Gender and Sexuality Studies

Gender and Sexuality Studies is an interdisciplinary concentration in which students examine the construction of gender and sexuality in social, cultural, political, economic, or scientific contexts. Each concentrator will focus on a well–defined topic or questions and work closely with a concentration advisor to develop a program that investigates this focus area rigorously and supplements it with foundational courses in the relevant disciplines. Typical areas of focus might include the acculturation of gender, sexuality and race in American politics or activism; the construction of sexual and gendered identities in educational institutions or in various forms of visual media; a contrast between different cultural understandings of sexual identity, a particular national literature and history. Such topics will frequently bring questions of gender and sexuality together; however, students may also organize their concentrations to emphasize questions specifically related to gender or to sexuality if they wish. Introductory and methodology courses in the disciplines appropriate to the focus will help students understand the principles grounding such practices as historical research, literary interpretation, and sociological analysis.

Requirements:

The concentration requires 10 courses, 11 for honors concentrators.

1. GNSS 0120. Introductory course on gender and sexuality across the disciplines
2. Four–course focus on some thematic, theoretical, or historical aspect of gender and sexuality
3. Two introductory or methodology courses in disciplines pertinent to the focus
4. One course in gender history, women's history, or history of sexuality
5. One course in feminist theory or theory of sexuality
6. One capstone course, which may include
• an appropriate upper–level seminar from another department, to be approved by the concentration advisor
• an independent study with a fculty member; this project may incorporate a community work component, if appropriate to the student's focus
• for honors, a two–semester honors thesis supervised by a faculty advisor and a second reader

Honors

Candidates for honors must apply to the program's director in their sixth semester. Honors concentrators fulfill the regular requirements, completing a two–semester thesis as their capstone project.

Interested students should contact the concentration advisor: Suzanne Stewart-Steinberg (Suzanne_Stewart-Steinberg@brown.edu). For more information, including current cross-listed courses and sample concentration plans, please consult the concentration webpage (www.pembrokecenter.org/IP_UndergraduateProgram.asp).

Page last updated in February, 2008.

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