Spring 2022 - GSWS 320 D900
Special Topics in Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies (4)
Class Number: 6308
Delivery Method: In Person
Overview
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Course Times + Location:
Jan 10 – Apr 11, 2022: Wed, Fri, 10:30 a.m.–12:20 p.m.
Surrey
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Instructor:
Natasha Patterson
ndp@sfu.ca
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Prerequisites:
15 units.
Description
CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:
A specific theme within within the field of gender, sexuality, and women's studies, not otherwise covered in depth in regularly scheduled courses, will be dealt with as occasion and demand warrant.
COURSE DETAILS:
#MeToo. Greta Thunberg. Insecure. Christine Blasey Ford. The Handmaids Tale. The list goes on of contemporary media products and news stories that reflects women’s collective rage and despair at the white supremacist, heteronormative, capitalist patriarchy. Yet such examples seem to counter the popular feminism (in the form of white feminism, postfeminism and neoliberal feminism) that currently shapes the cultural landscape; indeed, these moments of anger and frustration seem more like a direct response to the rise of “popular misogyny” as conceptualized by feminist media studies scholar Sarah Banet-Weiser. Therefore, this Special Topics course, is an attempt to parse out these current issues and concerns as they are constructed, reported on, and circulated in popular culture. The course will be organized around the following key ideas/issues: popular feminism and its relationship to popular misogyny, and examining and critiquing relevant dominant media discourses; exploring various media (film, TV, comedy, news) that mediate these feelings of rage and despair; thinking about ways to intervene in, and respond to the media as feminists and consumers via themes of resistance and activism. Popular culture has long operated as a balm for women’s rage against the patriarchal machine, so this course will also make important connections to what is happening in the current moment and earlier scholarly debates about feminism’s visibility in the public sphere and popular culture.
COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:
For more detailed information please see the GSWS website:
http://www.sfu.ca/gsws/undergraduate/courses/Educational_Goals.html
Grading
- Class Participation 20%
- Midterm Exam 25%
- Creative Group Project (presented at end of term) 25%
- Final Paper (students will be required to schedule a meeting with me to discuss their final paper topic and get approval) 30%
Materials
REQUIRED READING:
- Banet-Weiser, Sarah. Empowered: Popular Feminism and Popular Misogyny. Duke University Press, 2018. [This book is available for purchase via the SFU bookstore. A copy will also be placed on reserve through the SFU library.]
- Other assigned readings available on the course Canvas or online. Links provided in the syllabus.
Registrar Notes:
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS
SFU’s Academic Integrity web site http://www.sfu.ca/students/academicintegrity.html is filled with information on what is meant by academic dishonesty, where you can find resources to help with your studies and the consequences of cheating. Check out the site for more information and videos that help explain the issues in plain English.
Each student is responsible for his or her conduct as it affects the University community. Academic dishonesty, in whatever form, is ultimately destructive of the values of the University. Furthermore, it is unfair and discouraging to the majority of students who pursue their studies honestly. Scholarly integrity is required of all members of the University. http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html
TEACHING AT SFU IN SPRING 2022
Teaching at SFU in spring 2022 will involve primarily in-person instruction, with safety plans in place. Some courses will still be offered through remote methods, and if so, this will be clearly identified in the schedule of classes. You will also know at enrollment whether remote course components will be “live” (synchronous) or at your own pace (asynchronous).
Enrolling in a course acknowledges that you are able to attend in whatever format is required. You should not enroll in a course that is in-person if you are not able to return to campus, and should be aware that remote study may entail different modes of learning, interaction with your instructor, and ways of getting feedback on your work than may be the case for in-person classes.
Students with hidden or visible disabilities who may need class or exam accommodations, including in the context of remote learning, are advised to register with the SFU Centre for Accessible Learning (caladmin@sfu.ca or 778-782-3112) as early as possible in order to prepare for the spring 2022 term.