Gender and Society: U.S. and Global Perspectives

What is gender? How and why does it still matter in the 21st century? What might a world where gender does not matter look like? How can social change happen? This course will undertake a sociological examination of the role of gender in society. We will examine how gender shapes our identities, how it shapes our interactions with others, and how it shapes and is shaped by institutions. We will look not only at how our gender privileges us, but also how we are both subject to and participate in producing gender inequality in our everyday lives. The course will draw on material from the U.S as well as countries around the globe.