COURSE SYLLABUS Philosophy and Feminism Spring 2014 Course Title: PHL 150 Tuesdays and Thursdays 9:15-10:30 am Rm: Powdermker 153 Professor: Elvira Basevich Office Hours: Tuesdays 10:45 – 11:45 am Email: ebasevich@gc.cuny.edu Hypatia 4th c. mathematician and philosopher PURPOSE OF THE COURSE Feminist philosophy is slowly gaining recognition as a legitimate philosophical field of study. This shift begins with the publication of Simone de Beauvoir’s magnum opus, The Second Sex. In this course we will study The Second Sex in depth, remaining in conversation with it as we compare and contrast contemporary approaches that feminist philosophers have subsequently developed on the same issues that the book discusses. We will attend to liberal, Marxist, and postmodern approaches to feminist philosophy, and analyze the nature of women’s oppression and liberation, the distinction between gender and sex, and feminist themes as they relate to the organization of family, work, and sexuality. The issue of how to conceptualize racism in a feminist theoretical framework will also be given special consideration. COURSE OBJECTIVES The principal objective is to give students knowledge of the central issues in feminist philosophy as pioneered by Simone de Beauvoir, as well as to familiarize students with some recent feminist debates. This is a reading intensive class. Reading all the assignments before the lecture is essential for success in this course. You are highly encouraged to develop reading techniques such as taking the time to read and reading with a questioning and critical mind. All the reading assignment will be available on Blackboard. You must bring a hardcopy of the reading assignment to class. Failure to do so will significantly impact your final grade for participation. Policies: CLASSROOM CONDUCT The classroom is a public space for serious work. Everybody in the classroom is expected to behave as a mature, respectful, thoughtful, and responsible person. The instructor reserves the right to take appropriate measures should this general rule be violated. Due to the sensitive nature of the reading material, class decorum must be maintained at all times. Please be mindful and respectful of each other’s different faiths and spiritual persuasions. DISABILITIES If you have a disability or think you may have one, get in touch with the Office of Special Services right away: http://sl.qc.cuny.edu/oss/ NO IN-CLASS ELECTRONIC DEVICES All cell phones, laptops, and other electronic devises must be turned off or silenced AND stored out of sight. (Discuss with the instructor in advance if there is a reason to violate this rule.) Any student using electronic devices in class will be considered absent for the day. TIMELY SUBMISSION OF THE ASSIGNMENT Papers are due at the beginning of class. Papers handed in ten minutes after class begins are considered late. If you cannot hand in a paper on the due date, e-mail me the day before it is due. I will be accommodating if you get in touch, but will not accept late papers if you have not made arrangements with me. For each day a paper is late I will deduct half a letter grade. After three days late papers will not be accepted. COMMUNICATE! Communicating to the instructor any issue that may affect your learning is very important for your success. Visit the instructor during the office hours or e-mail the instructor with specific questions. COURSE REQUIREMENTS Class attendance and participation 10% Weekly Reading Responses 15% Writing Assignments 60% Presentation 15% REQUIRED BOOKS All reading assignments will be posted on Blackboard. COURSE SCHEDULE (subject to revision) Jan. 28: Introduction Jan. 30: Understanding Sexist Oppression: Hegel, Master/Slave Dialectic, Phenomenology of Spirit (excerpt) Beauvoir, “Introduction,” The Second Sex Feb. 4: Beauvoir, Introduction, cont’d Nancy Bauer, “The Second Sex and the Master-Slave Dialectic,” Simone de Beauvoir, Philosophy & Feminism Feb. 6: Beauvoir, chp. 9 & 11, The Second Sex (excerpts) Feb. 11: Marilyn Frye “Oppression,” The Politics of Reality Sandra Lee Bartky, “On Psychological Oppression” Suggested: Franz Fanon, Black Skin, White Masks (excerpts) Feb. 13: Iris M. Young, “Five Faces of Oppression” Feb. 18: Biological Determinism & Science: Beauvoir, chp. 1, “The Data of Biology,” The Second Sex Feb.. 20: NO CLASS – Classes follow a Monday schedule Feb.. 25: Elisabeth Lloyd, “Pre-theoretical Assumptions in Evolutionary Explanations of Female Sexuality” Emily Martin, “The Egg and the Sperm: How Science has Constructed a Romance Based on Stereotypical Male-Female Roles” Feb. 27: Marxist Feminism Friedrich Engels, Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the State (excerpt) Alexandra Kollontai, “The Social Basis of the Woman Question” March 4: Critique of Marxism Feminism: Beauvoir, chp. 3, “The Point of View of Historical Materialism,” The Second Sex Heidi I. Hartmann, “The Unhappy Marriage of Marxism and Feminism: Towards a More Progressive Union” March 6: Sibyl A. Schwarzenbach, On Civic Friendship (excerpts) March 11: The Family, Social Relations & The State: Beauvoir, chp. 16 & 17, “The married woman” & “The woman in love,” The Second Sex March 13: Carol Pateman, chp 1, The Sexual Contract Charles Mills, chp 1, The Racial Contract March 18: Carol Pateman, chp 6, The Sexual Contract March 20: Liberation: Beauvoir, ch 25, “The Independent Woman,” Second Sex (excerpts) Weiss, “Challenging Choices” March 25: Beauvoir, “Conclusion,” The Second Sex MacKinnon, “Difference and Dominance: On Sex Discrimination” March 27: Postmodern Feminism: