see it, and evaluate, some of the variety of feminist theories that have emerged in the last 30-40 years, and the relationship of these various theoretical approaches to each other. That is, how do various theorists respond to, argue against, build on the work of other feminist thinkers? What have been some of the major issues/concerns of feminists been and how have these changed in this period? What do you think are the strengths and weaknesses of various theorists? [Note: this does not suggest the existence of a “progressive narrative” of ever-improving theories, only that feminists are not thinking in a vacuum. Theory grows and changes as feminists respond to the insights and criticisms of others] Second, evaluate what you think are the most relevant feminist theories you have studied over the course of the semester in terms of your thesis project or work in a feminist organization. How can any of the theories (or parts of the theories) you have studied help you analyze the evidence you will be examining in your own research project, or inform the way you engage in feminist activism? What seem to be the strengths and limitations of various theoretical approaches as they apply to your topic? Finally, come up with a preliminary theoretical framework (or frameworks) for your own thesis project/organization. [Note: this final question uses the term “preliminary,” on purpose. You are in the early stages of your thesis projects and do not need to have a “final answer” about your theoretical approach(es).]

6) Peer editing: (10 points) We will use peer editing as a way to improve the final papers. When peer editing, you are expected to provide both stylistic and substantive suggestions. Students are expected to have a draft of their final paper to be distributed for editing December 2. Each student is expected to edit two (2) papers. Accordingly, each member of class should bring two (2) copies of the draft of their final paper to class on December 2. Edits should be completed and returned to the author no later than December 9.

Hey all: here is additional information/clarification on peer editing:

Editing guidelines: In order to receive the minimum passing credit for editing, you are expected to provide the following each time you edit:

1. Substantive edits: You are expected to provide a minimum of three (3) substantive suggestions. In order to make a good substantive suggestion, it usually requires at least a paragraph of writing. Given the length of these edits, you may want to type them (for the Dec 2 paper edit, not the in class edit on Nov 18th). These suggestions can include:

a. Additional arguments to be made. You can point to additional evidence that supports their argument, or that modifies their argument in some way.

b. Additional citation on the history of the topic. You can provide the citation for a relevant essay or book, and explain the contribution it makes.

c. Additional variables or concepts that develop the thesis/research questions. You can provide a quotation and page number from the class texts, and explain what is revealed by using the concepts from the texts.

d. Additional scholarly citations. You can provide citations for articles from scholarly journals and books. You should summarize the concept from the scholar, and then explain it.

e. Major organizational changes. You can suggest a major reordering of the paper. This is more than moving the order of two paragraphs. Instead, it would constitute an alternative way to develop the argument.

f. Major differences in interpretation. You may disagree with some interpretive move the author makes. If so, make a case for an alternative interpretation, providing evidence.

2. Stylistic edits: You are expected to make a minimum of ten (10) style edits. They can include:

a. bibliographic citation corrections

b. internal citation corrections

c. typographical error corrections

d. grammar corrections

e. spelling corrections

f. sentence rewordings

So, for peer editing, you should have edited 4 papers:

2 on November 18 and 2 on December 2-9.

7) Presentation: (10 points). During the final exam period (December 15 (Wednesday, 1:00-2:50)), we will have a formal presentation of all the papers. These presentations will be modeled after conference presentations of papers. Students will have 12-15 minutes to present their papers. Depending on class size, the length of the presentation may be changes. The presentation should provide sufficient background on the text and outline the core argument made in the paper. The student should also provide evidence to support the main argument.

More helpful hints:

A) Do NOT simply read your paper for your presentation. The presentation should be formal and professional, but not scripted. I suggest you speak from a detailed outline (remember to include quotations from the text in the outline to illustrate the points you want to make). Please bring two copies of the outline: one to speak from and one for me. DO practice the presentation to make sure your outline fits within the time limits. Time limits will be enforced.

B) Presume the audience is not familiar with your paper, but is educated about feminist theory. Your presentation does NOT need to include detailed definitions of common feminist terms. However, do provide sufficient theoretical explanation of more complicated concepts so that the audience can follow your analysis.

C) Do not try to present all the arguments in your paper. You will not be able to cover everything in just 12 minutes. Instead, give a brief overview of all your arguments, and then pick one or two on which to focus the presentation.

REMEMBER tobring an extra copy of your presentation outline/notes so that I can write comments on it.

8) Discussion: (20 points). Graduate seminars at their best are open and free flowing discussions, where you engage each others' hearts and minds. The professor should serve as a muse or a guide, but not a drill sergeant. For a seminar to be a location of invention, and not just regurgitation, you must come ready to talk, to think, to rethink and to engage. Otherwise, seminars can devolve into just being an instance where the professor tells you what to think. Being a good participant does not mean that you always have the answer; it can also mean that you know when to ask the right questions and when to recognize that the answers have already been offered by the class but need to be synthesized. Discussion is a central component of this class insofar as each person's analysis of the readings can be enhanced by others' insights. For a detailed description of the criteria used in the assessment of discussion, see my discussion link.

TO BE A GOOD PARTICIPANT IN DISCUSSION YOU MUST HAVE COMPLETED ALL THE READINGS.

In order to be a full participant in discussion, you MUST have completed the assigned reading. I will open every class asking if there are questions, but beyond that, I will not review the readings. Instead, I will assume you have completed the reading, taken notes, and are ready to apply and analyze the readings. AnaLouise Keating (Teaching Transformation, 2007, p. 196) provides the following description of "graduate level academic practices" in regards to reading for class:

(1) I expect you to complete all readings by the date listed on the syllabus;

(2) I expect you to read the material thoughtfully and in an engaged manner;

(3) I expect you to read all endnotes and footnotes;

(4) I expect you to read (not skim) all of the required readings--even those you find "boring" or difficult;

(5) I expect you to reread those texts that you have previously read;

(6) I expect you to seek out definitions for words and terminology you don't know . . . try the following websites:

http://plato.stanford.edu/contents.html

http:///www.theory.org.uk/

http://www.uoguelph.ca/culture/glossary.htm ...

http://www.popcultures.com/

For those who are uncertain about their ability to participate consistently, I suggest you do the following. For each week, I would like you to prepare a discussion log, no more than 1 single space typed page for each half, due the next class period. The log should have 2 halves:

A. Pre-class: a description of how you prepared to contribute to discussion (key concepts outlined, examples developed, questions formulated.);

B. Post-class: A self-assessment of your contribution to class using the five elements outlined in the discussion link. You should attach a grade to your participation for the class period in question.

You do NOT need to use all the space. Think of the first half as preparation for discussion, and the second half as a chance to make an argument about 1) how well you did, and/or 2) how you can improve.

General Information: see my website, at www.uni.edu/palczews/general.htm. This site includes my late policy, the university accommodation policy, as well as paper format descriptions.

Three categories of bibliographic information is provided. 1) "read" means you should read this for class, 2) "also included" means this document is on the CD, but is not required reading, and 3) "supplemental readings" are citations for readings not included on the CD but that may be of interest to you.

Syllabus: (This syllabus is subject to change, although that rarely happens.) If changes happen, they will be in hot pink.

new readings: under construction:

Henson, Lori, and Parameswaran, Radhika E. (2008). Getting real with "tell it like it is" talk therapy: Hegemonic masculinity and the Dr. Phil Show Communication, Culture & Critique. 1 (3, September), 287-310.

Fahey, Anna Cornelia (2007). French and feminine: Hegemonic masculinity and the emasculation of John Kerry in the 2004 presidential race. Critical Studies in Media Communication. 24 (2, June), 132-150.