Chabot College
Fall 2004
Replaced Fall 2010
Course Outline for History 27
U. S. WOMEN’S HISTORY
Catalog Description:
27 – U. S. Women’s History
3 units
A survey of United States women’s history from its indigenous origins through the
present. Emphasizes the interaction and experiences of diverse racial/ethnic groups that
include at least three of the following groups: African-Americans, Chicana/Latina
Americans, Asian Americans, European Americans, Native Americans, and Middle
Eastern Americans. Special areas of focus include women’s role in the political,
economic, social, and geographic development of the United States. This course includes
an analysis of the U. S. Constitution and pertinent amendments as a living document.
California State Constitution is compared to the U.S. Constitution with regard to
women’s rights. 3 hours.
[Typical contact hours: 52.5]
Prerequisite Skills:
None.
Expected Outcome for Students:
Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:
1.
identify the roots of women’s history as an area of academic study;
2.
explain the differences between egalitarian village societies and patriarchal
societies, and the impact of these differences on women;
3.
identify and analyze the diverse indigenous cultures of North American peoples
and the role women played in the social, religious, and political life of the
community; compare and contrast individual tribes by region;
4.
trace the role of women in various European societies, their arrival in the
Americas, and the gender traditions that traveled with them;
5.
explain the roots and evolution of the African slave trade, the development of
slavery in North America, how slavery differed by region, and how the system
impacted African women and others;
6.
discuss the role of women in the pre-revolutionary period, and their wartime
contributions;
7.
explain the impact of the American Revolution on the institution of slavery,
Native American land rights, and the establishment of Republican Motherhood;
8.
analyze the U. S. Constitution as a document that was not inclusive of women in
its original form, with work still to be done;
9.
describe the possibilities open to women at the turn of the nineteenth century: the
Cult of True Womanhood, the “mill girl,” the domestic servant, the slave;
10.
trace the beginnings of the early women’s rights movement as an outgrowth of
other social reform movements;
11.
discuss the role of women in the Civil War and Reconstruction periods, including
the impact of emancipation on African American women and losing ground on
Chabot College
Course Outline for History 27, Page 2
Fall 2004
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
women’s rights through division and discriminatory postwar constitutional
amendments;
discuss the role of the west in creating new opportunities for women socially,
politically, and economically, while severely curtailing the rights of indigenous
peoples, with an examination of the California State Constitution and women’s
rights;
assess the role of women in the rise and expansion of American industry in the
late nineteenth and early twentieth century, including emphasis on immigration
and urbanization;
analyze the role of women in the Progressive movement of the early twentieth
century which brought increased visibility and participation in the public sphere;
trace the “final push” for suffrage, racial segregation in the movement, World
War I and new feminist suffrage strategies, and success with the nineteenth
amendment;
identify the “New Woman” of the 1920s, and discuss the birth of the movement
for reproductive freedom;
assess the impact of the Great Depression on women with special emphasis on
race and class;
discuss the New Deal’s impact on women, and its shortcomings;
discuss the impact of World War II on American women, and American women
on World War II;
identify aspects of postwar American society that hindered women’s progress in
all areas of American life, and heralded in a new age of domesticity;
trace the development of the “second wave” of feminism of the early 1960s that
led to the birth of a new women’s movement;
discuss the origins of the feminist “backlash” of the 1980s and 1990s;
identify and discuss issues on the feminist agenda, and assess progress;
compare and contrast the status of American women with women from other
nations around the world;
compare and contrast the status of American women within the United States by
race and class;
assess the role of women in the military since World War II, with special attention
to current situation;
discuss the role of women in the global economy, and in the affairs of state.
Course Content:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Introduction to study of U. S. women’s history as an outgrowth of the social
history movement of the sixties.
Birth of patriarchy during ancient historical period and the erosion of women’s
societal status.
Indigenous cultures of North America with examination of matriarchal and
egalitarian tribal organization.
European cultures and traditions transported to North America, and the interaction
with indigenous peoples.
African slave trade and the development of the institution of slavery with special
emphasis on the African American female experience.
Chabot College
Course Outline for History 27, Page 3
Fall 2004
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
The female experience during the Revolutionary period, and the impact of the
Revolution on Native American, African American, and Euro-American women.
The constrictions placed on women within the postwar ideology known as
Republican Motherhood.
Political constructs of the new nation under the U. S. Constitution with analysis of
key constitutional concepts.
The development of the doctrine of separate gender spheres and the nature of
female work and leisure.
The role of women in early social reform movements, culminating in the birth of
the women’s rights movement.
