Course Description:This course takes as its center the issue of authority in relation to the politics of representation, as manifested in texts, broadly defined, whether they be in science, art, literature or law. These issues are pivotal to debates in contemporary feminist theory and the philosophy/sociology of science. Conventionally, issues of feminism and science, and gender and art have been pursued as separate areas of inquiry. What such an approach obscures, however, are the natural intersections and common themes that bind the epistemologies, politics and ethics of scientific and artistic activities.Among the crucial questions are: How is authority established in texts? How do the artistic conventions and popular views of science continually come together to regenerate the Frankenstein myth—a myth of male self-birthing, steeped in anxieties concerning the control of nature, technology, and the “feminine other”? How does one de-center the subject of Enlightenment science, the “neutral” voice of law, and Romantic or colonial art? In what ways has the historical exclusion of women from the spheres of science, law and “high” art contributed to the rise of patriarchy? How does one move from a politics of exclusion to one of integration? What historical cases illustrate the correlation between scientific, artistic, legal and literary representations and the resultant political and economic hierarchies, differentiated along gendered, racial, and class lines? Is there such a thing as an essentially “feminine” type of science, art, law or literature? How has nature been gendered in both science, literature, law and art? Can one make an argument for a distinctively “feminist” epistemology based on biological or sociological grounds, rooted in representations in/of science, literature, law and art? What would be the conditions of possibility within which one could speak of a “feminist” ethics related to these spheres? What feminist strategies can be employed to move towards a more just and humane world, particularly as rooted within scientific, legal, literary and artistic modes of production, expression, and consumption? Traditional political theory links the issue of author-ity with the entitlement to speak, and conventional modes of representation in both science and art have implicitly set up standards of who is speaking versus who listens; who dissects and who is dissected; who gazes, and who is gazed upon. In contrast, feminist critiques have focused on destabilizing and unmasking the complex genealogies that underlie traditional assumptions concerning who may speak to/about/for whom or what. Thus, scientific and artistic representations, as gendered and historical configurations of power rooted in specific cultural and economic contexts, constitute a particularly fertile ground for examining and re-envisaging the nature of authority, and of recognizing and redirecting the political nature of representation in science, art, literature and law. Method:^TOP This course will employ a lecture and seminar format. That means that it is largely discussion-oriented, and that students play an active role in ensuring the success of the course. Students are required to come in, having read the assigned texts for the day, in order to present and defend their interpretations of the texts, as well as critique those of others and pose clarificatory questions. Each presentation, inclusive of the summary and analysis of main points, as well as a discussion session, should take an hour at most; the remaining time will be spent on tying up loose ends by the professor. Extended discussions via e-mail over an issue posted by the professor during the periods in between sessions will be used to help set up and continue generating class momentum. Students are required to log in once a week, with a deadline of Saturday, midnight (with few exceptions, specified in the Blackboard Discussion Board), to carry on these electronically mediated conversations. All these will occur under strict supervision by the professor. Relevant films, which should be integrated with the texts, are shown weekly; if you miss these showings, you are responsible for watching the films on your ownAfter a number of sessions handled principally by the professor, the duty of giving a brief summary and critique of some of the assigned texts for the day, and of generating discussion, will be rotated among the students (if there are enough students in class, initially in pairs, and then later, individually; attempts will be made to ensure this is done at least twice to allow students the opportunity to learn from feedback and improve). At the end of the course, students will be required to hand in papers, which must be 11-15 pages, double spaced, typewritten, 1 inch margins around, 12 point font) on topics of their choice related to the course. Movement towards the completion of the paper will be achieved through a step-wise procedure that will expose students to the fundamental steps involved in producing an academic research paper. These steps move from heading a discussion on a particular topic, writing up a preliminary topic statement, to a first draft, and culminating in revisions based on student/peer reviews and comments from the professor and a supervised grader; commentators must come in with clear copies of their comments on the papers, with the original going back to the peer, and the copy going to the professor. This exercise counts as a bonus TC. The last two meetings of