Graduate
Program
Undergraduate Program
Mothers Memorial Scholarship Fund
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
MEN'S
STUDIES PROGRAM
WOMS
520 FEMINIST THEORY
Fall
2002
TH
6:00-8:40
Professor
Diana Swanson
Office: 230 Reavis, 753-6611
Email:
dswanson@niu.edu
Office
hours: W TH 2:00-3:30 and by appointment
COURSE
DESCRIPTION:
Feminist
theories are methods of creating and organizing knowledge that assume, as
points of departure, the sociocultural construction of gender and the
institutionalization of unequal power relations in society. Women's experiences and perspectives have been
frequently excluded from traditional systems of knowledge, which tend to
devalue them or subsume them under "normative" male experience. By developing alternative conceptual
frameworks for analyzing gender relations and social relations in general--particularly
the circumstances of women's lives--feminist theory attempts to illuminate
women's social position(s) and construct strategies for social, political, and
personal change. Feminist theories and
their critical application offer a variety of bases from which to question and
enlarge our epistemologies and values, our knowledge and our culture. Feminist theories have had a significant
impact on research in a wide range of scholarly fields, an impact that some
scholars argue to be so fundamental as to constitute a paradigm shift. In this course, we will examine a range of
feminist theories and pay particular attention to the interdisciplinarity of
feminist theories and research.
COURSE
GOALS:
1. To develop understanding of fundamental
sources, issues, concepts, and texts in feminist theories.
2. To compare the philosophical
assumptions and epistemological, critical, and/or political goals of various
feminist theories and to assess their contributions to the understanding of
women and gender in culture and society.
3. To assess the critical and
methodological implications of feminist theory for scholarly research.
4. To cultivate skills of applying
principles of feminist theory to the analysis of various discourses of
knowledge and social practices.
TEXTS:
Collins, Patricia Hill. Black Feminist Thought. 2nd
ed. NY: Routledge, 2000.
Hermann, Anne
C. and Abigail J. Stewart. Theorizing
Feminism: Parallel Trends in the Humanities and the Social Sciences. 2nd. ed. Boulder, CO: Westview, 2001.
Lerner, Gerda. The Creation of Feminist Consciousness. Oxford:
Oxford UP, 1994.
Tong, Rosemarie Putnam. Feminist Thought. 2nd ed. Boulder: Westview, 1998.
Woolf, Virginia. Three Guineas. 1938.
NY: Harbrace, 1963.
Articles on reserve at Founders’ Library.
COURSE
REQUIREMENTS:
1. PARTICIPATION (15%): The success of a seminar-style course such
as this one depends on informed, engaged participation by all students
in class discussion. So come to class
having done the reading and prepared to ask questions and to contribute your
ideas and analysis. 1/2 of the
participation grade will be based on the frequency of your presence in class
and the level and quality of your participation in discussion. The other 1/2 will be based on reading
notes that you write in preparation for each class session. Write about a page on each article, two
pages on a book, in which you: 1) paraphrase the thesis of the article (for a
book, of two of the chapters or of two major themes/concerns) in a few complete
sentences; 2) identify and explain at least three supporting arguments for the
thesis (you can do these in bullet point form); and 3) place the work in the
context of the field of feminist theory as a whole by making connections to
other course materials and class discussion.
Do not write these on Tong chapters.
If there are more than three individual readings for a class session,
pick three of them for which to hand in notes.
Due: at the end of each class
session.
I
will excuse absences due to medical reasons, death in the family, or some other
unavoidable circumstance. Written
verification is required.
Evaluation
of participation will be based on the following guidelines:
A= Regular active participation
demonstrating superior understanding and analysis of assigned material;
willingness to engage theories, perspectives, and class members.
B= Frequent discussion participation that
demonstrates accurate and thoughtful familiarity with the material.
C= Contributions are infrequent and/or
demonstrate little familiarity with the material; or contributions are not
relevant to material being discussed.
D= In attendance but does not participate in
discussion.
Evaluation
of reading notes will be based on the following guidelines:
A= Demonstrates superior familiarity with
the material as well as sophisticated analytical and critical thinking; points
are clearly articulated and easy to follow.
B= Demonstrates familiarity with the
material as well as analytical and critical thinking; points are clearly
articulated and easy to follow.
C= Demonstrates basic familiarity with the
material; points are raised but not developed or supported; or provides a solid
summary of material but little analysis or reflection
D= Demonstrates only passing familiarity
with material; analysis is absent or simplistic; points are poorly articulated;
or provides only crude summary of material.
F= Turns in assignment, but demonstrates no
significant familiarity with material or analysis of material.
2.
TWO CRITICAL RESPONSE PAPERS of no less than 4 and no more than 5 pages
(30%):
These
papers should thoughtfully analyze and critique the thesis and major arguments
of one of the assigned readings, excluding Tong. These papers should NOT be summaries of the article or book. You should, however, briefly state the
thesis and the author's major argument(s) in support of the thesis before
launching into the main work of the paper, namely a discussion of the implications
of the thesis and arguments, and the strengths and weaknesses of the
author's ideas. Your main questions as
you approach this assignment should be:
What does this work contribute to feminist thought? Where does it fit in the broader picture of
feminist theory? How well does it do
the job it sets out to do? First paper
due by Oct. 3 at the latest. Second
paper due by Nov. 7 at the latest.
3.
FINAL PAPER
(40%): For this project, you will
identify an issue or question in either a) feminist social/political
organizing, b) feminist research, or c) feminist theory that particularly
interests you. Here are some examples
(these are just for illustration; there are many more possibilities!). Issues in feminist social/political
organizing: date rape, pornography, job
discrimination, or eating disorders.
