This course examines the most recent and provocative works in the history of family life, sexual behaviors and gender studies in the United States from the colonial period to the present. The primary emphasis concerns the impact of social and political change on gender roles and sexual behavior. Particular attention is paid to changing standards of sexual morality and their effect upon the structure and organization of the American family and physical intimacy over the past three and one half centuries. As American institutions and demographics changed, so did gender roles, ideological standards of morality, and the boundaries of sexual behavior. This course seeks to discover and define these changes and thereby better comprehend the ongoing transformation of gender and sexuality in the United States. The course is chronologically structured and interwoven with topical themes, beginning with the colonial period and ending with contemporary America. The more important topics include theories of sexual and gender behavior, cultural constructions of gender roles, the evolution of birth control and abortion, the role of medicine and politics in defining appropriate norms and forms of sexuality, alternative communities defined by sexual behavior, and so-called "deviant" forms of sexuality.

The course requirements include one 20- to 25-page typewritten essay (50%), an oral report (25%) and class participation (25%). Essay guidelines can be found at the end of this syllabus. A primary responsibility of students is to complete the weekly reading before the date of the scheduled class and contribute their thoughtful, reflective opinions in class discussion. The readings can be interpreted in a variety of ways and students should formulate some initial positions and questions to offer in the class discussion. For every article or book, students should be prepared to answer all of the questions found in the "Critical Reading" section of the syllabus below. All required readings may be purchased at Barnes & Noble Bookstore in the Granada Center on Sheridan Road. Students do not have to buy any of the books since each one has been placed on reserve at Cudahy Library.

Students who are disabled or impaired should meet with the professor within the first two weeks of the semester to discuss the need for any special arrangements.

18 January: Introduction

25 January: Carl Degler, At Odds: Women and the Family in America from the Revolution to the Present (New York: Oxford University Press, 1980).

1 February: John D'Emilio and Estelle Freedman, Intimate Matters: A History of Sexuality in the United States
2nd edition (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1997).

8 February: Preliminary bibliographies due.

Ramon Gutierrez, When Jesus Came, the Corn Mothers Went Away: Marriage, Sexuality, and Power in New Mexico, 1500-1846 (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1991).

15 February: Ann Douglas, The Feminization of American Culture (New York: Doubleday, 1977).

David Reynolds, Beneath the American Renaissance: The Subversive Imagination in the Age of Emerson and Melville (New York: Knopf, 1988).

22 February: Timothy J. Gilfoyle, City of Eros: New York City, Prostitution, and the Commercialization of Sex, 1790-1920 (New York: W.W. Norton, 1992).

Timothy J. Gilfoyle, "Prostitutes in History: From Parables of Pornography to Metaphors of Modernity," American Historical Review , 104 (Feb. 1999), 117-41.

1 March: Patricia Cline Cohen, The Murder of Helen Jewett (New York: Knopf, 1998).

8 March: SPRING BREAK NO CLASS

15 March: George Chauncey, Gay New York: Gender, Urban Culture, and the Making of the Gay Male World (New York: Basic Books, 1994).

22 March: Martha Hodes, White Women, Black Men: Illicit Sex in the Nineteenth-Century South (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1997).

First draft of essay due.

29 March: Laura F. Edwards, Gendered Strife and Confusion: The Political Culture of Reconstruction (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1997).

Glenda Gilmore, Gender and Jim Crow: Women and the Politics of White Supremacy in North Carolina, 1896-1920 (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1996)

5 April: Rosalind Rosenberg, Beyond Separate Spheres: Intellectual Roots of Modern Feminism (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1982).

12 April: Elaine Tyler May, Homeward Bound: American Families in the Cold War Era (New York: Basic Books, 1988).

Kathy Peiss, Hope in a Jar: The Making of America's Beauty Culture (New York: Owl Books, 1998).

Also 19 April. (rain date 26 April) - THE MIDNIGHT BIKERIDE - American History in Chicago.

19 April: Andrea Dworkin, Intercourse (New York: Free Press, 1987).

Also 19 April. (rain date 26 April) - THE MIDNIGHT BIKERIDE - American History in Chicago.

TUESDAY, 24 APRIL 2001, 1 p.m. - FINAL DRAFT OF ESSAY DUE

DISCUSSIONS AND CRITICAL READING

Discussion and class participation is an important part of student evaluation (25 percent). Incisive, imaginative and thoughtful comments that generate and facilitate discussion are weighed heavily in final grades. Asking questions, responding to student questions and contributing to an ongoing discussion are a necessary part of the learning experience. Failure to speak in class only lowers a student's final grade. Discussions take place in every class period, each worth 2 "points." Students will receive 0 points for nonparticipation, 1 point for minimal participation, and 2 points for active participation. Students who raise questions that generate discussion will earn extra points.

The best ways to prepare for and contribute to class discussion are: 1) complete the reading on time, and 2) critically analyze the reading. The primary goal of critical reading is to find the author's interpretation and what evidence and influences led to that conclusion. Never assume a "passive" position when reading a text. If students ask and attempt to answer the following questions, they will more fully comprehend and understand any reading.

1. What is the thesis of the author?

2. Does the author have a particular stated or unstated point of view? How does the author construct their argument? Are the author's goals, viewpoints, or agendas revealed in the introduction or preface? Does the author provide evidence to support the argument? Is it the right evidence? In the final analysis, do you think the author proves the argument or does the author rely on preconceived views or personal ideology? Why do you think that?

