Logo UAB
2020/2021

Gender Studies

Code: 100207 ECTS Credits: 6
Degree Type Year Semester
2500245 English Studies OT 3 0
2500245 English Studies OT 4 0
The proposed teaching and assessment methodology that appear in the guide may be subject to changes as a result of the restrictions to face-to-face class attendance imposed by the health authorities.

Contact

Name:
Felicity Hand Cranham
Email:
Felicity.Hand@uab.cat

Use of Languages

Principal working language:
english (eng)
Some groups entirely in English:
Yes
Some groups entirely in Catalan:
No
Some groups entirely in Spanish:
No

Prerequisites

The course requires an initial level of English C2 -Proficiency- of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment. With C2 students can understand almost everything they read or hear without effort; they can summarise information from different oral and written sources, reconstruct facts and arguments and present them in a coherent way; they can express themselves spontaneously, with fluency and precision, distinguishing subtle nuances of meaning even in the most complex situations.

Students need to keep an open mind on gender-related issues and avoid expressing opinions in any way disrespectful of any gender identity and sexual orientation.

Objectives and Contextualisation

The subject Gender Studies in English forms part of the area Culture and Society, which also includes  Cultural Studies in English and Postcolonial Studies in English.  This subject aims to further the training of the student who has successfully completed the basic subjects in the English Studies degree, History and Culture of the British Isles (1st year) and History and Culture of the United States (2nd year).  The student will widen his or her knowledge of gender issues in the English speaking countries.   This area complements the basic notions of contemporary societies and cultures as regards aspects such as identity, sexuality, ethnicity and environmental concerns in the Indian subcontinent, Australia and New Zealand, Africa, the Caribbean,  Canada, Ireland and the United Kingdom itself.  The emphasis is on the enriching cultural transformations that have taken place through migration processes and cultural manifestations in literature, popular fictions, cinema, television and other media.  This subject can be taken as part of the mention "Literature and Culture in English".

 

On completion of the subject and in relation to gender and its fictional representation in anglophone texts, the student will be able to:

  • Participate at a C1 level in English in virtual and/ or face-to-face debates
  • Communicate in English at a C1 level on gender related issues
  • Write argumentative texts expressing an opinion, generating academic criticism and raising social awareness

Competences

    English Studies
  • Critically assessing the scientific, literary and cultural production in the English language.
  • Demonstrate a comprehension of the relationship between factors, processes and phenomena of linguistics, literature, history and culture, and explaining it.
  • Develop critical thinking and reasoning and knowing how to communicate effectively both in your mother tongue and in other languages.
  • Distinguish and contrast the various theoretical and methodological models applied to the study of the English language, its literature and its culture.
  • Effectively working individually or in teams in multicultural and interdisciplinary environments in English and other languages, applying values of a culture of peace, and the characteristic democratic values of a degree in a foreign language that trains the student for intercultural communication.
  • Generate innovative and competitive proposals in research and professional activities.
  • Identify the main literary, cultural and historical currents in the English language.
  • Produce clear and well structured and detailed texts in English about complex topics, displaying a correct use of the organisation, connection and cohesion of the text.
  • Respect the diversity and plurality of ideas, people and situations.
  • Rewrite and organize information and arguments coming from several sources in English and presenting them in a coherent and summarised way.
  • Students can apply the knowledge to their own work or vocation in a professional manner and have the powers generally demonstrated by preparing and defending arguments and solving problems within their area of study.
  • Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  • Students must develop the necessary learning skills in order to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
  • Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
  • Utilising new technologies in order to capture and organise information in English and other languages, and applying it to the personal continued training and to the problem-solving in the professional or research activity.
  • Working in an autonomous and responsible way in a professional or research environment in English or other languages, in order to accomplish the previously set objectives.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Analysing and interpreting in an advanced level the academic texts about the English-speaking history, culture and contemporary society.
  2. Apply the acquired knowledge in order to improve the general knowledge of linguistic and cultural diversity.
  3. Apply the acquired knowledge to the generation of innovative and competitive research on a basic level.
  4. Apply the knowledge and competences acquired in the professional and academic activities related to literature, history and culture.
  5. Applying appropriate secondary academic sources to text comments and argumentative essays in relation to the English-speaking history, culture and contemporary society.
  6. Applying the acquired knowledge about intercultural communication to the work in multicultural and interdisciplinary environments in English.
  7. Applying the acquired methodologies of work planning to work in an environment in the English language.
  8. Applying the acquired scientific and work planning methodologies to the research in English.
  9. Applying the information in English that is available on the Internet, in databases, etc. to the work and/or research environments.
  10. Carrying out oral presentations using secondary academic sources in relation to the English-speaking history, culture and contemporary society.
  11. Communicating in the studied language in oral and written form, properly using vocabulary and grammar.
  12. Comparing in an advanced level different topics and texts related to the English-speaking history, culture and contemporary society.
  13. Comparing in an advanced level the methods of study of the English-speaking history, culture and contemporary society, specially the cultural studies.
  14. Demonstrate a master of the specific methods of individual academic work that prepare the student for a postgraduate specialised education in the same or a different field of study.
  15. Demonstrate a sound knowledge about advanced topics related to the study of literature and culture.
  16. Describing in detail and in an academic way the nature and main traits of the English-speaking history, culture and contemporary society.
  17. Developing a labour and research bond in multicultural and interdisciplinary environments in English that contribute to international collaboration.
  18. Distinguishing the main ideas from the secondary ones and summarising the contents of primary and secondary texts about History.
  19. Drawing up academic essays of medium length, using secondary academic sources in relation to the English-speaking history, culture and contemporary society.
  20. Effectively communicating and applying the argumentative and textual processes to formal and scientific texts.
  21. Explaining and reflecting on topics and texts of the English-speaking history, culture and contemporary society.
  22. Generate strategies to facilitate the increase and improvement of mutual respect in multicultural environments.
  23. Localising secondary academic sources related to History in the library or on the Internet.
  24. Locating and organising relevant information in English that is available on the Internet, in databases, etc.
  25. Produce new professional initiatives.
  26. Students must be capable of comprehending advanced academic or professional texts in their own language or the another acquired in the degree.
  27. Students must be capable of precisely arguing ideas and opinions in their own language or another acquired in the degree.
  28. Summarising the content of primary and secondary sources about History.

