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Women’s Studies

Course Code
WS 100  Credits
Title Women Today: Contemporary Women's Issues 
Lasc Area
  • Goal 6
  • Goal 7
 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description This course will examine current issues affecting women in American Society. It also addresses pertinent topics related to gender, diversity and systems of inequality. Topics include women and work, family, law and social policy, gender and mass media, violence against women, sexuality and the body, and women's health. Core class for Women's Studies Minor program. MnTC Goal 6 and 7. 



Course Code
WS 219  Credits
Title Sociology of Sexual Behavior 
Prerequisite SOC 110 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description Examines sociological and social psychological perspectives and research on sexual behavior. Topics include childhood sexual behavior, adolescent sexual behavior, sex and mate selection, marital sex, extramarital sex, and various forms of sexual variation. Same as SOC 219



Course Code
WS 244  Credits
Title Women in World Religions 
Lasc Area Goal 7  
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description This course will survey how gender power and control is represented in various cultural belief systems and expressed in religious practices. The class will stress the concepts of utilizing social norms and historiographical theory in order to analyze human behaviors. The class will also explore the concept of "cultural heritage" and will investigate how it affects the student's personal worldview, values and assumptions. In order to accomplish this goal, the students will be introduced to a wide variety of primary and secondary source documents as well as examples of material culture, and will be expected to provide written analysis of these items. (Same as HIST 344) MnTC Goal 7. 



Course Code
WS 246  Credits
Title Women in Literature 
Lasc Area Goal 6  
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description A study of the various ways women are depicted in imaginative literature and expository prose. Readings vary. Same as ENGL 246. MnTC Goal 6. 



Course Code
WS 247  Credits
Title Women's Studies: Perspectives and Intersections 
Lasc Area
  • Goal 6
  • Goal 7
 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description An introduction to the discipline of Women's Studies. Examines multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary issues in Women's Studies in relation to the sciences, social sciences, humanities and arts. Also investigates disciplinary topics such as women's movements, difference, oppression, race and class. Includes a service learning component. Core class for Women's Studies minor program. MnTC Goal 6 and 7. 



Course Code
WS 268  Credits
Title Global Sexualities in Pop Culture 
Lasc Area
  • Goal 6
  • Goal 8
 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description This course traces the popular representations of diverse sexual and gender identities in a global context. We will explore the cultural constructions of sexuality and gender in mainstream, independent, and feminist film, television, print media, fashion, music and material culture from the perspective of the local and global through the lenses of their cultural, social, political, and ideological functions. Our emphasis will be on contemporary popular cultures in Asia, Africa, the Americas, and Europe through theories of sexuality, gender, race, and the workings of power in global culture industries. Course fulfills Arts and Humanities Area requirement in WGS major or restricted elective in WGS major or minor. MnTC Goal 6 and 8. 



Course Code
WS 300  Credits
Title Biology of Women 
Lasc Area Goal 3 Lab  
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description A study of the gender-related aspects of the biology and behavior of women, including a critical examination of research in this field. Appropriate as an elective only for Biology majors who choose the Health and Medical Science emphasis or the Life Science Emphasis. Lab included. Same as BIOL 300. MnTC Goal 3. 



Course Code
WS 303  Credits
Title Cross Cultural Gender 
Prerequisite ANTH 110 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description A survey of gender roles in various cultures. This class examines the relationship of gender to kinship, economics, political and biological factors. It also addresses culture change and the effect on gender role assignments. Same as ANTH 303



Course Code
WS 305  Credits
Title The Economics of Poverty, Discrimination, and Inequality 
Lasc Area Goal 7  
Course Outline Course Outline 
Writing Intensive Yes  
Description An examination of poverty, discrimination, and income inequality among diverse populations in the United States. Topics include causes of poverty, economics of discrimination in terms of majority and minority groups, and historical perspective of ethnic minorities. Same as ECON 305. MnTC Goal 7. 



