Sociology 083S.1
RACISM
AND SEXISM
TTh
Fall 2004
Michael Johnson
415 Oswald Tower
865-1937, mpj@psu.edu
Office Hours:
“...talking about gender without talking
about race and class—or talking about race without considering class and gender—is
simply another way of obscuring reality instead of coming to terms with it.” (Rothenberg, 1988: p.1).
So, we’re going to try to do a course
that centers on the interplay of race, class, and gender in American society
today. The readings I have chosen range from personal accounts of experiences
of racism and sexism to social science analyses of the dynamics of oppression.
The class sessions involve a variety of teaching and learning styles, but focus
heavily on careful in-class discussions of readings and their connections with
our personal experiences. The grading system is designed to encourage
thoughtful & integrative reading, serious participation in class
discussions, and willingness to take chances. I want you to challenge each
other, to challenge me, and to challenge yourselves. We want to leave this
course knowing more about racism and sexism, more about each other, and more
about ourselves.
COURSE
CONTENT
I.
Introduction
to the Course
II.
Defining
Racism and Sexism
III. Becoming an Ally
IV. Gender, Race, and Class in the Social Structure
A. General
B. The economy
C. The law
V. Gender,
Race, and Class in the Culture
VI. Gender,
Race, and Class In Interpersonal Encounters
A. Stereotypes
B. Interpersonal violence
C. Gender, race, and relationships
VII. Thinking
about Diversity
GRADES
Since I want to run this course as much
as a seminar as possible, ideally I need all of you to do all of the
reading, to attend all the classes, and to be familiar enough with the readings
and relaxed enough in class that you feel comfortable participating fully in
discussions. Thus, I have tried to develop a grading system that is designed to
serve two major functions: (1) to shape your behavior in directions that will
encourage thoughtful reading and maximum class participation; and
(2) to give you as much control over your grade as possible.
In order to encourage an integrative and
thoughtful reading style, I have decided to base a major portion of your grade
on short papers about the readings. There will be no examinations in this
course. In order to focus your reading on the main points, evidence, and arguments
in the assigned readings, I will ask you to write short (two- page) summary and
reaction papers that will be graded Pass/Add. My criteria for a passing paper
are straightforward: (a) the paper must be turned in by the class session in
which we discuss the reading, and (b) the paper must make it clear that you
understood the main points made in the day’s readings. I will not grade
the papers in terms of the quality of your writing or in terms of your
acceptance of the authors’ positions; all you have to do is show me that you
understood the main points. If
you don't, I will indicate what you missed and ask you to add to the paper to
cover the points you either misunderstood or neglected. I will give you TWO
POINTS for each of the reading papers that you complete. If you do all of the
readings, you will have 46 points toward your grade (you will need 90 points
for an A, 80 for a B, etc.). The 46 points therefore comprise about half of
what you need for an A.
Another 27-54 points will be available
for class participation, ONE POINT for those days when you are just there, or
TWO POINTS if you are active and informed and participate well enough that you
contribute to other people's learning. That’s what a seminar is all about—you
learning not only from me, but from each other. On days when we have little
time for discussion because of movies or guest speakers, you will get two points
for attendance.
So, if you do all of readings papers and
attend all the classes, and participate meaningfully in the discussions, you
will have 100 points, more than enough for an A. Realistically, it is unlikely
that you will all be able to schedule your lives to do all of those things, so I
offer another way to get points. You may write one or two papers on books
relevant to issues of racism, sexism, or other oppressions. Each paper should
be a 5-10 page discussion of the race/gender/class/etc. issues addressed in the
book.. I will grade them Pass/Add and give you TEN
POINTS for each Pass. The first book report is DUE OCTOBER 19. The second is DUE DECEMBER 2.
Here's a summary of the point system I've
just described:
Two points each for readings 46 points
Two points each for classes to which you
contribute 54 points
Ten points for each paper on a relevant
book 20
points
TOTAL 128
points
You will need:
90 points for an A;
80 points for a B;
70 points for a C;
60 points for a D.
