C. A. Brammer, Ph.D.
Gender Communication Smith Hall 248
Fall 2009 Phone: 696-2810 (O)
522-2194 (H)
“Gender, like culture, organizes for its members different
influence strategies, ways of communicating, non-verbal
languages, and ways of perceiving the world.”
Carol Tavris, The Mismeasure of Woman. (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1992), p. 291.
TEXT:
Wood, J. T. (2008). Gendered Lives: Communication, gender, and culture,
8th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
(Graduates and Undergraduates)
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
The purpose of this course is to examine gender as it is created and recreated through the process of communication. Gender is the social construction of femininity and masculinity within cultures. Gender stereotypes are behaviors that are stereotypically associated with males and females but are not necessarily accurate reflections of actual communication behavior. This implies three priorities for our class. First, we’ll explore multiple ways communication in families, schools, media, and society in general creates and perpetuates gender roles. Second, we’ll consider how we enact socially created gender differences in public and private settings and how this affects success, satisfaction, and self-esteem. Third, and perhaps most important, we’ll connect theory and research to our personal lives. Your experiences, insights, questions, and ideas are a key part of this course. Throughout the term we’ll consider not only what is in terms of gender roles, but also what might be and how we, as change agents, may act to improve our individual and collective lives.
Course Philosophy
Learning is an active process in which we all participate. Viewing learning as an active process implies several significant distinctions between many traditional classroom interactions and what I hope this course will become for each of us. First, an active process suggests the importance of understanding and experiencing ideas as they relate to our own lives, rather than just remembering a list of facts. This course should provide us with plenty of material upon which to reflect as we consider the pervasive influence of gender on personal identity and societal structures.
Second, a process continually evolves with no clear beginning or end. Hence, this course should become a dialogue between all of us as we reflect upon the material presented and its relevance in our experiences. Such a conversation includes responsibilities to which we must all agree. Clearly, one initial responsibility involves being in class regularly. But merely being in class is not enough to create a climate in which we can all learn. Being prepared for class is an additional commitment that is necessary from each of us. A quick reading of the assigned material will do little to prepare for class. The nature of the material presented in this course invites critical reflection upon the ideas and a willingness to share our insights and perspectives on personal and potentially controversial topics. A final and vitally important responsibility involves a willingness to be open to and consider the thoughts and ideas of others in the classroom. If there are thirty of us in the course, then there will be at least thirty different perspectives. No one experience or viewpoint is more important or more valuable than any other. You may not agree with the views expressed by others in the course, but we must all agree to respect each individual’s right to have and share their own experiences. Hearing and listening to the perspectives of others should do nothing more than create greater understanding of the diversity of experience in contemporary American society.
ATTENDANCE:
Attendance is required! Missing two classes will result in the lowering of your grade by a letter; every absence there after will result in another letter grade reduction.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
1. Students should come to class prepared to discuss the assigned readings by submitting 2 Focus Questions from the readings.
2. 2 Responses to Judgement Call Questions and Oral Report 100 points each
3. 2 abstracts from current literature in the field (Undergraduates) and oral reports
25 points each (abstract) 20 points each (oral reports)
4. 3 abstracts from current literature in the field (Graduate students) and oral reports
25 points each (abstract) 20 points each (oral reports)
5. Research Project (Graduate students) 250 points
6. Mid-term 100 points
7. Final 100 points
GRADING SCALE:
A = 93 % B = 85% C = 72% D = 65%
****ATTENDANCE AND CLASS PARTICIPATION WILL BE USED TO DETERMINE BORDERLINE GRADES
Assignments:
Class Business: Each day the first ten minutes of class will be used for discussion of some of the many ways gender issues surface in the world in which we live. As a semester-long course, there is never enough time to include all of the interesting topics that arise from studying gender and communication. “Class business” will allow us to consider more of the ways gender issues pop up in our lives and experiences. As the course progresses, we will all be more aware of the power of gender and the prevalence of gender stereotypes. Readings, television programs, advertisements, classroom experiences, and our interactions with others all provide fertile ground for material for “class business.” Please be willing to bring in examples for discussion and also be ready to share your perspectives on the issues raised. Finally, “class business” is considered fair game for test questions--the ways we notice gender issues in daily life are at least as important as other material from the readings, lectures, and class discussions.