the course will be devoted to brief 10-15 minute presentations of students’ papers, followed by 5-10 minute periods of questioning from the open floor by the class. Such a format will give students exposure to a conference format, where papers are professionally delivered, and the final paper may be seen as raw material that may be refined in preparation for possible publication with a journal or further presentation at a conference. To ensure that all students will have adequate time to present their final works, the final two weeks of meetings will be devoted to these presentations, alongside self-evaluation for attendance and participation and the usual SPOT evaluation. Attendance at these sessions is a requirement to passing! Attendance and Deadline Policies:^TOP Attendance will be checked at the very start of the class; if you come in late, sign up in a sheet to be placed in the back of the classroom. Three absences or six latenesses will not in any deter you from being averaged up if the rest of your work is deserving of it. Anything beyond that will result in your being averaged down. As mentioned earlier, attendance for the last five sessions are a requirement to passing.Full credit will be given only if requirements are completed on time. Attendance will be checked every day, and critical and sustained participation in class and Blackboard discussions will amount to 20% of the total mark. In cases of emergency or illness, it is the student’s responsibility to inform the professor. If the student informs the professor after the assigned date, then s/he may only submit a late requirement if and only if: 1.) proof is presented, backing up why the deadline was missed; and 2.) the student is willing to take a grade deduction to the next lower level (i.e., an “A” becomes an “A-“ and so on). If the student informs the professor at least 24 hours before the scheduled requirement is due, then, provided there are justifiable reasons (backed up with proof) that do not unfairly disadvantage other members of the class who submit their requirements on time, the student may obtain permission to submit said requirement at a slightly later date (to be set by agreement between professor and student). There is NO make-up/late work acceptable for minor requirements, such as e-mail posts and chapter summaries. The two lowest or missed Discussion Board posts (each worth 200 points) will be canceled but that is all; the rest will be averaged to comprise part of 15% of your cumulative grade (5% for attendance and in-class participation). Nature and Amount of Writing:^TOP Writing for this course will include Discussion Board posts (once a week, which will probably accrue to about 30 pages, depending on how talkative the students get); a preliminary project proposal, inclusive of literature review and methodology description (2-3 pages); a preliminary draft (7-10 pages); a review/response to a peer’s draft; and a final paper (11-15 pages, typewritten, DS, 1 inch margins; plus a bibliography). Note that the final paper is produced through a stepwise process of drafting and feedback, from the professor and peers.In-Class Activities:^TOP --In Class Attendance and Participation: Oral participation in class on a regular basis will count towards 10% of the final grade.--Student-led Discussions: Each student will be responsible for at least two readings and their in-class discussion to be marked along the following lines: Has the student read the material thoroughly and carefully, and come up with an intelligent and well reasoned summary and critique? Has s/he prepared questions for discussion, particularly ones that trace recurring themes, issues or topics in the course? Has the student done any outside reading to supplement her/his interpretation? This will account for 10% of the final mark, and will serve as a preparation for the final paper presentation. --Threaded Conversations: Done weekly. NO MAKE-UP AND LATE WORK ARE ALLOWED. This comprises 20% of the total mark. Two free passes are allowed. --Final Paper Presentations: Each student will be given between 20-25 minutes to present their findings and entertain questions from the floor, much like a conference. The following guidelines will be used as criteria for marking, which will comprise 15% of the final mark:
--Final Paper: This will comprise about 20% of the total mark, and will be graded in keeping with the criteria of content and organization outlined above. Out-of-Class Course Activities:^TOP --Students will be required to log in once a week to respond to a topic posted by the professor, either on a topic that “spills over” from a classroom discussion, or as a preliminary look at a topic that is to be discussed next within the threaded conversation format. This will encourage an atmosphere of collegiality and enable further discussion beyond the bounds of classroom time. This will account for 20% of the final mark. Three free passes are allowed.Final Mark Breakdown:^TOP
Required Books^TOP NOTE: All materials other than those detailed below listed in the syllabus will be available via Strozier library and the campus course site. All required books have been ordered by Bill’s Bookstore.
Grading System:^TOP
Final Note:^TOP By Week 2, session 1, Tuesday, please hand in the following information on the smallest sized index card with a recent photo of you.Name: Nickname: Year: Major: Minor: Background in English, Humanities, Philosophy, Criticism or Women’s Studies (if any): Home Phone: E-Mail: |