NO CURVE, NO +/- STUFF. IF YOU ALL GET 90 OR MORE, YOU ALL GET
As. IF YOU ALL GET 59 OR LESS, YOU ALL GET Fs. YOU PICK YOUR GRADE, YOU DO THE
WORK, YOU GET THE GRADE YOU PICKED.
The papers on the readings are due at the
beginning of class the day the reading is to be discussed. Remember, you are
reading to get the MAIN POINTS, and the papers are graded Pass/Add. Check out the advice on how to write a
paper—at the end of this syllabus.
The readings can be found in two places:
Rothenberg: Paula S. Rothenberg (Ed.), Race, Class, and Gender in the
Ereserve: A few readings are available on electronic
reserve, on the Web. Go to Angel (www.angel.psu.edu),
log on and go to this course, click on the “Tools” tab, click on “PSU Reserve Readings,”
and you should find yourself at the library.
I. Introduction to the
Course
Th 9/2 Discussion of the course and your role in it
and selections from Part III in Rothenberg.
I will assign each person one of the
selections in Part III to report on for the class; if you write a one-page
summary of it for the first class, you’ll start with 2 points.
II. Defining Racism and Sexism
T 9/7 Pp.
213-220 and 174-178, 213-220 in Rothenberg.
Th 9/9 Pp.
124-131 and 165-174 in Rothenberg.
Beverly Daniels Tatum, “Defining racism:
“Can we talk?” and Allan Johnson, “Patriarchy.”
T 9/14 Pp.
178-187 and 81-93 in Rothenberg.
Suzanne Pharr, “Homophobia as a weapon of
sexism” and
Michael S. Kimmel, “Masculinity as homophobia.”
Th 9/16 Star Power Game—No readings—evening session
III. Becoming an Ally
T 9/21 Pp.
598-604 and 620-625 in Rothenberg.
Andrea
Ayvazian, “Interrupting the cycle of oppression: The
role of allies as agents of change” and Michael Hout
& Samuel R. Lucas, “Narrowing the income gap between rich and poor.”
Th
9/23 McIntosh on Ereserve.
Peggy McIntosh, “White privilege:
Unpacking the invisible knapsack.”
IV. Gender, Race, and Class in the Social Structure
T
9/28 Pp.
546-560 in Rothenberg.
William
Chafe, “Sex and race: The analogy of social control.”
Th 9/30 Pp. 12-21 and 38-53 in Rothenberg.
Michael Omi and Harold Winant, “Racial formations” and Karen Brodkin,
“How Jews became white folks.”
B.
The economy
T 10/5 Pp. 276-285 in Rothenberg.
Holly Sklar, “Imagine
a country”
Th 10/7 Pp.
307-315 and 325-329 in Rothenberg.
National Committee on
Pay Equity, “The wage gap: Myths and facts” and Katherine S. Newman, “What
scholars can tell politicians about the poor.”
T 10/12 Pp.
193-206 and 297-304 in Rothenberg.
Gregory Mantsios,
“Class in
Th 10/14 Pp.
605-609 and 614-620 in Rothenberg.
Fletcher A. Blanchard, “Combating
intentional bigotry and inadvertently racist acts” and three short articles on
sweatshop protests.
OCTOBER 19: FIRST
BOOK REPORT DUE
C.
The law
T 10/19 Pp. 435-443
and 454 in Rothenberg.
Paula S. Rothenberg, “How it happened:
Race and gender issues in
Th 10/21 Pp. 467-474 in Rothenberg.
Dred Scott v.
T 10/26 Each of you pick
one other piece from Part VI in Rothenberg
and come prepared to explain it (briefly). Also bring a written summary of what
you plan to say.
V. Gender, Race, and
Class in the Culture
Th 10/28 Pp.
54-63 in Rothenberg.
Judith Lorber, “’Night to his day:’ The social construction of gender.”
T 11/2 Pp.
377-386 in Rothenberg.