Focus Questions. In order to facilitate discussion, participation, and critical thinking, you are required to submit at least two “focus questions/comments” for each class, as noted on the syllabus. These questions/comments, which may be handwritten, should demonstrate careful reading and consideration of the assignments. Further, you are expected to push beyond the surface to explore or question the underlying assumptions and the implications of the material. Your focus questions/comments are to be submitted at the beginning of class, and will not be accepted after discussion has begun. They will be assigned from “0” to “5” points depending on their quality, and will account for 10% of your course grade.
Judgment Calls: There are no right or wrong answers to the Judgment Calls. Rather, they are designed to highlight the pervasiveness of gender issues in society and to stimulate thought, discussion, and research on gender, communication, and culture. They aim not only to engage you in controversial issues, but also to guide you to recognize assumptions that lie behind positions and implications of adopting various stances.
The following is a brief index of the titles of each Judgment Call and suggested Chapters with which you might apply the exercise:
Judgment Call #1: What is Feminism? Introduction and/or Ch.1
Judgment Call #2: Is Power Feminism Feminist? Chapter 3
Judgment Call #3: How Important Are Men’s
Issues and Men’s Movements? Chapter 4
Judgment Call #4: Should the Equal Rights
Amendment be Passed? Chapter 3 or Epilogue
Judgment Call #5: Should Same Sex Education
Be Allowed in Schools that Receive
Federal Support? Chapter 9
Judgment Call #6: Should All Work Places Be
Required to Provide Family Leave to Male
and Female Employees? Chapter 10
Judgment Call #7: What’s A Fair Share of
Housework and Child Care? Chapter 8
Judgment Call #8: Were Media Portrayals of
Brandi Chastain Sexist? Chapter 11
Judgment Call #9: Who Can Use Men’s and
Women’s Bathrooms? Chapter 3 or Epilogue
JUDGMENT CALL #1:
Feminism is a very ambiguous word that means different things to different people. This has always been true. In the 1800s some people of both sexes saw the first wave of feminism as a movement for the rights women obviously deserved but had been denied in the United States. Other women and men saw feminism as an appalling movement that challenged both secular traditions and divine laws. The second wave of feminism in the United States, which began in the 1960s, was equally controversial and aroused equally disparate judgments—it was viewed as a virtuous liberatory movement and a contemptible affront to home, family, and the rightful roles of man and woman.
Opinions about feminists are every bit as divergent as those about feminism. Feminists are described as courageous crusaders for civil rights, man-hating bra burners, peace-loving people, and wreckers of tradition. They are viewed as confident and aggressive, brave and brazen, and moderate and extremist. There is probably no social movement in America about which opinions are more divided.
What do you think feminism is? Now that you’ve read about different branches of feminism, can you create an all-encompassing definition of what it is and what it stands for? The following web site and prompts may help you think about this issue.
To learn how NOW, the most prominent mainstream feminist organization, defines feminism and feminist issues, to: http//www.now.org/.
Next, use a search engine to find terms such as “critiques of feminism” and “problems with feminism.”
¨ Identify recurrent criticisms of feminism.
¨ Do these criticisms seem valid in light of the information presented in Chapter Three of your textbook?
¨ Do feminists offer responses to the criticisms (for instance, does the NOW web site address any of them)? If so, how do feminists respond?
¨ Having read about many different kinds of feminism, can you identify and themes that weave through the range of feminisms? What, if anything, is common to the different branches of feminism in the United States?
¨ Is feminism needed as a movement in the United States today?
¨ Is feminism a social, intellectual, political, or philosophical movement, or is it a combination of these?
References
Feminist Agenda Homepage. http://www.got.net/~elained/index.html.
Whelan, I. (1995). Modern Feminist Thought: From the Second Wave to “Post feminism.” New York University Press.
JUDGMENT CALL #2:
IS POWER FEMINISM FEMINIST?
Power feminists such as Naomi Wolf and Katie Roiphe (discussed in Chapter 3) claim that they are feminists and that the principles and goals they advance are feminist. At the same time, they criticize mainstream feminism and feminists for encouraging women to see themselves as victims and for not urging women to take charge of their lives and quit complaining about discrimination, violence against women, and other forms of oppression.
Critics of power feminism argue that the movement is both anti-woman and anti-feminist. They claim that the women who advocate it are financially very well off, attractive, college educated and otherwise privileged. Critics charge that power feminism may work for women who are advantaged, but it doesn’t speak for or about women who do not enjoy privileges such as wealth and education.
