GWS300: Masculinities
Fall 2015—CRN 20955
Syllabus:Canvas Extended Version
Instructor: Dr. Michael T. MartinOffice:207 Noble
Class time: MWF 9:35—10:45 a.m.Office Phone: 247-7147
Class space:160 Jones HallOffice Hours:MWF 11:00 a.m.—12:00 p.m.
& on CanvasMW 2:00 p.m.—3:00 p.m.
Email: nd by appointment
By enrolling and remaining in this class you are agreeing to abide by all the conditions and expectationsestablished in this document through to the end of the semester.
When you enrolled in this course, you were automatically enrolled into the Learning Management System we will be using called Canvas. You can find it through theFort and clicking on the Courses tab.
Course Objectives: This course is a Fort Lewis College Gender and Women’s Studies(GWS) course that satisfies upper-division credits in the GWS Major’s Theoretical Foundations requirement, as well as the general upper-division credits requirement. The GWS Learning Goals and Outcomes [GWS] have been coordinated below with Fort Lewis College’s College-Wide Liberal Education Outcomes [COLLEGE]. Finally, the processes by which these will be accomplished in this course are followed by specific course descriptors [COURSE].
Learning Goals and Outcomes:
GWS1: Students will be able to understand, distinguish between, and critically evaluate normative, empirical, and other theories regarding the ways gender and sexuality shape (and are shaped by) human intimacy, identity, cultural expression, cosmological tenets, ritual practices, sociopolitical formations, and the nature of everyday life.
COLLEGE 2: Critical Thinking as Problem Solving.
COURSE: Students will engage in the process of conceptualizing, applying analysis, and evaluating information at a higher academic level (building on knowledge and skills previously learned) in gaining an understanding of the theories, methodologies, and practices regarding masculinities in primarily U.S. contexts, but for comparative purposes also in global contexts. Students will become familiar with important debates and challenges as articulated by expert historians, anthropologists, sociologists, etc.
GWS 4: Students will be able to identify an appropriate research question related to gender and women’s studies, review the literature, collect data from primary and secondary sources, interpret results, establish sustained and persuasive arguments, draw conclusions, outline areas for further research and effectively communicate their research to wider audiences in written and oral form.
COLLEGE 3: Communication as Intellectual Contribution.
COURSE:Students willdevelop skills to research and apply gender/masculinity theories to a particular aspect in their research on a topic of their choice.Students willdevelop ability to articulate complex gender theories in assignments, class participation, and essays.
Accessibility and Disability Concerns Statement: Fort Lewis College is committed to providing all students a liberal arts education through a personalized learning environment. If you have, or think you may have, a documented disability which will need reasonable academic accommodations, please contact Dian Jenkins, Coordinator of Disability Service, 280 Noble Hall, 247-7459, for an appointment as soon as possible. If you qualify for services, bring your letter of accommodation to me as soon as possible so that we can make any necessary adjustments.
READINGS: There are no books to buy for this course. All readings are electronic/digital readings found through the Library’s site in various formats, or as a pdf text in the Files folder on Canvas. Each reading in the syllabus will be found according to the following legend:
Ebsco = Ebsco e-book on Library site
Library = A pdf file located through Library site search
JSTOR = a pdf file located on Library site through JSTOR database
Google = A pdf file located at Google Scholar
Canvas = A pdf file located on Canvas in the Files folder
Grading:
Masculinities Definition Statement 25 pts
Cultural Artifacts [Two in semester]50 pts/ea100 pts
Research Project [Final]300 pts
Approval of topic25 pts
Mandatory Meeting50 pts
Final Version of Project225 pts
Final Thoughts Essay100 pts
Total 525 pts
Descriptions for all assignments may be found beginning on page 10 of this syllabus. HOWEVER, if you do not turn in ALL assignments you will fail the course automatically. No exceptions; no excuses.
ATTENDANCEwill be monitored, and will be crucial to your ability to perform well in this class. Absence does not relieve you of your responsibility for material covered in lectures. If you must miss, you are responsible for obtaining all notes and materials. Strong participation will help your grade, especially a borderline one. You get THREE unexcusedclass absences. After that additional absences will add a half-letter grade reduction for each day missed.Arriving late to class counts as an absence.