Don Sabo, “Pigskin, patriarchy, and pain”
and Tommy Avicolla, “He defies you still: The memoirs
of a sissy.”
Th 11/4 Pp. 522-531 in Rothenberg
Richard D. Mohr, “Anti-gay
stereotypes,” and Maurice Berger, “White lies.”
T 11/9 Pp. 560-568
and 574-583 in Rothenberg.
Gregory Mantsios, “Media
magic: Making class invisible” and William Ryan, “Blaming the victim.”
VI. Gender, Race &
Class in Interpersonal Encounters
A.
Stereotypes
Th 11/11 Pp.
132-143 and 516-521 in Rothenberg.
John F. Dovidio
and Samuel L. Gaertner, “On the nature of
contemporary prejudice,” and Annie Murphy Paul, “Where bias begins: The truth
about stereotypes.”
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER
18 IS THE LATE DROP DEADLINE CHECK OUT YOUR
POINTS AND BE REALISTIC.
T 11/16 Lecture and Film (“Someone you know”
34806 1986 30m)
Th 11/18 Pp.
387-388 in Rothenberg and Johnson on
Ereserve. Guest
Speaker from Centre Country Women’s
Ntozake Shange, “With
no immediate cause” (a poem)
and
T 11/23 Film: “Two Towns” Pp. 609-612 in Rothenberg.
Michael Bronski,
“Confronting anti-gay violence.”
|
T 11/30 Staples
on Ereserve.
Brent Staples, “The white girl problem.”
Th 12/2 Schwartz
on Ereserve.
Excerpts from Pepper Schwartz, “Eliminating
the provider role,” in Pepper Schwartz, Love
Between Equals (Peer Marriage).
VII. Thinking about
diversity
T 12/7 Pp.
584-592 and 636 in Rothenberg.
Th
12/9 Attendance mandatory. Bring course outline and #2 pencil. Be prepared to discuss the
successes and failures of the course.
Donaldo
Macedo and Lillian I. Bartolome,
“Language, culture, and reality,” and Aurora Levins
Morales, “Child of the
Here’s a Little Advice on Writing an Article
Summary
Minimum Time, Maximum Benefit
The ideas
presented here are adapted from a reading course taught to Harvard graduate
students to help them maximize the efficiency of their reading. The course was
designed by cognitive psychologists who felt that American schools teach us to
read in the least efficient possible manner. The ideas are simple and you will be
surprised at the tremendous difference they can make in your ability to use
reading time to your own benefit.
The basic
principles underlying this reading plan are simple.
·Get an overview
of the structure of the reading before beginning to read.
·Focus on
essential pieces of the author’s argument.
·Read with
purpose. Be an
active reader; make decisions about which parts are worth reading closely; ask
questions while you read—for example, why am I reading this? What do I want to
get out of it?
·Make what you
read your own. Internalize
what you read by writing summary paragraphs.
I.
A. Study the title—think about why the author
chose it.
B. Look through the reading and get an idea of
its different sections.
Outline the sections for handy reference when you read.
C. Go through the reading looking only at the
topic sentences of each paragraph. Focus on getting an idea of the theme
of the reading. Do
an outline if you have not already done one, and identify the theme. The outline and
theme need not be long.
For example, write in the book itself or use a notecard and keep the notecard
for a bookmark while reading.
D. Now read the reading, looking closely at
how the theme is developed.
Pay less attention to the author’s asides and minor points, which
should be easily identified since you know the theme and structure of the
reading. Don’t
worry about reading every word.
E. When finished, review your outline of the
reading, meditate briefly on how the theme was developed, and perhaps flip
through the reading one more time for review. Then close your book.
F. Write a short summary of the reading’s
contents from memory. Use
complete sentences but don’t worry about the elegance of your prose.
II. Writing the Summary
A. Your summary is almost written by now. Review your outline
and brief summary, comparing them quickly with the reading and adding anything
you have left out.
B. Do
the draft copy of the report by simply elaborating on the brief summary, fixing
up the prose, and adding your own reactions and evaluations.