Do you think power feminism is feminist? To answer the question, reread the discussion in Chapter 3 and then consider the prompts for reflection:
¨ Who defines whether a movement is feminist or not? Do people such as Naomi Wolf and Katie Roiphe have the right to call themselves “power feminists” if they choose to?
¨ What makes a movement feminist?
¨ Must a movement represent all women to be feminist?
¨ Does mainstream feminism encourage women to see themselves as victims as some power feminists claim?
¨ Can all—or most—women take charge of their own lives with the resources they command and current social structures and practices?
¨ What entitles someone to speak for others, or to claim to represent the interests of others? Wolf and Roiphe, for example, claim to speak for “women,” yet Wolf and Roiphe are atypically privileged financially, educationally, and otherwise. Does their privileged status affect the credibility of their claim to speak for women?
¨ In what ways is power feminists’ assertion that women should quit complaining about discrimination similar to charges that racial minorities should quit complaining about discrimination?
References
Hooks, B. (1994). Outlaw Culture. New York: Routledge.
Roiphe, K. (1993). The Morning After: Sex, Fear, and Feminism on Campus.
Boston, MA: Little, Brown. Go to Amazon.Com to read reviews of this book.
Wolf, N. (1993). Fire with Fire: The New Female Power and How it Will Change the 21st Century. New York: Random House. Go to Amazon.Com to read reviews of this book.
Wood, J. T. (1996). Dominant and muted discourses in popular representations of feminism. Quarterly Journal of Speech, 82, 171-185.
JUDGMENT CALL #3:
HOW IMPORTANT ARE MEN’S ISSUES AND MEN’S MOVEMENTS?
Men’s movements and efforts to raise awareness of men’s issues are relatively recent developments in the United States. In the 1960s when the second wave of American feminism began, there were no identifiable men’s movements. Men who believed that the existing gender ideology oppressed men as well as women generally defined themselves as male feminists or just plain feminists. Only in the last two decades of the 20th century did we see a number of distinct men’s movements emerge. In different ways these movements have offered definitions of men and manhood and have named problems and oppressions men face.
Some laypersons, scholars, and social commentators think the men’s movements serve valuable purposes. According to them, men have not reflected enough on the identities society imposes on them or on the cultural practices that oppress men. At several universities and colleges, there are men’s studies courses and sometimes whole curricula or departments of men’s studies, paralleling departments of women’s studies. These courses aim to raise awareness of the ways in which current social views and expectations of men are oppressive and potentially lethal.
Yet not everyone thinks that men’s movements and men’s studies are needed. Some scholars, laypersons and social commentators think that men’s movements tend to be made up of “whiners.” According to them, men are the ones in charge of society so they have no right to complain about how its practices oppress them. Also, say these critics, men still enjoy the bulk of privileges, including wealth and status, in American society. Thus, they argue, any problems men have or discriminations they experience are comparatively much smaller than those facing women.
What do you think? Is it legitimate to have courses in men’s studies? Are men’s movements serving valuable purposes in our society? Consider these probes in the course of answering the questions:
¨ Visit some of the web sites for men’s movements that are identified in the FYI boxes in Chapter 4. After reading materials on these cites, what do you think of men’s movements? Do you think the issues they say face men are legitimate? Do you think they are as compelling as those facing women? Do you or men you know identify with any of them?
¨ What do you see as the greatest problem or source of oppression facing men in the United States today? Is it possible to generalize about the “greatest problem facing men” when men vary in race-ethnicity, economic status, sexual orientation, and so forth?
¨ What would be the advantages and disadvantages of dismantling programs in Women’s Studies and Men Studies and creating programs in Gender Studies? Does focusing on each sex and gender separately foster greater self-reflection than would be likely with a focus on both?
¨ To learn more about the history of men’s studies and the issues addressed in men’s studies settings, visit the site of the American Men’s Studies Association: http://www.mensstudies.org/
References
Keen, S. (1991). Fire in the Belly: On Being a Man. New York: Bantam. Read reviews—positive and negative—of Keen’s book on Amazon.com.
Rabinowitz, F., & Cochran, S. (1994). Man Alive: A Primer of Men’s Issues. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole.
JUDGMENT CALL #4:
SHOULD THE EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT BE PASSED?
