Course Descriptions

Lower Division Courses
20. Cultural Representations of Gender (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: one course specified for the Women’s Studies major. Interdisciplinary investigation of how specific cultures represent gender difference. Examine a variety of cultural forms and phenomena including film, television, literature, music, popular movements, and institutions. GE credit: ArtHum, Div, Wrt

25. Gender and Global Cinema (4)
Lecture—3 hours; film viewing—3 hours. The role gender plays in film history/culture in various geographical contexts and in aspects of contemporary globalization. Films from nations such as China, Colombia, Cuba, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Korea, New Zealand, and the U.S. GE credit: ArtHum, Div, Wrt

50. Introduction to Women and Gender Studies (4)
Lecture—3 hours; discussion—1 hour. Interdisciplinary introduction surveys and integrates anthropological, artistic, cultural studies, historical, legal, literary, philosophical, psychological, scientific, and sociological perspectives on the study of gender and its relationship to race, sexuality, class, and other aspects of social experience. GE credit: ArtHum or SocSci, Div, Wrt

60. Introduction to Feminist Interpretations of Western Thought (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. A critical introduction to major traditions of social thinking in the West from a feminist perspective. Not offered every year. GE credit: ArtHum or SocSci, Div, Wrt

70. Theory and History of Sexualities (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Key issues in the social construction, organization, and reproduction of sexualities such as the intersection of sexual identity with gender, race, ethnicity, and class, and the relation between movements for sexual liberation and the regulation of the body. GE credit: ArtHum or SocSci, Div.

80. Special Topics in Women’s Studies (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. In-depth examination of a women’s studies topic related to the research interest of the instructor. May be repeated for credit when topic differs. Limited enrollment.

90X. Lower Division Seminar (2)
Seminar—2 hours. Examination of a special topic in Women’s Studies through shared readings, discussions, and written assignments. Offered in alternate years.

91. Research Seminar in the Transnational Production and Consumption of Fashion (1-2)
Seminar—1-2 hours. Preparation for a research conference. May be repeated for credit when topic varies.

98. Directed Group Study (1-5)
Prerequisite: consent of instructor. (P/NP grading only.)

99. Special Study for Undergraduates (1-5)
Prerequisite: consent of instructor. (P/NP grading only.)
Upper Division Courses

102. Colonialism, Nationalism, and Women (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: one course specified for Women’s Studies major. Explores key dimensions of women’s relationship to colonialism and nationalism in one or more societies. GE credit: SocSci, Div

103. Introduction to Feminist Theory (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: one course specified for the Women’s Studies major. Introduction to the emergence of feminist theory and to key concepts in feminist theorizing. Examination of past and current debates over sexuality, race, identity politics, and the social construction of women’s experience.

104. Feminist Approaches to Inquiry (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: one course specified for the Women’s Studies major. Feminist applications and transformations of traditional disciplinary practices; current issues and methodologies in feminist interdisciplinary work.

130. Feminism and the Politics of Family Change (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: any Women’s Studies course or Sociology 131 or 132. An examination of contemporary conflicts over family values and the changing family from a feminist perspective. Offered in alternate years. GE credit: ArtHum or SocSci, Div

137. Feminist Interpretations of Contemporary Western Thought (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: one course in Women’s Studies, or consent of instructor. Introduction to deciphering, demystifying, and interpreting poststructuralist, postmodern, and postcolonial thought from a feminist perspective: applications to gender, race, sexuality, and class. Not offered every year. GE credit: ArtHum or SocSci, Div, Wrt.

138. Transnational Studies of Dress, Fashion, and Gender (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: one course in Women’s Studies or Textiles and Clothing 7, 107, or 174. Dress and fashion as cultural communication, aesthetic expression, capitalist commodity. History, sociology, semiotics of fashion. Fashion as means of gender oppression and liberation. Use of dress in identity construction across cultures. Clothing workers on the global assembly line. Not offered every year. GE credit: ArtHum or SocSci, Div, Wrt.

