Study program
Course
Status of the course
Year
ECTS credits
Teacher
e-mail
consultation hours
Associate / assistant
e-mail
Consultation hours
Place of teaching
Teaching methods
Teaching workload
Lectures + Seminars +
Exercises
English Department
Introduction to critical gender and race theory (Uvod u kritičke teorije roda i
rase)
elective
II (undergraduate)
Semester
3
4
Associate Professor Senka Božić-Vrbančić
svrbanci@unizd.hr; senka.bozic1@gmail.com
Office: 1413 (English department) (by appointment)
157
Lectures, seminars
2+1
Attendance and participation in class discussions (10%)
Weekly assignment (30%)
Final paper (60%)
Attendance and participation in class discussions (10%)
Students should come every week ready to discuss the readings.
Weekly assignment (30%). Each week students will do homework. Homework
questions are in each lesson assignment.
Examination methods
Final paper (60%). (essay 40% + oral presentation of proposal 20%).
Essay (approx. 3000 words). In addition to the essay, you need to submit an
abstract of your project (roughly 1 page). Presentation should last 20 minutes.
It will be graded on (1) the originality of the topic and its interpretation in
connection with one or more theories assigned for this course (2) the
organization of the presentation and the quality of the delivery (i.e., maintaining
good eye contact with the audience, talking rather than reading off of a paper,
using power point…).
Start date
Colloquia
Examination period
Students must complete all the major assignments to pass the course.
End date
1. term
2. term
3. term
4. term
1. term
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Learning outcomes
Enrolment prerequisites
2. term
3. term
4. term
The ability to discuss issues of race and gender in the context of
literary and cultural studies
 The ability to explore, challenge and examine gendered and racialised
knowledge production in literature, film, theatre and performace.
 The ability to analyse performative acts and race/gender constitution
 To understand the intersectionalities of gender and race
 The ability to share ideas with peers
 The ability to present ideas clearly in speaking and writing
 Familiarity with the basics of analytical writing, including
argumentation and MLA style.
Students should be enrolled in the 3rd semester
Course subject
This course offers an introduction to critical race and gender theory, an
interdisciplinary academic field that explores critical questions about the
meaning of race and gender in society. The primary goal of the course is to
train students in the art of critical and analytical reading and thinking about race
and gender.
This course is interdisciplinary and students will have opportunity to work on
areas of their own choosing (film, literature, theatre, performance, TV shows...).
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Required reading
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Additional reading
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Internet resources
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Audre Lorde. Age, Race, Class, and Sex: Women Redefining Difference.
www.clc.wvu.edu/r/download/29781
Butler, Judith. "Imitation and Gender Insubordination." In The Critical
Tradition, pp. 1707-18.
Dyer, Richard. White. Visual Culture: the Reader. London: Sage. 2005,
pp. 457-466.
Foucault, Michel. "The History of Sexuality." In The Critical Tradition, pp.
1627-36.
Lauter, Paul. “Race and Gender in the Shaping of American Literary
Canon”. Feminist Studies 9. No. 3.
McIntosh, Peggy, “White Privilege and Male Privilege”
Moore “Racism in the English Language”
Sedgwick, Eve Kosofsky. Touching Feeling: Affect, Pedagogy,
Performativity. Duke UP, 2003. (selected parts)
Segal, Lynne. “Sexualities”. Identity and Difference. London, Sage. 1997,
pp. 184-235.
Audre, Lorde. ‘Power’ The Collected Works of Audre Lorde, 1978,
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/240144#poem
Berlant, Lauren. Poor Eliza. American Literature, Vol. 70, No. 3, No More
Separate Spheres! Sep., 1998, pp. 635- 668.
Butler, Judith. "Gender as Performance: An Interview with Judith Butler"
(available online)
Cvetkovich, Ann. An Archive of Feelings: Trauma, Sexuality, and
Lesbian Public Cultures, Duke UP, 2003. (selected parts)
Čale-Feldman, Lada and Ana Tomljenović, Uvod u feminističku književnu
kritiku. Leykam International. 2012. (Književnost kao (patrijarhalna)
institucija).
Dolan, Jill. Utopia in Performance: Finding Hope at the Theater. Ann
Arbor: Univ Michigan Press, 2005. (selected parts)
Halberstam, Judith. “The Transgender Gaze in Boys Don’t Cry.” In The
Visual Culture Reader. Nicholas Mirzoeff, ed. New York: Routledge,
2002: 669-673.
