Women’s Studies Course Offerings
Summer 2009
Fall 2009

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Summer 2009

ENG/WMST 368: Women’s Literature
Women’s Narratives of Development
Dr. Mary Thompson
May 18 – June 12. On-line.
ENG 368: This course explores writing by women through a specific focus on the genre of the Bildungsroman or coming of age narrative. Through comparison of women’s narratives of development with the traditional Bildungsroman, we will consider how critics have sought to identify the characteristics of “women’s writing,” its suppression, and its relationship to the unique experiences of women within patriarchal societies. We will also examine its role in current conversations about the politics of canon formation. Additionally, we will consider the construction of women’s identities across issues of race/ethnicity, immigration, social class, sexuality, and place. During previous semesters, texts have included: Bronte, Jane Eyre. 1847; Chopin, The Awakening and Selected Short Stories; Larsen, Quicksand (and Passing). 1928; Plath, The Bell Jar. 1963; Kingston, The Woman Warrior. 1975; Shange, For Colored Girls Who’ve Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf. 1975;  Allison, Bastard Out of Carolina. 1992; Kincaid, The Autobiography of my Mother. 1996; Satrapi. Persepolis Volumes I & II. 2003.

HIST 321: European Women’s History
Dr. Jessica Davidson
May 18 – June 12. On-line.
A survey of European women’s history from the Enlightenment to the Modern Era. Attention will focus on women in England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain as well as the former Soviet Union. The course traces the birth of modern feminism in the European context and explores gender expectations, paying particular attention to women’s entrance into the public, political world.

SCOM/WMST 348: Gender and Communication
Dr. Melissa Aleman
May 18 – June 12. On-line.
This will be a completely asynchronous course.
Studies of theories and research regarding the influence of gender in various human communication contexts, both public and private.  Emphasis on the critical analysis of existing theory and empirical research and the potential competent use of communication for social change.

SOCI 337: Sociology of Gender
Dr. Bethany Bryson
June 15 - July 10. On-line.
Examination of theories of sex role development, the roles of men and women in society and gender as a social construction.

WMST 200: Introduction to Women’s Studies
Alysia Davis
June 15 - July 24. On-line.
Cross disciplinary introduction to theories and scholarship in Women's Studies.  Examines the social construction of gender, how gender affects access to opportunity, and the experiences and contributions of women.  Provides a foundation for subsequent work in the Women's Studies minor.

WMST 490: Independent Studies Field Studies in Kenya
Dr. Jennifer Coffman
Contact professor for exact dates.
The directed field study allows each student to focus on a topic of interest throughout the program.  This provides the opportunity to practice ethnographic research skills in each of our three major sites. Visit http://www.jmu.edu/international/abroad/jmu_kenya/index.shtml for further information.

WMST 495: Special Topics in Women’s Studies
Summer in Ghana
Dr. David Owusu-Ansah
Contact professor for exact dates.
WMST 495 is designed to give students in women’s studies an opportunity to complete independent study under faculty supervision or to attend lectures presented on women’s issues.  The approved list of summer activities in Ghana include lectures on

• Women and petty trading in developing nations
• Women and agriculture in Ghana
• Women and oral performances (oral literature)
• Women in Public Life
• Women and the Law in Ghana
• Educating the public about women and development
• Women and HIV/AIDS
• The Atlantic Slave Trade and the condition of women slaves

All students participating in the Ghana program are provided with a reading package.   All lecture presentations are given by University of Ghana faculty and Ghana Women NGO personnel.  Students keep journals, and class notes and other program assignments are collected and evaluated each week.
http://www.jmu.edu/international/abroad/jmu_ghana/index.shtml

Fall 2009

ECON 306: Economics of Women and Families
Dr. Andy Kohen
MW 3:35-4:50
Chandler 131
Examines facts and theories pertaining to the various economic roles of women in America. The economics of marriage, divorce and childbearing are examined as are empirical and theoretical explanations of occupational and wage differentials between the sexes. Prerequisite: ECON 201.