139. Feminist Cultural Studies (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: one course in Women’s Studies or American Studies. The histories, theories, and practices of feminist traditions within Cultural Studies. (Same as course American Studies 139.) GE credit: SocSci, Div, Wrt.

140. Gender and Law (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: one course in Women’s Studies. Exploration of women’s legal rights in historical and contemporary context, discussing a variety of legal issues and applicable feminist theories. Topics include constitutional equal protection, discrimination in employment and education, sexual orientation discrimination, and the regulation of abortion. GE credit: SocSci, Div.

158. Contemporary Masculinities (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: one course specified for the Women’s Studies major. A multicultural study of contemporary trends in masculinity and the economic, social and political forces that have shaped them. Topics may include men’s movements, ethnic nationalist masculinities, and images of masculinity in popular culture. GE credit: ArtHum or SocSci, Div.

160. Representations of Women of Color in Cinema (4)
Lecture/discussion—3 hours; film viewing—3 hours. Prerequisite: course 20 or another film course. The representations of women of color in commercial and independent films from a feminist perspective. GE credit: ArtHum, Div.

162. Feminist Film Theory and Criticism (4)
Lecture/discussion—3 hours; film-viewing—3 hours. Prerequisite: one course from the Women’s Studies major and Humanities 10 or consent of instructor. Historical overview of and contemporary issues in feminist film theory, including representation, spectatorship, and cultural production. Film stars, women filmmakers, and the intersections of gender, race, sexuality, and class in films and their audiences. Offered in alternate years. GE credit: ArtHum, Div.

164. Topics in Gender and Cinematic Representation (4)
Lecture/discussion—3 hours; film-viewing—3 hours. Prerequisite: one course from the Women’s Studies major and Humanities 10 or consent of instructor. Examination of a specific topic within the broad rubric of gender and cinema. Possible topics include Latinas in Hollywood; gender, nation, cinema; and gender and film genre. Topics vary. May be repeated twice for credit when topic differs. Offered in alternate years. GE credit: ArtHum, Div.

170. Queer Studies (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: course 20, or 50, or 70, or consent of instructor. Study of queer sexualities, identities, theories, practices. Alternative sexualities as historical, social, and cultural constructions in intersections with race, gender, class, nationality. Interdisciplinary exploration of sexual liberation and the regulation of sexuality through history, theory and expressive cultural forms. GE credit: ArtHum, or SocSci, Div, Wrt. Not offered every year.

178A-F. Transnationalism and Writing by Women of Color (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: one course in Women’s Studies, or consent of instructor. Writings by women of color in a transnational framework, understood in their cultural, socio-economic, and historical contexts. The interrelation among gender, writing, nationalism, and transnationalism, with focus on women’s writing in specific geographic/national locations and their diasporas: (A) The Arab World; (B) Asia; (C) The Caribbean; (D) Africa; (E) Diasporic Women Writers in Europe; (F) Topics on Women Writers of Color. Not offered every year. GE credit: ArtHum, Div, Wrt.

179. Gender and Literature (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: one course in Women’s Studies, or consent of instructor. Role of literature, especially novels, in constructing, challenging, and transforming normative genders in society. Transhistorical and transnational focus on gender in its intersections with race, class, sexuality, and politics. Not offered every year. GE credit: ArtHum, Div, Wrt.

180. Women of Color Writing in the United States (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: course 20 or 50. Literature, especially novels, written by contemporary women of color in the United States, understood in their socio-economic, cultural and historical contexts. GE credit: ArtHum, Div.

182. Globalization, Gender and Identity (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: course 50. Feminist theories on affects of gender on self and identity and cross cultural study as it intersects gender with race, class, ethnicity. Impact of globalization processes on gender and identity. Offered in alternate years. GE credit: SocSci, Div, Wrt.

184. Gender in the Arab World (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: course 50. Examination of the history, culture, and social/political/economic dynamics of gender relations and gendering in the Arab world. GE credit: SocSci, Div, Wrt.

187. Gender and Social Policy (4)
Lecture/discussion—3 hours; term paper. Prerequisite: upper division standing and a course in Women’s Studies. The role of gender in the creation of social policies, especially with respect to issues brought into the policy arena by contemporary feminism. Offered in alternate years. GE credit: SocSci, Div.