Content

The subject Gender Studies in English will explore  the representation of gender identities in a selection of texts from the English speaking world.  The intersectionality between gender, sexuality, ethnicity and the environment will be the main focus of the course but other parameters such as age, disability, class, culture and geographical habitat will also  be taken into account.  

Students will be introduced to a selection of theoretical texts on gender theory from different parts of the English speaking world in order to contrast Western gender  theories with those from India and Africa. 

Three novels plus a selection of short stories and poems will be studied in depth, illustrating feminine, masculine and  LGBT+ issues from different cultures.

  • South Africa:  Mark Behr, Kings of the Water, London: Abacus, 2009.
  • Botswana: Unity Dow, The Screaming of the Innocent, Melbourne: Spinifex Press, 2002.
  • India:  Anita Nair, A Cut-Like Wound, London: Bitter Lemon Press, 2012.
  • The short stories and poems will be posted on moodle

Methodology

Classes are based on a mixture of lectures and seminars. All students are expected to participate in class and/ or virtal forum discussions and to have read the compulsory texts beforehand.

 

Activities

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Lectures 25 1 6, 27, 12, 26, 14, 16, 17
Reading and debating texts in the virtual campus 30 1.2 1, 7, 6, 9, 27, 13, 12, 26, 15, 16, 17, 10, 21, 20, 11, 22, 23, 24
Type: Supervised      
Assessment (exam) 5 0.2 1, 7, 8, 4, 27, 13, 12, 15, 14, 16, 21, 20, 11, 19, 28
Writing a paper 17 0.68 1, 7, 8, 6, 3, 2, 4, 9, 5, 27, 13, 12, 26, 15, 14, 16, 17, 18, 10, 21, 20, 11, 25, 23, 24, 19, 28
Type: Autonomous      
Reading texts and for the exam 45 1.8 1, 7, 8, 9, 13, 12, 26, 14, 18, 23, 24, 28

Assessment

ASSESSMENT

The final mark for this subject is based on:

1. An mid-term exam on theoretical issues and the shorter texts  = 35%

2. A paper on any one of the three novels (approximately 2,500 words plus at least  5 valid secondary source) = 45%

3. Participation in class and the virtual campus = 20%

 

 

Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Class or virtual campus participation 20% 6 0.24 1, 7, 6, 9, 27, 13, 12, 26, 15, 16, 17, 21, 20, 11, 22, 24
Exam 35% 2 0.08 1, 7, 8, 4, 27, 13, 12, 15, 14, 16, 10, 21, 20, 11, 23, 19, 28
Written paper 45% 20 0.8 1, 7, 8, 6, 3, 2, 4, 9, 5, 27, 13, 12, 26, 15, 14, 16, 17, 18, 21, 20, 11, 25, 24, 19, 28

Bibliography

Western Gender Theories 

 

Adams, Rachel and David Savran (eds.). The Masculinity Studies Reader. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishers, 2002.

Brownmiller, Susan. Against our Will: Men, Women, and Rape (1975). New York: Bantam, 1990.

Buckingham, Susan, Gender and Environment, Routledge, 2020. 2nd edition.

Butler, Judith. Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity. New York: Routledge, 1990.

Butler, Judith. Undoing Gender. New York: Routledge, 2004.

Corber, Robert J. and Stephen M. Valocchi (eds.). Queer Studies: An Interdisciplinary Reader. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishers, 2003.

Dworkin, Andrea. Pornography: Men Possessing Women (1981). London: Women’s Press, 1999.

Freedman, Estelle B. (ed.). The Essential Feminist Reader. New York: Modern Library, 2007.

Gaard, Greta,  Simon C. Estok & Serpil Oppermann (eds), International Perspectives in Feminist Ecocriticism, Routledge, 2013.

Gestner, David A. (ed.). Routledge International Encyclopedia of Queer Culture. London: Routledge, 2006.

