552.286 (20S) Topics in American Cultural Studies: Women in Modern America
Overview
- Lecturer
- LV Nummer Südostverbund ENM03001UL
- Course title german Topics in American Cultural Studies: Women in Modern America
- Type Proseminar (continuous assessment course )
- Hours per Week 2.0
- ECTS credits 3.0
- Registrations 26 (25 max.)
- Organisational unit
- Language of instruction English
- possible language(s) of the assessment English
- Course begins on 03.03.2020
- eLearning Go to Moodle course
-
Remarks (english)
Attendance of the first session on March 3, 2020 is mandatory.
PLEASE NOTE: Class sessions will run for the whole 2 hours!
Time and place
Course Information
Intended learning outcomes
Students will become familiar with a broad range of social, cultural, political, and legal forces that affect women’s experiences in modern America. By gaining insight into contemporary gender relations and their intersections with other categories such as race, ethnicity, class, or religion, they will learn to develop a more critical understanding of the complexities that shape modern womanhood in the United States.
Teaching methodology including the use of eLearning tools
lecture inputs; discussion of assigned texts; short student presentations
Course content
“We should all be feminists” observes Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in her influential TED Talk. This seems more relevant than ever in the current political moment in the United States when women’s rights are being threatened yet again. In this class, we will explore a broad variety of themes that have shaped modern women’s experiences in the US. We will begin by watching RBG (2018), a documentary on the life of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who has built a remarkable legal legacy as a pioneer in gender equality. Next, we will consider Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale (1985)—and one episode of Hulu’s TV series adaption of it—and ask ourselves how the dystopian novel explores gender roles, bodily autonomy, control and resistance. In the second half of the semester, we will shift our perspective to the challenges of both gender and race for women of color. We will read Sandra Cisneros’s The House on Mango Street (1984) and discuss how the novel invites readers to imagine what it is like to grow up Chicana. Finally, watching the biographical drama Hidden Figures (2016) will allow us to explore the “hidden” intersections of sexism and racism in the story of three African American women who played key roles in NASA’s early space program.
Literature
Atwood, Margaret. The Handmaid’s Tale. Any edition.
Cisneros, Sandra. The House on Mango Street. Any edition.
All other material will be provided by the instructor.
Examination information
Examination methodology
active participation;
short student presentations;
PS-paper at the end of the semester
Grading scheme
Grade / Grade grading schemePosition in the curriculum
- Bachelor-Lehramtsstudium Bachelor Unterrichtsfach Englisch
(SKZ: 407, Version: 17W.2)
-
Subject: Anglophone Cultural History and Theory
(Compulsory subject)
-
ENM.003 Topics in American Cultural Studies (
2.0h PS / 3.0 ECTS)
- 552.286 Topics in American Cultural Studies: Women in Modern America (2.0h PS / 3.0 ECTS) Absolvierung im 4., 5., 6. Semester empfohlen
-
ENM.003 Topics in American Cultural Studies (
2.0h PS / 3.0 ECTS)
-
Subject: Anglophone Cultural History and Theory
(Compulsory subject)
- Bachelor-Lehramtsstudium Bachelor Unterrichtsfach Englisch
(SKZ: 407, Version: 15W.2)
-
Subject: Anglophone Cultural History and Theory
(Compulsory subject)
-
ENM.003 Topics in American Cultural Studies (
2.0h PS / 3.0 ECTS)
- 552.286 Topics in American Cultural Studies: Women in Modern America (2.0h PS / 3.0 ECTS) Absolvierung im 4., 5., 6. Semester empfohlen
-
ENM.003 Topics in American Cultural Studies (
2.0h PS / 3.0 ECTS)
-
Subject: Anglophone Cultural History and Theory
(Compulsory subject)
- Bachelor-Lehramtsstudium Bachelor Unterrichtsfach Englisch
(SKZ: 407, Version: 19W.2)
-
Subject: Anglophone Cultural History and Theory
(Compulsory subject)
-
ENM.003 Topics in American Cultural Studies (
2.0h PS / 3.0 ECTS)
- 552.286 Topics in American Cultural Studies: Women in Modern America (2.0h PS / 3.0 ECTS) Absolvierung im 4., 5., 6. Semester empfohlen
-
ENM.003 Topics in American Cultural Studies (
2.0h PS / 3.0 ECTS)
-
Subject: Anglophone Cultural History and Theory
(Compulsory subject)
- Teacher training programme English (Secondary School Teacher Accreditation)
(SKZ: 344, Version: 04W.7)
-
Stage one
-
Subject: Culture Studies
(Compulsory subject)
-
Cultures in Close-Up (
1.0h PS / 2.0 ECTS)
- 552.286 Topics in American Cultural Studies: Women in Modern America (2.0h PS / 4.0 ECTS)
-
Cultures in Close-Up (
1.0h PS / 2.0 ECTS)
-
Subject: Culture Studies
(Compulsory subject)
-
Stage one
- Teacher training programme English (Secondary School Teacher Accreditation)
(SKZ: 344, Version: 04W.7)
-
Stage one
-
Subject: Linguistic Basis
(Compulsory subject)
-
Cultures in Close-Up (
1.0h PS / 2.0 ECTS)
- 552.286 Topics in American Cultural Studies: Women in Modern America (2.0h PS / 4.0 ECTS)
-
Cultures in Close-Up (
1.0h PS / 2.0 ECTS)
-
Subject: Linguistic Basis
(Compulsory subject)
-
Stage one
- Bachelor's degree programme English and American Studies
(SKZ: 612, Version: 15W.3)
-
Subject: Fachliches Grundstudium Culture
(Compulsory subject)
-
6.2 Topics in American Cultural Studies (
0.0h PS / 3.0 ECTS)
- 552.286 Topics in American Cultural Studies: Women in Modern America (2.0h PS / 3.0 ECTS) Absolvierung im 3. Semester empfohlen
-
6.2 Topics in American Cultural Studies (
0.0h PS / 3.0 ECTS)
-
Subject: Fachliches Grundstudium Culture
(Compulsory subject)
- Bachelor's degree programme English and American Studies
(SKZ: 612, Version: 10W.3)
-
Subject: Fachliches Aufbaustudium (ab 11W)
(Compulsory subject)
-
Module: Culture (ab 11W)
-
Topics in Culture (
2.0h PS / 5.0 ECTS)
- 552.286 Topics in American Cultural Studies: Women in Modern America (2.0h PS / 5.0 ECTS)
-
Topics in Culture (
2.0h PS / 5.0 ECTS)
-
Module: Culture (ab 11W)
-
Subject: Fachliches Aufbaustudium (ab 11W)
(Compulsory subject)