The complete text of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) is this: “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.”
In 1972 the amendment was introduced into Congress and was quickly winning support in state-by-state balloting. In 1973 35 of the 38 states needed to ratify the amendment had voted for it. Then Phyllis Schlafly launched the Stop ERA movement and the amendment was defeated. Schlafly and others who worked to defeat the ERA argued that, if passed, it would destroy femininity, turn women into men, and undermine the traditional balance of power and roles in families. Interestingly, one of the most effective arguments against ERA was that it would mean women and men would use the same bathrooms. Since the amendment was defeated in the 1970s, it has repeatedly been introduced into Congress and repeatedly been passed by. Today the ERA is not the law of the land.
Do you think the ERA should be passed? Visit the web site identified below and then consider the prompts to decide where you stand on this issue:
Debate about the ERA is not limited to the last 40 years. To read arguments for and against the ERA that were presented in the 1920s, visit this web site: http://womhist.binghamton.edu/era/doclist.htm
¨ What would be the value of passing the ERA? Is the amendment strictly symbolic or would it also have material, pragmatic consequences in how women and men live, work, and interact?
¨ If the ERA would not necessitate any real changes, then what is the justification for opposing it?
¨ Does the lack of ERA’s passage mean that the United States is not committed to equal rights for men and women?
¨ Why did the idea of having women and men share the same bathrooms convince many people to vote against ERA? In many other countries, including first world countries, public restrooms are not sex-segregated.
¨ If you wanted to become actively involved in pushing for ratification of the ERA, what campaign strategies would you use? How would you structure your advocacy to lessen the likelihood that another Stop ERA campaign could succeed?
References
Campbell, K. (1983). To be or not to be a woman. Communication Quarterly, 31, 101-108.
Davis, F. (1991). Moving the Mountain: The Women’s Movement in America Since 1960. New York: Simon and Schuster. Go to Amazon.Com to read reviews of this book.
Solomon, M. (1983). Stopping ERA: A pyrrhic victory. Communication Quarterly, 31, 109-117.
JUDGMENT CALL #5:
SHOULD SAME SEX EDUCATION BE ALLOWED IN SCHOOLS THAT
RECEIVE FEDERAL SUPPORT?
Title IX states that schools that receive federal funds cannot discriminate on the basis of sex. Thus, schools that accept federal support must not show preference to either sex in admission, and they must provide “equal opportunities” in school-sponsored courses, co-curricular, and athletic activities.
Title IX was recently tested when women applied to the Citadel, a military training school in South Carolina that had admitted only males since it opened its doors. The Citadel went through several levels of court battles in its fight to remain an exclusively male school, but the Citadel lost the fight. The courts ruled that as long as the Citadel accepted federal funds, it must admit qualified women who want to enroll in one of the top military training institutions. To do otherwise would be to refuse to provide women with the same opportunities to prepare for military careers that men have historically had.
Even though Title IX prohibits discrimination by schools receiving federal support, some educators believe that sex-segregated education is desirable—at least in some cases. For example, research has shown that many female students learn more in sex-segregated math and science classes. Studies also show that a greater percentage of women who attend traditional women’s colleges become leaders in business and government than women who attend co-educational schools.
Yet the law is very clear. Any school that accepts federal funds must provide equal opportunities to students of both sexes and all races. Supporters of these laws argue that sex-segregated education exists now and can continue to exist in private schools, but not in schools that receive federal funding.
Is it acceptable to have sex-segregated education (classes or whole schools) when federal support is provided? As you reflect on the question, consider these prompts and consult the Web sites listed below:
¨ Can separate education be “equal?” Is it possible that women and men are more likely to receive an equal quality education if they are in separate classes or schools?
¨ To learn more about research (pro and con) on sex-segregated education and about alternative ways of achieving gender equity in education visit this site: http://www.now.org/issues/education/single-sex-education-comments.html
¨ Should federal funding be a criterion for making decisions about how educational institutions operate?
¨ Does historic discrimination (both legal and attitudinal) against women justify providing special educational opportunities to girls and women today?
¨ Is it fair to argue that there should be women only classes in science and math because those classes benefit women, and, at the same time, to argue that historically male institutions such as the Citadel should not be allowed to exclude women?
¨ If women are admitted to formerly all-male schools, should the schools adjust their policies and practices? The Citadel, for example, prides itself on harsh discipline, lack of privacy, and punitive treatment of students.