Dropping the Course: The official Fort Lewis College policy is that the Friday after Midterm Grades are posted is the absolute last day and time you may withdraw from a course. This semester that would be: Friday, October 23, by 4:00 p.m. This is student initiated; you do not need to see me. HOWEVER, YOU ONLY GET THREE WITHDRAWS during your entire academic career, so use them wisely.
Late Work: I will not accept late work. Please manage your time and get your work turned into Canvas on the day it is due—and I will manage my time and get your graded work back to you as quickly as possible! If you must be absent from class, make arrangements in advance to get your work to me on or before the due date (and with everything being submitted on line, this should not be an issue). If you are sick the day an item is due (how shocking that would be) you had better have a doctor’s note. Obviously, you should have been working on your assignment well in advance of the day it is due, so being sick does not preclude you from turning in what you have completed; it should be as close to polished as possible, minus that one final ‘look-over’ you (potentially) had intended for the day it is due. If you waited until the day it is due to begin, you have taken that risk of your own free will.
I will not allow re-writes for work that does not follow directions or is poorly written and you receive a grade well below what you wanted. “It is fine to work ahead, but you cannot work behind.” (Robin M. Smith, Conquering the Content, Jossey-Bass, 2008, p. 88). I will look at rough drafts as long as I get them one week in advance of the due date. After that I cannot guarantee that I will have time to look over your work and get it back to you in a timely fashion.
Classroom Civility and Etiquette:
(my thanks to Dr. Stephanie Jass,History Department, Adrian College and Mary Cook, formerly Western Michigan University,English Department, for guidance here)
The material that this class deals with will sometimes be controversial. In addition, this material is often personal because gender is an important part of all our identities. It can be hard not to get upset about personal issues, so here are some guidelines for dealing with the course, course materials, as well as your colleagues:
►During the first week of class, look the material over (books, topics, videos if possible). If any of it is too upsetting to you or by its nature may be considered offensive by you, you might consider dropping the class. We will not avoid sensitive subjects (these will include for example: politics, religion, domestic violence, sexualities, race/ethnicity issues, bullying, pornography, media portrayals, etc.).
►While it is perfectly acceptable to disagree with one another during discussions, everyone needs to express that disagreement in a cordial, professional, and respectful way. Repeated failure to respect these boundaries of classroom civility will result in you being first told to leave class for the day, and next, if the behavior persists, withdrawn from the course. In fact, whenever you can offer reasonable arguments for opposing points of view, the course will be enriched. However, you are responsible for learning about any point of view presented in class or readings, whether you agree with it or not.
►Remember that whenever we discuss any social group, we are forced sometimes to use generalizations that do not apply to all members of that group. Objections to this, such as “I don’t like to use generalizations” or “I don’t think it is right to label people” are often attempts to close discussion on uncomfortable subjects. We will speak with the understanding that the generalizations we sometimes use are not all-inclusive.
►While we cannot relate to all thepeoples in the world as individuals and consequently must use certain generalizations, we can relate to all the people in this class as individuals. Therefore, please remember that no student should be seen as a spokesperson or representative for her/his reference group (e.g., feminists, well-dressed gay man, liberals, transgendered, Native-American, etc.)
►If you ever feel personally offended by course material or a class discussion, the best thing to do is first come and talk to me about it. It may only be a misunderstanding, but if not, it still helps usually to talk about it and make certain that it is addressed appropriately and timely. As the instructor, I will make certain that offensive remarks do not go undiscussed or unaddressed during class; should I miss hearing or seeing an offensive remark/gesture, it should be brought to my attention.
►In order to maximize your learning in this course as well as to show respect to your instructor and peers, you need to: attend class regularly, arrive on time, remain in class for the entire meeting time (unless you become ill during class or an emergency arises), do not conduct private conversations, read materials for other courses, or do other work during class.Please DO remain attentive when I or another member of the class is speaking, and participate in the class discussions as much as possible.
►SHUT OFF AND PUT AWAY YOUR CELL PHONE!!If I see you texting, or your phone goes off in class, I will deduct 25 points from EVERYONE’S grade. Also, laptop users must sit in the front row; do not conduct email correspondence, Facebook, or social media of any kind, otherwise, again, I will deduct 25 points from EVERYONE’S grade.
Academic Integrity refers to the honesty and originality of all your work in the class. Your papers need to be your own work. Your work must not be composed of extended quotations, not written by a fellow student, not written by a paper-writing service, not material taken off the Web, or from any source other than you and your own research. AND NO WIKIPEDIA EVER!!!
