HONOR 3161 - American People

(Topics will vary from year to year) In this class we will examine a survey of literature by American women and the ways in which this literature critiques the dominant patriarchal culture and imagines alternative social relations between men and women. Through these readings, you will gain a more thorough understanding of feminist issues and positions, and have opportunities to re-evaluate your own beliefs about gender. The authors we'll study possess diverse worldviews and tell very different stories about the challenges and rewards of being an American woman. You are encouraged to read the literature critically and to examine the issue of gender as it relates to other issues of identity including race, class, sexuality and spirituality. Some of the topics we will explore through the readings include the artist and her society, various expressions of female sexuality, the relationship between motherhood and selfhood, challenges specific to women of color, and the forms of resistance available to non-dominant groups.