To gain understanding of military institutions and how their history might affect your judgment on the issue of admitting women, visit these web sites:
¨ Virginia Military Academy: http://www.vmi.edu/
¨ The Citadel: http://citadel.edu/
¨ Military Schools—Military Schools for Boys: http://www.army-navyacademy.com/
¨ NOW (National Organization for Women): http://www.now.org/
After entering the site, go to the issues tab and select “women in the military.”
References
Spender, D. (1989). Invisible Women: The Schooling Scandal. London: Women’s Press.
Sadker, M., & Sadker, D. (1994). Failing at Fairness: How America’s Schools Shortchange Girls. New York: Simon and Schuster. Go to Amazon.Com to read reviews of this book.
JUDGMENT CALL #6:
SHOULD ALL WORK PLACES BE REQUIRED TO PROVIDE PAID
FAMILY LEAVE TO MALE AND FEMALE EMPLOYEES?
In 1993 the Family and Medical Leave Act was passed and became law in this country. As explained in Gendered Lives, the act states that, under certain conditions, employers must give employees up to 12 weeks of leave for family issues and medical problems. Your text also notes that there are some limits to the Act. Specifically,
1. The law does not apply to employers who have less than 50 workers.
2. Not all workers in 100+ worker companies are eligible for family and medical leave. Employers may designate certain workers as “essential personnel” who cannot be granted leave. Criteria for this designation are unclear.
3. To qualify for leave, an employee must have worked at least one year and a minimum of 1,240 hours a year and not be in the top 10% of the company’s salary levels.
4. Nothing in the law requires that employers pay full or partial salaries to workers who take family and medical leave. Obviously, employees who have fewer resources are less likely to be able to afford to take an unpaid.
Other developed countries have more generous family leave policies and other countries typically pay full or partial salaries to employees who take leaves. In the United States businesses have argued that they cannot afford to pay for family leaves—that doing so would be prohibitively costly.
Currently there are efforts to expand the 1993 Act. Some of the efforts are legislative attempts to lower the ceiling on company size so that businesses with fewer than 50 or more employees would need to provide family and medical leave. Other efforts in the private sphere focus on increasing the number of men who take family leaves so that men and women can participate more equally in raising children. And many people think that paid family leaves should be provided to all qualified employees. They reason that if other countries can afford it, so can the United States. Further, they argue, paid family leaves are in the best interests of the whole society because parental involvement with children strengthens families, which, in turn, strengthens the society.
Where do you stand on this issue? Do you think that all employers should be required to provide paid family leave to employees? As you think about the issue, visit the web sites listed below and consider the prompts that follow.
The U.S. Department of Labor has a web site that offers information on the current Family and Medical Leave Act. To learn the specifics of this Act, visit the site at: http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/fmla/.
Do you think it is employers’ responsibility to pay for leaves employees take to care for children or other family members? Is family leave different than other benefits, such as medical insurance and disability leave that employers provide to employees?
¨ Women who work outside of the home are far more likely than men who work outside of the home to take family leave to take care of newly born or adopted children. Yet research demonstrates convincingly that fathers and mothers are both important to children. Should fathers be encouraged or required to take time off when a new child enters a family?
¨ How do you think children would be affected if both parents took time off to care for them and to participate in raising them?
¨ How do you think fuller involvement of both parents in raising children would affect society?
References
Hewlett, S. (1991).When the Bough Breaks: The Cost of Neglecting Our Children. New York: Basic Books.
JUDGMENT CALL #7:
WHAT’S A FAIR SHARE OF HOUSEWORK AND CHILD CARE?
Myranda and Scott have been married for four years. Both work outside of their home, he as a real estate broker and she as a computer systems analyst. For the first three years of their marriage Myranda and Scott managed to keep their home clean enough, although Myranda did more housecleaning than Scott. Last year, however, they had a child, Jackson, and the tasks at home multiplied. Now Myranda and Scott continuously quarrel about housework and child care responsibilities. Here is a typical exchange between them:
Myranda: I thought you were going to do the laundry when you got home.
Scott: I meant to, but I had to stay late at work. I’ll try to do it tomorrow.
Myranda: Tomorrow is no good. We are out of diapers and Jackson needs his
green rompers for the picnic tomorrow.