189. Special Topics in Women and Gender Studies (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Prerequisite: one course from the Women’s Studies major. In-depth examination of a women’s studies topic related to the research interests of the instructor. May be repeated once for credit when topic differs. Not offered every year.

190. Senior Seminar (4)
Seminar—4 hours. Prerequisite: senior standing in Women’s Studies. Capstone course for senior Women’s Studies majors, which focuses on current issues on feminism as they impact theory, public policy, and practice.

191. Capstone Seminar (4)
Seminar—4 hours. Prerequisite: course 104 or Textiles and clothing 107, and course 194HA, course 199, or Textiles and Clothing 199, or consent of instructor. Revision, completion, and presentation of senior research or creative project. Creating a multimedia website for publishing research and creative projects. GE credit: Wrt.

192. Internship in Women’s Studies (1-12)
Internship—3-36 hours; written report. Prerequisite: completion of a minimum of 84 units and consent of instructor; enrollment dependent on availability of intern positions with priority to Women’s Studies majors. Supervised internship and study in positions/institutional settings dealing with gender-related problems or issues, as for example, a women’s center, affirmative action office, advertising agency, or social welfare agency. Final written report on internship experience. (P/NP grading only.)

193. Gender and Global Issues Internship Seminar (2)
Seminar—2 hours. Prerequisite: course 192 concurrently. The ethics of working in communities and community projects, emphasizing feminist understandings of activism, communities, globalization, multiculturalism, and the politics of institutions, agencies, and organizations. May be repeated for credit. (P/NP grading only.)

194HA-194HB. Senior Honors Project in Women’s Studies (4-6)
Independent study—12 hours. Prerequisite: senior standing, Women’s Studies major, and adviser’s approval. In consultation with an adviser, students complete a substantial research paper or significant creative project on a Women’s Studies topic. (Deferred grading only, pending completion of sequence.)

195. Thematic Seminar in Women’s Studies (4)
Seminar—4 hours. Prerequisite: two courses specified for women’s studies major. Group study of a topic, issue or area in feminist theory and research involving intensive reading and writing. May be repeated for credit when topic differs. Limited enrollment. GE credit: ArtHum or SocSci, Div.

197T. Tutoring in Women’s Studies (1-4) Tutoring—3-12 hours. Prerequisite: upper division standing and consent of director. Leading small, voluntary discussion groups affiliated with a Women’s Studies course. May be repeated for credit for a total of 8 units. (P/NP grading only.)

198. Directed Group Study (1-5)
Prerequisite: upper division standing; consent of instructor. (P/NP grading only.)

199. Special Study for Advanced Undergraduates (1-5)
Prerequisite: upper division standing; consent of instructor. (P/NP grading only.)

Graduate Courses
200A. Current Issues in Feminist Theory (4)
Seminar—4 hours. Current issues in feminist theory; techniques employed to build feminist theory in various fields.

200B. Problems in Feminist Research (4)
Seminar—4 hours. Prerequisite: course 200A with a grade of B+ or better. Application of feminist theoretical perspectives to the interdisciplinary investigation of a problem or question chosen by the instructor(s). May be repeated for credit when subject area differs.

201. Special Topics in Feminist Theory and Research (4)
Lecture/discussion—4 hours. Explores in depth a topic in feminist theory and research related to the research interests of the instructor. May be repeated for credit when topic differs. Limited enrollment.

250. Cultural Study of Masculinities (4)
Seminar—3 hours; term paper. Prerequisite: graduate standing or consent of instructor. Interdisciplinary approaches to understanding the social and cultural construction of masculinities; attention to the effects of biology, gender, race, class, sexual and national identities; criticism of oral, printed, visual, and mass mediated texts, and of social relations and structures. (Same course as American Studies 250.)

299. Special Study for Graduate Students (1-12)
(S/U grading only.)

Professional Course
396. Teaching Assistant Training Practicum (1-4)
Prerequisite: graduate standing. May be repeated for credit. (S/U grading only).