WMGS 212 - History of Sexuality

Institution:

Trinity College

Subject:

Description:

Sexuality is commonly understood as a natural or biological instinct, but as scholars have recently shown, it is better understood as a set of cultural practices that have a history. Starting with the ancient Greeks, this course examines the culturally and historically variable meanings attached to sexuality in Western culture. It pays particular attention to the emergence of sexuality in the 19th century as an instrument of power. It also considers how race, class, gender, and nationality have influenced the modern organization of sexuality. Topics covered include sex before sexuality, sexuality and colonialism, sexuality and U.S. slavery, and the emergence of the hetero/homosexual binarism in the late 19th century. Primary readings include The Symposium, A Passage to India, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, The Well of Loneliness, and The Swimming Pool Library. Secondary readings include work by Michel Foucault, David Halperin, Angela Davis, Hazel Carby, Martin Duberman, George Chauncey, Madeline Davis and Elizabeth Kennedy. (Also listed under History.) 1.00 units, Lecture

Credits:

1.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Lecture

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

Institution Website:

www.Trincoll.edu

Phone Number:

(860) 297-2000

Regional Accreditation:

New England Association of Schools and Colleges

Calendar System:

Semester

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