Scott: He can wear something else.
Myranda: Why should he have to? Is it too much to ask for you to do a fair
share around here? I work just as much and just as hard as you
every day. Yet, I always wind up having to work harder when I
get home, usually because you didn’t do something you promised to take care of.
Scott: Lighten up. I do a fair share. My father never did a load of laundry in his life, not to mention vacuuming and taking the baby to the doctor’s and all of the other stuff I do. I do more than a fair share.
Myranda: You don’t do half of what needs to be done. It’s not fair for me to
be pulling my load and part of yours too.
Scott: Then let things slip a little. Everything doesn’t always have to be
perfect around here. We could get everything we need to do done if you would just be more realistic in your expectations.
Myranda: What’s unrealistic about wanting clean diapers for Jackson?
As you read the above exchange, did you find yourself thinking one of the spouses was more reasonable than the other? What do you think is a fair share? To guide your reflection, visit the web site noted below and consider these prompts:
What happens when spouses or romantic partners have different standards for what counts as a “fair share?” Myranda compares what Scott does to what she does and thinks he’s not pulling his share. Scott compares what he does to what his own father did and concludes he is pulling his share?
¨ When couples agree to share responsibilities for housework and child care, should they have equal say in the standards, or expectations, for what needs to be done and how well it needs to be done? In other words, if should the person doing a particular task, such as dusting, have the authority to decide how it is done and to what standard of perfection?
¨ What social and personal factors might explain why more women work outside of the home today, but a proportionate number of men have not assumed a substantial share of homemaking and family care responsibilities?
References
Hochschild, A., with Machung, A. (1989). The second shift: Working parents and the revolution at home. New York: Viking/Penguin. Go to Amazon.Com to read reviews of this book.
Suitor, J. (1991). Marital quality and satisfaction with the division of household labor. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 53, 221-230.
Wood, J. T. (1996). But I Thought You Meant. . .: Misunderstandings in Human Communication. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield. (Read Chapter 17, “A Fair Share,” pages 224-239).
JUDGMENT CALL #8:
WERE MEDIA PORTRAYALS OF BRANDI CHASTAIN SEXIST?
In July of 1999 the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team won the World Cup. In the moment of victory after kicking the winning shot, U.S. player Brandi Chastain ripped off her shirt and waved it at the crowd with a black sports bra as the only clothing above her waist. Photos of Chastain in her sports bra were featured on the covers of Newsweek and Sports Illustrated, as well as many newspapers. Chastain was the player who captured media’s attention—not teammates Briana Scurry whose magnificent work deflected one of the Chinese kicks or Mia Hamm who is the highest scoring woman in the history of international soccer. Chastain was the media’s pick.
Many people regarded the photos of Chastain as showing a superb athlete in the flush of victory—exhilarated and impulsively celebrating. But others thought the photographs reflected media’s intent to portray women as sexual objects. Columnist G.D. Gearino (1999, p. 1E) wrote that Chastain wasn’t on the cover because of her athletic skills but rather “because she kicked the winning goal and then ripped her shirt off to scamper about in her underwear.” Geary argued that the media “love photographs and videotape of women in their underwear.”
Do you think media were sexist in choosing to feature photos of Chastain in her sports bra? If possible, view the cover of Newsweek’s July 19, 1999 issue. The following prompts may be useful in thinking through the question.
¨ Is it different for a woman athlete to rip off her shirt in the throes of victory than for a man athlete to do so? Tennis star Pete Sampras removed his shirt on the court, and nobody commented.
¨ Does it matter whether Chastain ripped off her shirt because of “momentary insanity,” as she claimed, or as a calculated move to seize media’s attention, as Geary and others imply?
¨ Is an athlete whose muscles and strength are visible and who is wearing a sports bra a sexualized image? Is it the same kind of image as a woman wearing a lacy bra?
¨ Aside from the fact that cover photos of Chastain showed her in the sports bra, was the shot of her a better symbol of the victory and the success of the women’s team than shots of Scurry deflecting a ball or Hamm playing in field would have been?
References
Gearino, G. D. (1999, 20 July). Soccer’s winning streak. Raleigh News and Observer, p. 1E.
Newsweek. (1999, July 19). Cover.
Sports Illustrated (1999, July) Cover.
JUDGMENT CALL #9:
WHO CAN USE MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BATHROOMS?