The history of the women’s rights
Women in the western states and territories. The role of California as among the
movement, the early pioneers and visionaries, accomplishments, betrayals,
divisions.first suffrage states, and the woman voter.
The female experience during the Civil War; emancipation, encroachment on the
Plains and impact on indigenous peoples.
The betrayal of the Reconstruction period for black women, and the women’s
rights movement. Reconstruction Era constitutional amendments and codified
gender discrimination.
The role of women in industrial America and the impact of immigration and
urbanization; the female immigrant.
The role of women in the Progressive movement as participants and leaders.
Evaluation of 20th century amendments to the federal and California constitutions
which have affected the role of women in society.
Racial segregation in American society in general, and in the women’s movement
in particular.
The history of the “final push” for suffrage that coincided with the Progressive
movement; ratification of the nineteenth amendment.
The “New Woman” of the 1920s, reproductive rights, the selling of mass culture.
World War I and its impact on the suffrage movement.
Women’s experience during the Great Depression; repercussions for racial/ethnic
minorities and married women.
New Deal programs that benefited and discriminated against women.
World War II and new opportunities for all women.
The postwar era and the return to domesticity; the baby boom.
The beginning of the “second wave” of feminism in the early sixties and the birth
of the modern women’s movement.
Examination of the current feminist agenda, and assessment of progress.
Introduction to local women’s organizations and their activities.
Feminism in California.
Examination of women’s role in various aspects of American life: politics,
economics, media, military, labor force, family life, etc.
Examination of sexual orientation; lesbian history and issues.
Discussion of contemporary feminist issues, and the conservative “backlash” of
the last two decades.
Overview of women’s role in the global economy, affairs of state, and domestic
policy.
Chabot College
Course Outline for History 27, Page 4
Fall 2004
Methods of Presentation:
1.
2.
Lectures-discussion
Audio-visual aids
Assignments and Methods of Evaluating Student Progress:
1.
Typical Assignments:
a. Write a 3-5 page typed critical analysis on a female slave narrative such as:
Incidents In the Life of A Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs or Narrative of
Sojourner Truth. Students will discuss the book’s content, significance, and
give a personal evaluation of the book. A special focus of the analysis will be
to discuss the special concerns of the author, and how her concerns might
have differed from her male counterparts.
b. Interview one of more generations of women in your family to construct a
personal family history, to be presented in oral or written form. Students will
learn the constructs of oral history, which is especially valuable when
examining the history of early Native American women and enslaved African
women. A class discussion will follow the assignment that focuses on the
differences between written and oral history.
c. View a portion of the video A Midwife’s Tale that depicts women engaged in
the art of quilting. Discuss how this art played into the lives of women, and
how this helped to build a collective history. Have each student design a quilt
square out of art materials depicting their life and what is important to them.
Quilt will be assembled in class to create a class quilt, to be displayed
somewhere on campus.
d. Prepare for class discussions about the original feminist agenda in Elizabeth
Cady Stanton’s Declaration of Sentiments. In-class comparison to the
Declaration of Independence on which Stanton’s document was based.
Assign essays examining how far women have advanced in each of the areas
discussed, and why progress has been slow in others. Students could write
group reports on a particular agenda item.
e. Have students construct a timeline of women’s rights. Examine why the
earliest successes occurred in the western states, with particular attention paid
to early progress in California. Assign particular topics to research in this area
such as: reproductive freedom in California, rape on college campuses in the
Bay Area, violence against women & its treatment in the California judicial
system (Nicole Brown Simpson, Laci Peterson, and others).
2.
Methods of Evaluating Student Progress:
a. Exams and quizzes
b. Term papers
c. Class participation
d. Final Examination
e. Small group discussions.
Chabot College
Course Outline for History 27, Page 5
Fall 2004
Textbook(s) (Typical):
A History of Women In America, Carol Hymowitz & Michelle Weisman, Bantam,
1984, or latest edition .
Born For Liberty, Sara M. Evans, Free Press, 1997, or latest edition
Inventing the American Woman, Glenda Riley, Harlan Davidson, 2001, or latest edition
Unequal Sisters: A Multicultural Reader in U. S. Women’s History, Vicki L. Ruiz
& Ellen Carol DuBois, Routledge, 1994, or latest edition
Women and the American Experience, Nancy Woloch, Knopf, 1994, or latest edition
Women and the National Experience, Ellen Skinner, Addison-Wesley, 1996, or latest
edition
Special Student Materials:
None.
tf:Word/Hist.27.doc
Revised 12-4-03