Butler, Gender Trouble Suggested: Frye, “Sexism” April 1: Butler, Gender Trouble, cont’d April 3: Criticisms of Butler: Kaufman-Osborn, “Fashionable Subjects: On Judith Butler and the Causal Idioms of Postmodern Feminist Theory” Martha Nussbaum, “The Professor of Parody” April 8: Postmodern Feminism cont’d: French Feminism/Difference Feminism: Luce Irigaray, “The Sex which is not One” & “Sexual Difference” Suggested: Hélène Cixous, “The Laugh of the Medusa” April 10: Iris M. Young, “Throwing like a Girl” & “Pregnant Embodiment: Subjectivity and Alienation” April 15 - 22: SPRING RECESS April 24: Sexuality: Beauvoir, chp. 13, “The Young Girl,” The Second Sex May 1: Beauvoir, chp. 14, “Sexual Initiation,” The Second Sex Adrienne Rich, “Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence,” Signs, vol. 5 (4) (Summer 1980): 631-660. May 6: Cheshire Calhoun, Feminism, The Family, and the Politics of the Closet (excerpts) May 8: Feminism & Racism: Crystal Feimster, Southern Horrors May 13: Kimberley Crenshaw, “Intersectionality” Patricia Hill Collins, “Defining Black Feminist Thought” May 15: Linda Alcoff, “The Whiteness Question” **FINAL PAPER DUE** Final Grade Evaluation Tools 1) Class attendance and participation (10% of final grade) This portion of your grade includes all in-class writing assignments and group work. Lectures will presuppose familiarity with the texts. Coming prepared to discuss the assigned text and participating in class discussions are requirements. Except in extraordinary circumstances absences will not be excused. Lateness, absences, and lack of positive participation (or any negative participation) will affect your grade dramatically. 2) Weekly Reading Responses (15% of final grade) In the reading responses, you are expected to provide a summary of the main arguments and some critical discussion of them, raising questions and criticisms, as well as highlighting what is unclear in the text. Each reading response must be typed and at least one page long. Reading responses will provide a springboard for discussion and test your familiarity with the assigned readings will be graded with a check, check+, or check-. Reading responses that fail to demonstrate familiarity with the reading assignments will not receive credit. No makeups. 3) Paper evaluation criteria (60% of final grade) You are required to complete THREE writing assignments for the course. The assignment prompt will be given several days in advance of the due date. The first two writing assignments must be at least FOUR pages long and each is worth 15% of the final grade. The final writing assignment must be EIGHT – TEN pages long and is worth 30% of the final grade. (Drafting Process) Queens College Writing Center: For help with writing and tutoring in philosophy. http://writingatqueens.org/ 4) Presentation (15% of final grade) You are required to give one presentation for the course. Presentation topics will be distributed the first week of class. You are expected to select one topic. (Topic preference is NOT guaranteed). Presentations must be at least fifteen (15) minutes long and evaluate assigned readings’ the key points and arguments. Like the writing assignment, presentations must go well beyond summarizing key points and arguments, but provide a critical and original evaluation of the readings. You must distribute a typed handout of your presentation to the class. Queens College Academic Honesty Policies: From Queens College Handbook, “Academic dishonesty is one of the most serious offenses in the academic community. Acts of academic dishonesty include – but are not limited to – plagiarism and/or cheating on examinations and papers, the purchase or sale of academic papers, and the falsification of records. Any student who engages in an activity that is academically dishonest, such as submitting a paper, examination, project, or other academic work not his or her own without appropriate attribution (plagiarism), is subject to disciplinary charges, as is any student who knowingly aids another who engages in them. Allegations of cheating and plagiarism are initially handled between the faculty member and the student. If the student admits to the violation, a range of penalties may be imposed at the discretion of the faculty member. These may include – but are not limited to – an F on the paper, examination, or course, or requiring the student to rewrite the paper or retake the examination. The Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs may be notified, in which case a record of the incident will be maintained for the duration of the student’s enrollment at the college. If the student denies the charge(s) and the faculty member believes there is sufficient evidence to pursue the matter, formal charges may be filed with the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs for penalties beyond the grade in the course. Students found guilty of any form of academic dishonesty are subject to discipline, including – but not limited to – failure in the course and suspension or dismissal from the college. It should be noted that the buying and selling of term papers is expressly forbidden under the provisions of the New York State Education Law. Therefore, those found guilty of this offense are subject to both disciplinary action at the college and (subsequent) criminal action.” *Plagiarism includes, copying definitions of terms or theories from the internet or books without citing your source properly. For the definition of plagiarism, what it includes, and how to avoid it: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/589/01/