In her book, The Alchemy of Race and Rights (1991) Patricia Williams describes an experience she had while teaching law in California. One of her students, whom she refers to only as S., began law school as a man, but was very unhappy as a man. S. had a sex change operation. One of the greatest practical problems S. faced after the operation was using the bathroom. Women students objected to having S. use the women’s restroom and claimed they felt “raped” when she entered. Male students were equally vociferous in insisting that S. could not use the men’s restroom because they perceived S. might feel attracted to them. It was proposed that S. would use the dean’s bathroom, but the dean felt this would violate his “inner sanctum” and give S. access to his private office that no other students had.
How would you resolve this issue? The following web sites and prompts should guide your reflection:
¨ What does it mean to be transgendered or transsexual? How you view the case of S. and an appropriate resolution of it depend on your knowledge of S. and others like her. If you’d like to learn more, visit either or both of these web sites: http://www.ftmi.org/ or http://www.itpeople.org.
¨ Is sex or gender more important in the controversy? What gender was S. both before and after the sex-change procedures?
¨ Is sex or gender a property of individuals?
¨ How is sex defined—chromosomes (S.’s did not change), reproductive organs (at least some of S.’s did change), hormones, secondary sex characteristics (facial hair), and dress?
¨ Who decides what is appropriate and inappropriate for each sex and each gender? Should others have the right to define who a person is and what she or he can and cannot do?
References
Butler, J. (1990). Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity. New York: Routledge.
Williams, P. (1991). The Alchemy of Race and Rights. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Go to Amazon.Com to read reviews of this book.
Abstract Papers:
Choose a journal article on issues related to communication, gender and/or gender ideologies. Critique the article. Your critique should begin with a short summary of the article (less than 1 page). You may want to critique the rationale behind the study, the methodology, the conclusion(s), and what this research adds to the body of literature in the area you have chosen. Be sure to include some overall conclusions about the article. In other words, what does this particular journal article tell us about communication and gender?
Remember, the emphasis of your abstract should be on evaluating the article and not on the summary.
Potential topics include how parents communicate differently with male and female infants, gender differences in child development, biological differences and their implications for communication, historical treatment of males and females. Remember, your article must deal with gender and/or gender ideologies and communication. (For example, a critique of an article on differential pay received by women and men is not appropriate.)
Suggested length: 2 to 3 pages.
Include a copy of the journal article with your abstract.
You may find appropriate articles in:
1. Index to Communication Journals
2. Feminist Theory Journal
3. Gender and Society Journal
4. Women’s Studies in Communication Journal
5. Women’s Studies International Quarterly
6. Sex Role’s Journal
Graduate Research Project:
Conduct a study in which you examine some facet of communication and gender. You might want to choose a study in a journal article and replicate it. Or you may want to explore a particular area of research. For example, you could examine the presentation of gender ideologies in magazines marketed to teenagers. Or you could examine gender differences in college students’ perceptions of nontraditional occupations. Make sure that your area of investigation is narrow enough to be conducted in the time that you have.
1. Remember, your topic must deal with gender and communication.
2. Use APA citation style format.
3. 15 to 20 sources.
4. Suggested length: 15 to 25 pages.
Proposed Schedule
08/25 Course Intro, Syllabus review none
09/01 Assumptions about gender Chapter 1
Focus questions due
09/08 Theories of Gender Development Chapter 2
Abstract 1 Due Graduate & Undergraduate Focus questions due
09/15 Women’s Movements Chapter 3
Focus questions due
09/22 Men's Movements Chapter 4
Abstract 2 Due Graduate & Undergraduate Focus questions due
09/29 Film
10/06 Becoming Gendered Chapter 7
Judgment Call Paper 1Due Focus questions due
10/13 Midterm Exam
10/20 Gendered Education Chapter 9
Focus questions due
10/27 Gendered Verbal Communication Chapter 5
Abstract 3 Due Graduate Focus questions due
11/03 Gendered Non-verbal Communication Chapter 6
Focus questions due
11/10 Gendered Friendships p. 184-193
Judgment Call Paper 2Due Focus questions due
11/17 Research Paper Discussion
11/24 Fall Break
12/01 Mediated Gender Chapter 11
Research Papers Due Focus questions due
12/08 Gendered violence Chapter 12
Focus questions due
12/15 FINAL EXAM 4:00PM – 6:00PM