ENG 327 :  The Gothic: Sexuality and Terror in 18th and 19th-Century British Fiction
Dr. Katey Castellano
M/W 2:30-3:45
Keezell G003
This course will examine how the Gothic novel, with its monsters, ghosts, and supernatural phenomena, constructs a counternarrative to Enlightenment rationality and socio-economic progress.  Gothic writers were called “terrorists,” and their works often imagine that a racialized or sexualized “other” threatens the moral and physical boundaries of the proper British citizen.  At the same time, women writers adopt the Gothic mode: Mary Wollstonecraft, Jane Austen, and Mary Shelley’s “female gothic” texts identify unspeakable crimes and sexual desires.  These texts question, moreover, the knowledge that is situated within masculine rationality and science.  Finally, we will read later nineteenth-century texts from male writers.  These texts insist that the terrifying “other” already exists within national and even bodily boundaries, a theme that allows for confessions of fin-de-siècle decadence, including opium addiction and “deviant” sexual practices. Our readings of these primary texts will be supplemented by feminist and queer theoretical readings of the novels.

ENG/WMST 368: Women’s Fiction
Dr. Mary Thompson
TT 3:30-4:45
Keezell 308
(See description above.)

ENG/WMST 466: Studies in Women’s Literature
Dr. Mary Thompson
TT 2-3:15
Keezell 308
This course examines the theme of motherhood in the fiction of Toni Morrison.  We will explore motherhood as a site of intersecting discourses of race/ethnicity and gender in the U.S., racism’s impact on the study and understanding of Black families, present and absent mothers, gender roles in conflict across generations, and the importance of the matrilinear. Texts will include Morrison’s major novels, short fiction, and non-fiction as well as secondary feminist cultural studies scholarship.  Prerequisite: ENG 367 or ENG 368.

HIST 327: Technology in America
Dr. Kevin Borg
MWF 12:20-1:10
Jackson 102
A historical survey of the complex and changing relationship between technology and American society from Native American canoes to the Internet. Attention is given to technology's role in relations of power, in the home, on the farm, in the workplace and on the battlefield.

JUST/WMST 341: Gender and Justice
Dr. Sue Spivey
T 3:30-6
Maury G2
This course is an interdisciplinary examination of the causes, structure and consequences of gender oppression. Consistent with the social justice track of the Justice Studies major, notions of fairness, justice and equality with respect to gendered social, political and economic relations will be examined.

PSYCH 310: The Psychology of Women
Dr. Arnold Kahn
TTh 2-3:15
Miller 2106
An examination of research and theory regarding the abilities and behaviors of women and the changing roles of women. Consideration is given to biological, developmental and societal determinants of sex and gender. Prerequisites: GPSYC 101.

SOCI 337: Sociology of Gender
Dr. Bethany Bryson
On-line
(See description above.)

WMST 200: Introduction to Women’s Studies
Cross disciplinary introduction to theories and scholarship in Women's Studies.  Examines the social construction of gender, how gender affects access to opportunity, and the experiences and contributions of women.  Provides a foundation for subsequent work in the Women's Studies minor.

WMST 200, Sec. 1
Alysia Davis - MWF 9:05-9:55 - Classroom TBA

WMST 200, Sec. 2
Dr. Jessica Davidson - TTh 12:30-1:45 - Jackson 003

WMST 200, Sec. 3
Dr. Jessica Davidson - TTh 3:30-4:45 - Jackson 104

WMST 200, Sec. 4
Alysia Davis - MWF 11:15-12:05 - Classroom TBA

WMST 492 Internship (1-3 credits): JMU Women and Social  Movements
Dr. Melissa Aleman
The Women’s Studies Program is seeking an undergraduate Women’s Studies minor to perform leadership in organizing a campus consciousness raising group for WS internship credit (The JMU Women’s Student Caucus). Internship duties include weekly meetings with the JMU Women’s Student Caucus advisor, creating publicity and communication, cultivating an organizational membership, researching and identifying concerns of women at JMU and selecting topics for discussion, and facilitating monthly meetings called “Pizza and a Conversation.”  Interns must have strong organization and communication skills (written and verbal), as well as strong critical thinking skills. Preference given to applicants with interest in women and leadership in higher education, non-profit organizations, and/or community organizing.  For more information contact Dr. Melissa Aleman (alemanmc, 568-7034).

WMST 492 Internship (2 credits): Women’s Studies Film and Video Database
Dr. Mary Thompson
The Women’s Studies Program is seeking an undergraduate Women’s Studies minor to update our database of films/videos on women and gender available in JMU’s libraries. Internship duties include twice monthly meetings with Women’s Studies coordinator, reviewing the JMU library catalog, screening films and educational videos, as well as corresponding with Women’s Studies faculty for requests for new materials. Interns must have strong organizational skills and knowledge of Excel spreadsheets. For more information, contact Dr. Mary Thompson (thompsmx, 568.3758).