FEMST 20: Introduction to Gender and Power

Fall Quarter 2025

Course Description:

This course introduces students to the foundational concepts in the field of Feminist Studies. Throughout this course students will not only engage with key texts but learn about the context and history of feminism, the framework used by theorists and activists alike, and the structural networks which make up gendered, racial, sexed, and classed hierarchies. This course asks students to engage with their own experiences of gender and power and to think critically of feminist methods for knowing and being.

Learning Objectives:

· Students will define and analyze structural inequities through an introduction to threshold concepts in Feminist studies throughout all readings for the course. These include: social construction of gender; privilege and oppression; intersectionality; queer theory, transgender studies and feminist praxis.

· Students will identify similarities and differences in marginalized people’s lives and explain how various social factors (gender, race, ethnicity, class, age, nationality, sexuality, religion, body size, and disability) shape individual identity, experience, social position, and power relations.

· Students will be asked to evaluate how feminist research and theory questions “objectivity” and “normativity” throughout discussions.

· Students will practice applying a feminist lens to connect personal, political, and social concepts in weekly reflections.

· Students will design a creative project that analyzes a feminist/queer/transgender organization, NGO, social policy agency or artists’ collective in order to apply feminist philosophy, theory, oraxis and history toward understanding pressing social problems of our times. Students will analyze the problem that the organization is attempting to tackle, how are they approaching questions of empowerment, agency, ending isolation, building power by analyzing their organizational website, social media, annual reports, YouTube videos etc.

(Detailed prompt will be provided by the 6^th week of the quarter

Required Texts:

· Launius, Christie and Holly Hassel. Threshold Concepts in Women’s and Gender Studies, 2nd Edition. New York: Routledge, 2018. Green Cover (~$40, new)
Note: You may use the e-textbook or paperback version; the book can also be rented on Amazon

· Bushra Rehman. Roses in the Mouth of a Lion

· Additional assigned readings are posted on this course’s CANVAS page.

Grading

Autobiographical Reflection

5X4=20

Lecture Section: 15 points

Book Review = 25 points

Final Project 40points

Grade Breakdown

Assignments

Weekly Reading

· Each week you will be required to read 3-4 texts which work together to provide an overview of the weekly topic. Please come to class having read most of the weekly readings. I expect that on Tuesdays you would have covered 50% of the readings assigned for the week, and by Thursdays the rest 50%. My lectures will cover the first 50% on Tuesdays (usually the first 2 readings), and the rest on Thursdays. During your discussion sections your TA will help you with the readings for the entire week. Each TA will administer various brief exercises during the lecture section to ensure you are engaging with the materials.

This will constitute brief reflections on the readings, or discussions or zine making (see description in the next item).

Lecture Section: 15 points

Your TA’s will administer various modalities to understand (1) your understanding of and engagement with the assigned readings, and (2) start making connections between these materials and the world.

Your TA will provide details in their TA sections.

Autobiographical Reflection Writing Exercises (20 points)

· Four Autobiographical free writing exercises. Students will be required to write experiences from their own lives which connect to the readings during specific weeks. You will be alerted on the Tuesday of the week if you are expected to write a reflection related to any of the readings for that week. All reflections will be due within a week of the reading. Thus, much like a pop up quiz, the reflection writing exercise will pop up and you will have one week to submit the writings. You will submit these on CANVAS (starting from second or third week of the quarter). I will provide feedback by middle of the following week. (5X4=20).

Book Review (25 points)

We are reading a witty coming of age memoir by Bushra Rehman. You are expected to produce a 2-page review of the novel. You are expected to describe the plot, analyze the representation of LGBTQ characters. We will discuss this more by end of October. Book Review is due by midnight Sunday, November 16th.

Final Project (40 points)

A report on an organization (NGO, local collective, cultural or arts organizations) 4pages

The organization needs to address issues related to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer politics, and communities. This project is due on December 09 via CANVAS.

Course Policies:

This course will be held synchronously online till October 05^th. We will be meeting during scheduled lecture hours online, as well in-person for the discussion sections. There is a weekly schedule but no scheduled office hour for the first week.

Please make sure to give me and your TA team a full 48hrs to respond. Please be sure to include your name and proper language when emailing. It is not appropriate for your email to read like a text. A proper email should have a greeting, your question or concern, information with which to identify you, and a closing. Finally, we will not respond to emails that are answerable by consulting your syllabus or the CANVAS page. Otherwise, your teaching team is happy to clarify any questions or discuss any material with you. I am happy to read drafts of your book review and final projects. Questions about all assignments will be entertained toward the end of class periods, or during office hours.

REMEMBER: when you email me or your TA, please ensure to Cc each of us. This way we can respond to your queries as a team.

CANVAS: All course materials, lectures, assignments, instructions, and resources will be available on the class website. It is crucial that you familiarize yourself with our class page and look there for anything you might need for the course first.

Mutual Respect: Some of the topics and themes in this course might be challenging and as such I expect that we all maintain a virtual space of respect. We are all coming from different experiences and I expect everyone to be able to participate openly without judgement. There are no stupid questions. However, there is inappropriate language. This will not be accepted and includes, slurs, hate speech, and/or problematic (racist, sexist, homo/transphobic, ableist, ect.) posts. Those who violate this policy will be given a warning email by me, if it continues, they will be dropped from the course. Additionally remember, the online medium can be difficult to ascertain tone and emphasis. Be generous and clear when engaging with classmates.

Grades: You can expect to receive grades within a week of the assignment due date for the Reflection Exercises. If you would like to discuss a grade you must wait 48 hours before contacting myself and/or your TA about your grade. This is a 48hrs cool off period to ensure we maintain our environment of mutual respect. Your TA’s take great care in grading and are happy to talk to you about your work as long as you respect their labor and efforts. We do not do any grade bumping in this class and will not respond to emails which request bumping grades up. If you would like to discuss your grade it is imperative that you contact your TA prior to the last week of class.

Late Assignments: It is important that you try to keep up with all course work. If you need an extension, you must contact your TA at least 24 hours prior to the due date. Unless emergent, extensions will not be granted day of. Please contact your TA ASAP if something comes up.