3. Does the author have a moral or political posture? Is it made explicit or implicit in the way the story is told? What is the author's view of human nature? Does change come from human agency and "free will" or broad socio-economic forces?

4. What assumptions does the author hold about society? Does the author see society as hierarchical, pluralistic, democratic or elitist? Does the author present convincing evidence to support this view?

5. How is the narrative constructed or organized? Does the author present the story from the viewpoint of a certain character or group? Why does the author begin and end at certain points? Is the story one of progress or decline? Why does the author write this way?

6. What issues and events does the author ignore? Why? Can you think of alternative interpretations or stories that might present a different interpretation? Why does the author ignore certain events or facts?

ORAL REPORTS

The oral report constitutes 25 percent of the final grade. The purpose of the assignment is to facilitate and broaden class discussion by introducing various critiques of the readings. Each week, one student will be responsible for identifying, reading, analyzing, synthesizing and summarizing as many reviews and critiques of that week's reading(s) as possible. For the report, students should locate reviews in at least the following publications: American Historical Review, Journal of American History, Feminist Studies, Journal of the History of Sexuality , Journal of Social History , Journal of Interdisciplinary History , Journal of American Studies , The Historian , Gender and History , Journal of Women's History , Reviews in American History , Social Science History , and Journal of Family History. Some books will require searching for reviews in more specialized journals, such as Journal of Southern History , Journal of Negro History , William and Mary Quarterly , Journal of Urban History , and other regionally- or state-defined publications. Some works will have reviews in news magazines and book reviews such as the New York Times Book Review , the Nation , Atlantic Monthly , and other national publications.

The oral report should: 1) BRIEFLY synthesize and summarize the reviews, 2) critically examine the reviews in terms of their ideology, methodology, and other forms of bias, and 3) comment on the accuracy and fairness of the reviews based on their own reading of the work under discussion for that week. The questions employed in the critical reading section above should be applied to the oral report assignment. Students will usually (but not always) present the report in the middle in the class, whenever it facilitates discussion. The report should take approximately 10 to 15 minutes. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD THE REPORT EXCEED 15 MINUTES. Oral report assignments will be made in the introductory class.

ESSAYS

The essay requirement serves several purposes. First, good, thoughtful writing disciplines and educates the mind. To write well, one must think well. If one's writing improves, so does their thinking and intelligence. Second, students personally experience on a first-hand basis some form of historical writing. A research paper relying on primary sources exposes students to the challenges, difficulties and even contradictions of analyzing historical events. Ideally, students will think more "historically" as a result of the exercise. Third, the essay can serve as an early draft of a publishable article. All students should have such a goal in mind when conceiving of, writing and rewriting the essay.

Two types of long essays are acceptable for this course: research and historiographical. Research essays analyze a specific topic using primary or original sources. Examples of primary sources include (but are not limited to) newspapers, diaries, letters, oral interviews, books published during the period under study, manuscript collections, and old maps. A research essay relies on source material produced by the subject or by institutions and individuals associated in some capacity with the subject. The use and immersion of the writer/researcher in such primary and original sources is often labeled "doing history." Most of the articles and books assigned for class discussion represent this type of historical writing.

Historiographical essays are based upon at least ten different secondary sources, or what historians have written about a subject. Such a paper examines how historians' interpretations have differed and evolved over time regarding a specific topic or theme. The major focus of a historiographical essay are the ideas of historians, how they compare with each other and how they have changed over time. Examples and models for such essays can be found in the following collections:

Louis Masur, ed., The Challenge of American History (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Univ. Press, 1999); originally Reviews in American History, vol. 26, no. 1 (March 1998).

Eric Foner, ed., The New American History(Philadelphia: Temple Univ. Press, 1990), especially essays in part II.

Both types of assignments should be the length of a standard scholarly article (approximately 15-20 typewritten pages of text, plus notes). Students should select a topic as soon as possible, in consultation with the instructor. A preliminary bibliography which includes books, articles, oral interviews, or other possible sources should be completed and handed in by 3 p.m., Thursday, 8 February 2001.

All essays should be typed. Students who complete the essay early have the option to rewrite the paper upon its evaluation and return (remember - the only good writing is good rewriting). For students who wish to have the option of rewriting the essay, TWO copies of the first draft of the essay should be in the professor's possession by 3 p.m., Thursday, 29 March 2001. All other and rewritten essays are due on Tuesday, 24 April 2001 by 1:00 p.m. (please note this is NOT a day the class meets). On both dates, students should submit TWO copies of the essay. Students who rewrite the essay should also include the corrected first draft.

All final papers should be free of typographical errors, misspellings and grammatical miscues. For every eight such mistakes, the essay's grade will be reduced by a fraction (A to A-, A- to B+, etc.). Essays are to be written for this class ONLY. No essay used to fulfill the requirements of a past or current course may be submitted. Failure to follow this rule will result in an automatic grade of F for the assignment. Extensions are granted automatically. However, grades on essays handed in 48 hours (or more late) will be reduced by a fraction (A to A-, A- to B+, etc.). Every three days thereafter another fraction will be dropped from the paper's final grade.