Course Code
WS 308  Credits
Title Social Gerontology 
Prerequisite SOC 110 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description This course introduces students to the field of social gerontology for providing an overview of the significant sociological perspectives, social issues, and empirical social science research pertaining to the phenomenon of aging in society. The main goal of the course is to foster an understanding of aging as a process that is characteristic of both individuals and societies through a focus on social factors that shape the individual's experience of aging and the consequences of an aging population for social institutions. Same as SOC 308



Course Code
WS 310  Credits
Title Dominant-Subordinate Group Relations 
Prerequisite SOC 110 
Lasc Area Goal 5  
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description Theoretical, historical and contemporary examination of prejudice, discrimination, and inequalities organized around race, ethnicity, and gender divisions. Same as SOC 310. MnTC Goal 5 



Course Code
WS 312  Credits
Title Rhetorics of Resistance: Feminist Responses from the Humanities 
Lasc Area
  • Goal 6
  • Goal 7
 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Writing Intensive Yes  
Description An examination of feminist responses from the humanities including literature, history, visual and performing arts as well as creative work from the traditional world of women. The course incorporates responses from various multicultural perspectives. MnTC Goal 6 and 7. 



Course Code
WS 314  Credits
Title Feminist Philosophy 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description Critical examination of various feminist theories, both historical and contemporary, and of various definitions of sexism. Students will also examine how feminist theory can be applied to various contemporary moral and social issues. Theorists studied may include Mill, Frye, and Jaggar. Representative contemporary issues may include women's reproductive rights, prostitution, sexual harassment laws, and marriage and family issues. 



Course Code
WS 320  Credits
Title Sociology of the Family 
Prerequisite SOC 110 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description Examines the theoretical issues and research findings pertaining primarily to American family life. Topics include dating and mate selection, alternatives to traditional marriages, marital structure and interaction, and marital dissolution. Same as SOC 320



Course Code
WS 324  Credits
Title Feminist Theory 
Prerequisite WS 100 
Lasc Area
  • Goal 6
  • Goal 7
 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description This course is an examination of feminist theories that analyze women's experiences and women's oppression. Throughout the course we will explore how knowledge, power, gender, and difference are interwoven and how feminist approaches seek to disrupt and reshape systems of inequality on multiple levels. Specific attention will focus on theorizing the intersections of gender-based oppression with racism, classism, and other forms of oppression. MnTC Goal 6 and 7. 



Course Code
WS 325  Credits
Title Critical Thinking & Diversity 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description This course will explore critical thinking skills as they appear in contexts of discussions about diversity. Students will learn to analyze and evaluate arguments including those which involve stereotypes and unrepresentative samples. Both the epistemology of ignorance and critiques of adversarial argumentation will be utilized. The skills learned in the course will be applied to examining the role of feminist critical thinking in dispute resolution. 



Course Code
WS 330  Credits
Title Gender, Justice and the Environment 
Lasc Area
  • Goal 6
  • Goal 10
 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description The course focuses on understanding and identifying solutions to local and global environmental issues in the context of feminist critique. The course will draw from feminist literature, core ecological principles, activist strategies, and other critical writings. MnTC Goal 6 and 10. 



Course Code
WS 333  Credits
Title Sociology of Gender 
Prerequisite SOC 110 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description Focuses on the social construction of gender and consequences of gender stratification for women and men. Topics may include: gender differences; the concept of "gender role"; gender in the economic, political, and educational institutions; discrimination; and the feminist movement. Same as SOC 333



Course Code
WS 334  Credits
Title Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Issues 
Lasc Area Goal 7  
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description Seminar course on the historical and social contexts of personal, cultural, and political aspects of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) life. Same as SOC 334. MnTC Goal 7. 



Course Code
WS 345  Credits
Title Women in Musical Culture 
Lasc Area
  • Goal 6
  • Goal 7
 
Course Outline Course Outline 
Description A history of women in musical culture and critical examination of representations of women in music. Topics examine women's roles in American and European musical cultures, including artistic traditions, popular musics, jazz and folk traditions. Representations of women in musical forms, such as opera, rock music and multimedia, are also considered. MnTC Goals 6 and 7.