Haraway, Donna J. Simians, Cyborgs, and Women: The Reinvention of Nature. New York: Routledge, 1991.

Hultman, Martin & Paul M. Pulé,  Ecological Masculinities. Theoretical Foundations and Practical Guidance, Routledge, 2018.

Hunter, Margaret L. Race, Gender, and the Politics of Skin Tone. New York: Routledge, 2007.

Jolly, Margaretta. “Feminist Heterosexuality”. Critical Quarterly, 47.3, 2005: 17-29.

Kimmel, Michael S, Jeff Hearn, and R.W. Connell (eds.). Handbook of Studies on Men & Masculinities. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2005.

Martín Alegre, Sara (ed.), Gender and Feminism: The Students' View. (February 2015), https://ddd.uab.cat/record/129180 E-book. 31 undergrad students offer their own views on gender and feminism.

Martín Alegre, Sara, “Shades of Evil: The Construction of White Patriarchal Villainy in the Star Wars Saga”. Josep M. Armengol (ed.). Men in Color: Racialised Masculinities in US Literature and Cinema. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2011. 143-167. ISBN: 9781443826303. http://www.c-s-p.org/flyers/Men-in-Color--Racialized-Masculinities-in-U-...

Martín Alegre. Sara, "Failing to mainstream the gay man before Brokeback Mountain (2005): Richard Condon's Gods and Monsters (1998) and the problem of ageism", conference presentation (XXXIX AEDEAN conference, Bilbao 11-13 November 2015), http://ddd.uab.cat/record/143274

Martín Alegre. Sara, “Working for a New Utopia in Gender Studies: The ‘Problem’ of Feminism.” New Alleways to Significance: Interdisciplinary Approaches to English Studies, Alejandra Moreno Álvarez and Irene Pérez Fernández (eds.). Palma de Mallorca: Universitat de les Illes Balears, 2014. 23-35. http://edicions.uib.cat/

Martín Alegre. Sara, "The Power of Monstrous Women: Fay Weldon's The Life and Loves of a She-Devil, Angela Carter's Nights at the Circus, and Jeanette Winterson's Sexing the Cherry.” Journal of Gender Studies. Vol 8, No 2. 1999. 193-210. ISSN 0958-9236. http://ddd.uab.cat/record/116271 

Nieto Piñeroba, José Antonio. Transexualidad, Intersexualidad y Dualidad de Género. Barcelona:Edicions Bellaterra, 2008.

Richardson, Diane & Victoria Robinson (eds), Introducing Gender and Women’s Studies, Palgrave Macmillan, 2008. 3rd Edition.

Sedgwick, Eve Kosofsky. Epistemology of the Closet. New York: Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1991.

Stevens, Hugh (ed). The Cambridge Companion to Gay and Lesbian Writing. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010. 

Whitehead, Stephen M. (ed.). The Masculinities Reader. Cambridge: Polity Press, 2008.

 

Non-Western Gender Theories  

 

Amadiume, Ifi. Male Daughters, Female Husbands: Gender and Sex in an African Society. London & New Jersey: Zed Books, 1995.

Andersen, Margaret L. and Patricia Hill Collins (eds.). Race, Class, and Gender: An Anthology. Belmont, CA : Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, 2004.

Hand, Felicity, “Coping with Khandaanity in Diaspora Spaces: South Asian Women in East Africa”, Revista Canaria de Estudios Ingleses, 70, May 2015, pp 13-40.

Hand, Felicity, “Searching For New Scripts: Gender Roles in Memory of Departure”, Critique: Studies in Contemporary Fiction, Vol 56, Nº 2, 2015, pp 223-240. https://doi.org/10.1080/00111619.2014.88499

Hand, Felicity, “Lindsey Collen: the Courage To Be Parochial”, Wasafiri.  Special Issue on Indian Ocean Writing. 26 (2) Spring 2011, pp 41-45.

Hand, Felicity, “Impossible Burdens: East African Asian Women’s Memoirs”,   Research in African Literatures, Vol. 42, Nº 3, pp 100 – 116, Fall 2011.  https://doi.org/10.1353/ral.2011.0065

hooks, bell. Yearning: Race, Gender, and Cultural Politics. Boston, MA: South End Press, 1990.

Landry, Donna and Gerald Maclean (eds.). The Spivak Reader. New York: Routledge, 1996.

Mies, Maria, Shiva Vandana & Salleh, Ariel,  Ecofeminism,  Rawat Publications; 2010.

Nnaemeka, Obioma,  “Nego-Feminism: Theorizing, Practicing, and Pruning Africa’s Way.” Signs 29 (2):, 2004: 357–85

Ogundipe-Leslie, Molara. Recreating Ourselves: African Women & Critical Transformations. Trenton, NJ: Africa World Press, 1994.

Ramos, Regiane C.O.,  “The Voice of an Indian Trans Woman: A Hijra Autobiography”, Indialogs, Vol 5 2018:  71-88. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/indialogs.110

Vanita, Ruth (ed), Queering India. Same-Sex Love and Eroticism in Indian Culture and Society, Routledge, 2002.