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Instructor: Dr. Dynette Reynolds
Email: dynettereynolds@weber.edu
Office Hours: before and after class, and by appointment (SS122)
Intro to Women & Gender Studies
WGS 1500
Spring 2016 (CRN#34553)
Wed. 5:30-6:45 + online
REQUIRED TEXT
 Women’s Lives: Multicultural Perspectives, Gwyn Kirk and Margo Okazawa-Rey, 5th ed. (McGraw Hill, 2009) –
may be purchased online at amazon.com or half.ebay.com.
 additional readings on Canvas
COURSE OBJECTIVES
The course is an introduction to the discipline of women's studies and gender theory, using historical, modern, and
multicultural sources based on current scholarship. We will examine the diversity of women's experiences through
history and across cultures, and how those experiences are shaped by social structures such as politics and economics.
We will also analyze how gender is mediated by categories of race, class, sexual orientation, and ethnicity. Finally, we
will examine what activism looked like historically and what it looks like now.
Upon successful completion of this course, students should be able to:
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identify, compare, and evaluate the theoretical frameworks of feminism and gender studies.
identify, compare, and evaluate culturally and/or historically specific constructs of gender.
understand the social construction of gender and its effects, including gender roles, stereotypes, and origins.
understand the intersectionality of gender, race, class, and sexual orientation.
identify and describe contemporary social issues that surround gender constructs, including media stereotypes,
masculinity, reproduction and health issues, sexuality, violence, and work/domesticity.
 recognize and articulate the rights, perspectives, and experiences of others different from oneself.
ASSIGNMENTS
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Write six short response papers (2-4 pages) – 6 x 100 pts = 60%
Online discussions – pass/fail - (8 x 40pts) = 32%
Participation and attendance (80 points) = 8%
Extra Credit Quizzes = 50 pts
TOTAL POINTS POSSIBLE = 1050 points
EXAMS: None.
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GRADING RUBRIC
Student papers will be graded according to the following criteria:
Summary, Analysis & Critical Thinking
40 pts
Organization & Flow
20 pts
Citations & Bib
20 pts
Grammar & Writing
20 pts
Online discussions will be graded on a pass/fail basis. Unless otherwise indicated, your discussions must include the
following:
 original post of at least three sentences
 response of at least two sentences
ATTENDANCE
Attendance will be taken. Regular attendance will help nudge your grade up at the end of the semester if you are
close to a higher grade but not quite there.
EMERGENCY CLOSURE OR CANCELLATION OF CLASSES
If the university is required to cancel classes for any reason, a “Code Purple” announcement will be sent to your
Weber email address. If the instructor is forced to cancel a class, an announcement will be posted as soon as possible on
Canvas. Either way, please check on Canvas for further instructions. (We might have to conduct class using the Canvas
Discussion option.) Students are advised to set their Canvas profile to forward all announcements to a device of their
choosing.
PLAGIARISM
As per the Student Code, Section 4.D.2, plagiarism is “the unacknowledged (not cited) use of any other person’s or
group’s ideas or work.” Cheating of any kind will result in a failing grade for the assignment OR for the entire course,
and might also lead to university-wide disciplinary action. You are responsible for knowing how to properly cite sources,
ideas, or quotes that are not your own.
AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT
Any student requiring accommodations or services due to a disability must contact Services for Students with
Disabilities, Rm. 181, Student Services Center. SSD can also arrange to provide materials (including this syllabus) in
alternative formats if necessary. Please refer to SSD’s website for more information: http://weber.edu/ssd.
IMPORTANT STUDENT SERVICES
As a student, you are eligible to receive free or reduced-cost medical care at the Student Health Center, Rm. 109,
Student Services Building, phone: 626-6249. Their hours are M-F, 8am to 4pm. A student pharmacy is located in the
same building. You are also eligible for free mental health counseling from the Weber State Counseling Center, phone:
3
626-6406. Another good resource for students is the local Planned Parenthood office, phone: 479-7721. Please be
advised that emergency next-day contraception, also known as Plan B, is legally available without a prescription at Utah
pharmacies to anyone over 18 with a photo ID. However, individual pharmacists are permitted to refuse you this
medication if they so desire.
WGS 1500
Spring 2016 (CRN#34553)
Wed. 5:30-6:45pm, SS 229
**Any modifications to the syllabus or the schedule will be discussed in class and/or announced on Canvas.
WEEK
READING ASSIGNMENTS
ONLINE ASSIGNMENTS
PAPERS
(due before class on Wednesday evenings)
(due Sundays at midnight, unless
otherwise indicated)
(due Sundays at midnight, unless
otherwise indicated)
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Jan 13
What Is Feminism?
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Jan 20
Intro to Women’s Studies
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Jan 27
History of Women’s Rights
Response Paper 1:
From textbook ch. 1:
Using the assigned readings from
last week, describe how past
views of women’s roles and rights
are different from your views
today, and how the women’s
rights movement has affected
Online Discussion 1:
Go to Canvas and click on
“Discussion 1.” Post a threesentence observation about one
concept on the Vocab List, then
comment on someone else’s post
with at least two sentences.