Citing your Work: When you are citing sources, make sure you cite completely and properly. For citation guidelines, see one of the following style guides: 1) The Chicago Manual of Style; 2) Kate Turabian’sManual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations; 3) A.P.A. documentation style; or, 4) the Modern Language Association [MLA] Handbook. I have some of these in my office and all of them are available at bookstores as well as at the Reference Desk in Reed Library.
Use the style guide of your discipline, but at minimum (for internal citations), you must cite author, title (or portion), and page number; e.g., Martin, Syllabus, p. 4.
If you are a HISTORY MAJOR, you MUST USE THE CHICAGO MANUAL OF STYLE OR TURABIAN’S MANUAL.
If you are explaining ideas in a source in your own words, make sure you use your own wording rather than inserting whole phrases of someone else’s work into your analysis, and especially without adequate citation. This occurs often in student papers; while it may not be intentional plagiarism, it is poor writing style and becomes an especially big problem if you do not cite your sources. This includes course readings! Just because I have read them and know where a source comes from does NOT mean you do not have to cite it. If you are ever not sure what plagiarism is, or whether your work is “enough” your own, see me, or the staff at the Writing Center for further guidelines and assistance. It is OK to incorporate other people’s work; it is NOT OK to neglect to acknowledge their work as it contributes to yours.
Deliberate plagiarism or cheating in any other form will result in failure of the assignment, potentially of the course, as well as reporting the incident to the Vice-President of Academic Affairs and the Academic Standards Committee. FIRST OFFENSE GOES IN YOUR PERMANENT RECORD; SECOND OFFENSE COULD GET YOU SUSPENDED FROM COLLEGE (although less or more severe punishments depending on the offense can be imposed.) For further information or clarifications see:
Please come in during office hours to discuss your assignments or any other questions regarding class. The last weeks of class, however, is not the time to begin worrying about your grade; such issues should have been addressed much earlier and the final weeks of class is a most inappropriate time to do so on your part. Please make arrangements with me in advance if you foresee difficulties arising so that any problems may be avoided as soon as possible.
Nota Bene: I reserve the right to alter this syllabus at any time
in response to changing needs or dynamics of this course.
Calendar of Assignments for GWS 300, CRN 20955Fall 2015 Dr. Michael Martin
WEEK ONE: Introductions/Terminology/Categories
Mon Aug 31Introduction to course, syllabus, Canvas
Wed Sept 02Men Have Gender Too
{18}Read:Meyerowitz, “AHR Forum: A History of ‘Gender’” [JSTOR]
Mallory, “Male Bashing” [Canvas/Ebsco]
Brittan, “Masculinities and Masculinism” [Canvas]
DUE: Masculinities Definition Statement
Fri Sept 04Masculinity Quotients?
{39}Read:Bornstein, “Welcome to Your New Gender Workbook” [Canvas]
Kimmel, “Masculinities” [Canvas/Ebsco]
WEEK TWO: Histories of Masculinities
Mon Sept 07Masculinity in History
{28}Read:Karras, “Active/Passive, Acts/Passions: Greek and Roman Sexualities” [JSTOR]
Bullough, “On Being a Male in the Middle Ages” [Canvas]
Wed Sept 09A Cigar is....
{30}Read:Orrells, “Freud and the History of Masculinity: Between Oedipus and Narcissus”
[Canvas]
Fri Sept 11Early Sexologists and Sexuality
{22}Read:Hirschfield, “The Transvestites: The Erotic Drive to Cross-Dress” [Canvas]
Foucault, “We ‘Other Victorians’” [Canvas]
Recommended: Fillingham, “Foucault for Beginners: History of Sexuality” [Canvas]
WEEK THREE: Theoretical Concepts on Masculinities
Mon Sept 14Plurality (or the lack thereof?) in Masculinity
{15}Read:Donaldson, “What is Hegemonic Masculinity?” [Library]
Recommended: Aboim, “From Dualism to Plurality” [Ebsco]
Tues Sept 15CENSUS DAY
Wed Sept 16Hegemonic Masculinity Reconsidered
{24}Read:Demetriou, “Connell’s Concept of Hegemonic Masculinity: A Critique”[JSTOR]
Fri Sept 18Gender and Sex(uality) Theory
{24}Read:Brod, “The New Men’s Studies: From Feminist Theory to Gender Scholarship”
[JSTOR]
Sax, “Differences” [Canvas]
DUE: Project must be approved by me by today
WEEK FOUR: More Theoretical Concepts on Masculinities
Mon Sept 21The End (so soon?)