Questions for feminist research:
what is the meaning of cross-dressing in American literature of the 19th
century? why did it take so long for
women to get the right to vote? Issues
in feminist theory : can we use the term "woman" as a concept or a
group identity given the challenges of both post-modernist theorists and
"marginalized" women (of color, lesbians, working-class) to it as a
unified concept? can evolutionary theory
help explain patriarchy? Then you will
do research to find out what feminist theory or theories you think can best
help solve or at least elucidate this problem.
The final product will be a paper in which you set out the parameters of
the problem and explain the theory/ies you have chosen and why you think
it/they provide(s) the best conceptual guidelines for how to solve the
problem. Note that the emphasis in this
paper is not on, for example, comprehensive research of the history of the
72-year women’s suffrage movement or the sociological data on rape, but on how
feminist theory can help us understand the phenomenon/answer the question/solve
the problem. The paper should be no
less than 15 and no more than 17 pages.
You can also present your ideas in a combination of writing and other
media if you want. You may do this
project individually or collaboratively in groups of 2 or 3. Due: Dec. 5 .
Note: All students are required to make an
appointment to consult with Dr. Swanson on their final papers at least
once. At least two consultations are
recommended.
4. FINAL EXAM (15%):
Short answer and essay exam, most probably a take-home exam due Dec. 12.
GRADING
SCALE:
A=100-90%, B= 89-80%, C= 79-70%, etc.
Note: All notes,
papers and exams must be double-spaced in 12 pitch in Times New Roman font with
one-inch margins on top, bottom, and sides.
Please staple your papers together; do not use paper clips or binders.
Note: Late papers and exams will not be accepted
except under extraordinary circumstances and after consultation with the
instructor.
Note: All
assignments must be completed in order to receive a passing grade in the
course.
SCHEDULE:
Note: # indicates
the reading is optional; all other readings are required.
Disclaimer: as for any class, the schedule is of
necessity somewhat tentative. I may
adjust the reading and discussion schedule as the semester progresses.
Note: TF=Theorizing
Feminism
Aug. 29 Introductions.
What is theory? What is feminist theory?
Sept. 5 Feminism's Historical Legacy
Lerner, The Creation of Feminist
Consciousness
Read chapters 1, 2, 7-12.
Sept. 12 A Foremother in Theory
Woolf, Three Guineas
Theodore Dalrymple, “The Rage of Virginia
Woolf,” found at <http://www.city‑journal.org/html/12_3_oh_to_be.html>
Sept. 19 Defining Feminism Today
TF: Rosalind Delmar, “What Is Feminism?,”
“Combahee River Collective Statement,” Cherríe Moraga, “From a Long Line of
Vendidas: Chicanas and Feminism,” and Susan Bickford, “Anti-Anti-Identity
Politics”
Sept. 26 Interdisciplinary Influences
TF: Rachel T. Hare-Mustin and Jeanne
Marecek, “Gender and the Meaning of Difference: Postmodernism and Psychology,”
and Leslie W. Rabine, “Romance in the Age of Electronics”
(See Tong Ch. 4 for a discussion of
psychoanalytic feminism and such thinkers as Nancy Chodorow.)
Oct. 3 Liberal and Radical Feminisms
>>First
Critical Response Paper Due by today at the latest<<
Tong, Introduction and Ch. 1, Seneca
Falls Declaration (reserve), and NOW Bill of Rights (reserve)
Tong, Ch. 2 and Audre Lorde, “Uses of the
Erotic, the Erotic as Power” from Sister Outsider (reserve), and #Rich,
Adrienne, “Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence” in On Lies,
Secrets, and Silence (reserve)
Oct. 10 Some Theorizing
TF: Sara
Ruddick, “Notes Toward a Feminist Peace Politics,” Lisa Duggan, “Making It
Perfectly Queer,” and Catherine A. MacKinnon, “Sex Equality”
Oct. 17 Marxist, Socialist, and Postmodern
Feminisms
Tong, Ch. 3 and Ch. 6
TF: Joan W. Scott, “Deconstructing
Equality vs. Difference”
Oct. 24 Multicultural and Global Feminisms
Tong, Ch. 7 and Beijing Declaration and
Platform for Action (reserve)
TF: Patricia J. Williams, “On Being the
Object of Property,” and Amy Kaminsky, “Gender, Race, Raza”
Oct. 31 Some More Theorizing
TF: Rey Chow, “Violence in the Other
Country: China as Crisis, Spectacle, and Woman,” Leslie Salzinger, “From High
Heels to Swathed Bodies: Gendered Meanings Under Production in Mexico’s
Export-Processing Industry,” and Arlene Elowe MacLeod, “Hegemonic Relations and
Gender Resistance: The New Veiling as Accommodating Protest in Cairo”
Nov. 7 Ecofeminisms
>>Second
Critical Response Paper Due by today at the latest<<
Tong, Ch. 8
Reserve:
Karen J. Warren, “The Power and Promise of Ecological Feminism,” Marti
Kheel, “From Heroic to Holistic Ethics: The Ecofeminist Challenge,” Gretchen
Legler, excerpt from “Gooseberry Marsh, Part Two” from All the Powerful
Invisible Things, #Winona LaDuke,
from All Our Relations
Nov. 14 African American Feminist Theory
Collins, Black Feminist Thought We
will all read chapters 1, 2, 10, 11, 12.
We will divide up the others.
Nov. 21 Women, Citizenship, and Activism
TF: Rosalind Pollack Petchesky, “Fetal
Images: The Power of Visual Culture in the Politics of Reproduction,” and
Holloway Sparks, “Dissident Citizenship: Democratic Theory, Political Courage,
and Activist Women”
Nov. 28 Happy Thanksgiving!
Dec. 5 Using Feminist Theories
>>Final
Papers Due Today<<
Presentations of final projects
Dec.
12 Conclusions
>>Final
Exam Due<<