 Ch. 1 (textbook)
 “Declaration of Sentiments”
 “Ain’t I A Woman?”
 Thompson
Online Discussion 2:
Go to
www.everydayfeminism.com and
find one article you like. Post a
brief, three-sentence reflection on
that article, then respond to
someone else’s post with at least
two sentences.
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From Canvas:
your own life. Give specific
examples from the readings or
from current events and/or your
life, and be sure to include
CITATIONS and a BIBLIOGRAPHY.
 “Total Woman”
 “Feminine Mystique”
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Feb 3
Social Construction of Gender
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Feb 10
Feminist Theory & Patriarchy
Response Paper 2:
From textbook ch. 2:
Think of a TV show or movie that
provides a good example of
patriarchy as an almost invisible
system. Summarize the plot and
the characters, then discuss how
patriarchy functions in the show.
In your analysis, use a relevant
quote from at least one of the
readings in ch. 2 and make sure
you include citations and a bib for
your sources(s).
 Ch. 2 (textbook)
Online Discussion 3:
In one of your classes or work
meetings, count the number of
men and women in the room,
then count the number of times
men speak vs. women. Post your
results online and include one or
two sentences telling us why you
think you got the results you got.
Then comment on someone else’s
results.
 Johnson
From Canvas:
 de Beauvoir
 Mainardi
 Lorde
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Media Stereotypes
Feb 17
From Canvas:
 Mulvey
 Jones
 “Barbie Doll” (poem)
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Feb 24
Gendered Hierarchies
 Ch. 3
Online Discussion 4:
Post a three-sentence reflection
on a particular aspect of the film
(“Miss Representation”) OR on
one of the readings for this week,
then comment on someone else’s
post.
Online Discussion 5:
Find a short – 15 minutes or less video on the internet by a person
who identifies as a minority in at
least two categories – gender,
class, ethnicity, sexuality, religion,
and post a link to the video on
Canvas with a short one-or-twosentence description. Then
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comment on one other video that
has been posted.
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Gender & Sexuality
Mar 2
Response Paper 3:
 Ch. 4
Go to a department store or mall
and find an example of
“heteronormativity.” Describe
what you found and then discuss
how a differently gendered person
might react when encountering
that example. What problems
might such a person have in that
store? Alternately, you might find
an example of non-heteronormativity. Use at least one citation
from the assigned readings and
include a bib.
***Due at midnight last day of
Spring Break (Sunday, March 13)
Spring Break: March 7-11, 2016
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Masculinity
Mar 16
From Canvas:
 “Bros before Hos”
 “Boys and Their Toys”
Online Discussion 6:
Go to:
http://goodmenproject.com/featu
red-content/questioningmasculinity-gmp/
Find an article about a topic (on
masculinity) that interests you.
Post a three-sentence reflection
on that article, then respond to
someone else’s post.
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Mar 23
Reproduction
Ch. 5
Response Paper 4:
Read “The Turbid Ebb and Flow of
Misery,” by Margaret Sanger (on
Canvas). Summarize the reading
and respond by discussing how
access to birth control might be
viewed or experienced differently
by women from different
backgrounds, i.e., religion, class,
race, nationality. (Include citations
and bib.)
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Mar 30
The Body
From textbook ch. 5:
 Kilbourne
From Canvas:
 Brumberg
 Ephron
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Apr 6
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Apr 13
Online Discussion 7:
Find a popular song (from the
present or the past) that focuses
on gendered bodies. Post the
lyrics to that song and write at
least three sentences describing
how that song equates women (or
men) to their bodies, then
respond to someone else’s post.
Response Paper 5:
Domestic Violence
 Ch. 6
Home, Family, Work
 Ch. 7
Describe the kinds of things
women have to do differently
from men due to the threat of
rape. Discuss how poverty, war,
class, and culture/religion might
exacerbate this problem. In your
analysis, use at least one quote
from any part of ch. 6 and make
sure you include citations and a
bib.
Online Discussion 8:
Visit one of these blogs for
working women:
http://www.careercontessa.com/c
onversations/best-blogs-workingwoman/home/
Find an article on working women
that you like from one of these
blogs, and summarize it in three
sentences, then respond to
someone else’s summary
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Third Wave Feminism
Response Paper 6:
Apr 20
From Canvas:
Discuss which issues we covered
this semester are most important
to you and how they relate to
Third-Wave Feminism. Some
questions to consider here: How
do you view Third-Wave
Feminism? What are the pressing
issues of feminism today? How do
you see yourself within (or
 Faludi, “Backlash”
 “Riot Grrrl Manifesto”
 Wu, “Gamergate”
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outside) contemporary feminism?
How can Third-Wave Feminism
succeed? Please use at least
THREE QUOTES from any readings
this semester. (Include citations
and bib.)
***Due at midnight last day of
finals (Thursday, Apr 28)***
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Apr 27
Finals – April 26-28