{22}Read:Buchbinder, “The end of masculinity?” [Canvas]
Wed Sept 23Eunuchs and Castrati
{29}Read:Scholz, “Sexuality and Emasculation—or Longing for Paradise” [Canvas]
Fri Sept 25Sperm Theories
{25}Read:Moore, “Lashing Their Tales: Science Discovers Sperm” [Canvas]
Reuters Publishing, “Why Do Men Exist? Science (Finally) Gives Us an
Answer” [Canvas]
WEEK FIVE: The Marketing and Managing of Masculinities
Mon Sept 28Marketing Masculinity
{29}Read:Ervin, “The Might of the Metrosexual: How a Mere Marketing Tool Challenges
Hegemonic Masculinity” [Ebsco]
Van Lent, “‘Her Beautiful Savage’: The Current Sexual Image of the Native
American Male” [Canvas]
Wed Sept 30Transituation
{25}Read:Shapiro, “Drag Kinging and the Transformation of Gender Identities” [JSTOR]
Califia, “Manliness” [Canvas]
Fri Oct 02Nellennials to Millennials
{16}Read:Shary, “Introduction” to Millennial Masculinity [Ebsco]
WEEK SIX:Masculinity and Popular Media and Sports
{Mandatory meetings regarding Final Research Project begin this week and go through Week Seven}
Mon Oct 05QTV
{30}Read:Sender, “Queens for a Day: Queer Eye for the Straight Guy and the Neoliberal
Project” [Canvas]
View: Queer Eye for the Straight Guy episode
Wed Oct 07Superhero Masculinity
{14}Read:Medhurst, “Batman, Deviance and Camp” [Canvas]
Fri Oct 09Sport-y or Sport-xy?
{15}Read:Wellard, “Sport and Masculinities” [Canvas]
WEEK SEVEN: Female Masculinity/Masculinity through Race and Ethnicity
Mon Oct 12Female Masculinity
{35}Read:Halberstam, “An Introduction to Female Masculinity” [Canvas]
Wed Oct 14Black Masculinities
{28}Read:Ferguson, “don’t believe the hype” [Canvas]
Noguera, “Black Masculinities” [Canvas/Ebsco]
View: I Am A Man
DUE: Everyone must have presented one cultural artifact by today; you will have had seven weeks to do this, do not all wait until this week
Fri Oct 16Native Masculine to Two Spirit
{20}Read:Pullin, “Two Spirit” [Library]
McKegney, “Into the Full Grace of the Blood in Men” [Canvas]
Highway, “Repairing the Circle” [Canvas]
WEEK EIGHT: Gay and Trans Masculinities
Mon Oct 19Transculinity
{35}Read:Schilt, “Just One of the Guys? How Transmen Make Gender Visible at Work”
[JSTOR]
Wed Oct 21Transforming Masculinities
{21}Read:Pascoe, “‘Dude, You’re a Fag’: Adolescent Masculinity and the Fag Discourse”
[Google]
Anderson-Minshall, “The Enemy Within: On Becoming a Straight White Guy”
[Canvas]
Fri Oct 23Gay Masculinity as anti-Masculinity?
{20}Read:Kimmel, “Masculinity as Homophobia: Fear, Shame, and Silence in the
Construction of Gender Identity” [Ebsco]
WEEK NINE: Masculinity at Home
Mon Oct 26Growing into Manhood
{24}Read:Kimmel, “Welcome to Guyland” [Canvas]
Wed Oct 28Fatherhood
{10}Read:Flood, “What’s Wrong with Father’s Rights?” [Canvas]
Levs,“Stop Punishing the Family Man” [Canvas]
Sundberg, “What is ‘Dadbod’—And is it Healthy?” [Canvas]
Fri Oct 30Fathers
{23}Read:Solebello “We Want Them to Be as Heterosexual as Possible”: Fathers Talk
about Their Teen Children’s Sexuality” [JSTOR]
WEEK TEN: Masculinity at School and in Spirituality
Mon Nov 02The Classroom as Masculinity