HIS 381 - Gender and Decolonial Histories
Indrani Chatterjee, Professor
Judith Coffin, Associate Professor
Our goal in this course is to both historicize and pluralize regimes of gender: in other words, to understand that those regimes vary, often quite starkly, across and within cultures and change historically due to a variety of circumstances. Decolonizing gender in the present global context implies re-investigating plural epistemologies (ways of knowing), ontologies (ways of being, identifications and identities) and practices that gender histories of labor, love, sex, slavery, and family. We will investigate different forms of accommodation, confrontation, and appropriation within and across cultures and times stretching from pre- through post-colonial centuries.
This is a dual-track (reading and research) graduate seminar. Every student will follow the same track for the first 10 weeks. After that, each student will follow a path specific to either a reading track or a research track.
Those who choose the reading track will develop a historiographical final essay (see FAQs at the end of the document) made up of between 5 books or 10 articles, or a combination of these. At least 2 articles and 1 book in this combination should be from readings not included in this course. We recommend this track for early graduate students who want to prepare a preliminary review of literature on a theme that interests them.
Those who choose the research track will use this opportunity to use some particularly significant primary archives or documents to chart part of an eventual chapter or research proposal.
FIRST REQUIREMENT: Choose a track.
Reading Track Students: Complete all the required reading and attend all classes. For 6 class meetings (of your choice), write brief reviews of 2-5 pages for 5 marks each (6x5=30). On any one day in the syllabus, lead a class discussion (10). Participate actively in enabling your peers’ discussions (10). As a final project, reading-track students write a historiographic essay of 10-15 pages on a topic developed in conversation with the professor (50). Finalize topic by Week 5 at the latest. Everyone gets Week 14 off to finish draft of the essay, which will be presented in class for feedback on last class day. Final drafts will be handed over on last day of class to the instructor.
Research-track students: Attend at least ten classes, completing the assigned reading for those weeks. For 5 of those classes, write brief reviews of 2-5 pages for 5 marks each (5x5= 25). Choose one week when readings are most relevant to your area of interest and lead the class, including in your discussion of the readings an oral presentation in brief relating your own research interest to the reading (for 15 marks). Additional marks depend on your enabling your peers’ learning and discussion. (10). As a final project, write a research paper of 15-20 pages on a topic of relevance to your research proposal (50). Everybody gets Week 14 off to finish a draft of a final essay, which will be presented to peers in class, and then handed over to the instructor on the last day of class.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS COMMON TO BOTH TRACKS:
Though the reading list is currently incomplete, we look forward to teaching and discussing the following books:
1) Khaled el-Rouayheb, Before Homosexuality in the Arab-Islamic World, 1500 – 1800, University of Chicago Press, 2009, pp. 1-12, 53-110.
2) Francesca Bray, Technology, Gender and History in Imperial China: Great Transformations Reconsidered. 2013 pbk ISBN 9778-0-415-63959-0
3) Cynthia Eller, Gentlemen and Amazons: Myth of Matriarchal Prehistory 1861-1900. 2011. ISBN-13: 978-0520266766/ ISBN-10: 9780520266766
4) Devesh Soneji, Unfinished Gestures, UChicago, 2012. ISBN-10: 0226768104
5) Glenda Gilmore, Gender and Jim Crow. Chapel Hill: UNC Press. 1996. ISBN 0807845965
All other readings will be available on Canvas OR through the PCL. It remains the students’ responsibility to ensure they keep up to date with the syllabus and course requirements.
GRADING: This Course will use A, A-, B+, B. Graduate course work should not qualify for a C or lower. 20% of all graduate course work can be taken for Pass/Fail grade as well. If you choose this option for this course, you should find out the date by which you are required to register this option with your department’s graduate office. Making this decision does not exempt any student from the requirements of reading, writing and speaking as part of course-work.