Hill Collins, Patricia. From Black Power to Hip Hop: Racism, Nationalism
and Feminism. Philadelphia, 2006., ch. 1.
McRobbie, Angela. “Top Girls? Young women and the post-feminist
sexual contract.” Cultural Studies, Vol. 21, Nos 4–5, July/September
2007, 718–737.
Stewart, Kathleen. Ordinary Affects. Durham: Duke UP, 2007. (selected
parts)
Audre, Lorde. ‘Power’ The Collected Works of Audre Lorde, 1978,
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/240144#poem
Stuart Hall on racism in media (jocks, stereotypes....)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gy57O9ZMENA
Stuart Hall: Race: floating signifier
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Quality assurance
Conditions for obtaining
signatures
Assignments of the
credits for colloquia,
seminars, exercises,
exams
Assignments of the final
grade
Remarks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRk9MZvOd2c
Judith Butler: Examined Life
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0HZaPkF6qE
Public Feelings Salon with Lauren Berlant
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlOeWTa_M0U
Affect in the end Time – conversation with Lauren Berlant
https://ericastanleydotnet.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/affect-in-the-endtimes-berlant.pdf
Course Evaluation is used to improve the quality of teaching and learning. The
feedback from evaluation will help guide changes in future.
Students should come every week ready to discuss the readings and their
homework.
1 ECTS – attendance and participation (lectures)
1 ECTS – attendance and weekly homework (seminars)
1 ECTS – final paper
1 ECTS – oral presentation
10% Attendance and participation in class discussions
30% Homework
40% Essay
20% Oral presentation
For those students who wish to read in greater depth about topics
covered in this course, a number of books are available and placed in my
office.
Teaching topics - lectures
No.
Date
1.
Introduction
Title
2.
The complexities of identities
3.
Sexual identity and difference
4.
Gender, sex and power
5.
Whiteness
6.
Gender and Performativity
Literature
Segal, Lynne. Sexualities.
Identity and Difference.
London, Sage. 1997, pp. 184235.
Audre Lorde. Age, Race,
Class, and Sex: Women
Redefining Difference.
Segal, Lynne. Sexualities.
Identity and Difference.
London, Sage. 1997, pp. 184235.
Foucault, Michel. "The History
of Sexuality." In The Critical
Tradition, pp. 1627-36.
McIntosh, Peggy, “White
Privilege and Male Privilege”
Or
Dyer, Richard. White. Visual
Culture: the reader. London:
Sage. 2005, pp. 457-466.
Sedgwick, Eve Kosofsky.
Touching Feeling: Affect,
Pedagogy, Performativity.
Duke UP, 2003. (selected
parts)
7.
The body as a complex and contested domain
8.
Femininity and masculinity: ordinary feelings
9.
Reproductive politics: public and private
10.
Trans and queer gender
Film: Boys Don’t Cry
11.
Affect theory
12.
Sexualised racial body: ambivalence
13.
Intersectionality of Race and Gender
14.
Intersectionality of Race and Gender
15.
Closing lecture
Seminars (students will be advised at the beginning of the semestar)
No.
Date
Title
(students will be advised at the beginning of the
1.
semestar)
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Butler, Judith. "Gender as
Performance: An Interview
with Judith Butler"
Butler, Judith. "Imitation and
Gender Insubordination."
In The Critical Tradition, pp.
1707-18.
Berlant,Lauren. Live Sex Acts
(Parental Advisory: Explicit
Material). The Queen of
America goes to Washington
City: Essays on Sex and
Citizenship. London, Duke
University Press. 1997, pp.5580.
Halberstam, Judith. “The
Transgender Gaze in Boys
Don’t Cry.” In The Visual
Culture Reader. Nicholas
Mirzoeff, ed. New York:
Routledge, 2002: 669-673.
Stewart, Kathleen. Ordinary
Affects. Durham: Duke UP,
2007. (selected parts)
Hill Collins, Patricia. From
Black Power to Hip Hop:
Racism, Nationalism and
Feminism. Philadelphia,
2006., ch. 1.
Moore “Racism in the English
Language”
Lauter, Paul. Race and
Gender in the Shaping of
American Literary Canon.
Berlant, Lauren. Poor Eliza.
American Literature, Vol. 70,
No. 3, No More Separate
Spheres! Sep., 1998, pp. 635668.
Literature
11.
12.
13.
14.