POLS 357-000: Gender Politics (Spring 2010)

What do the 2008 candidacies of Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin say about women, gender, and American politics? This course provides the historical and analytical tools with which to address that question-and many more. Readings and class discussion will concentrate on four general themes: (1) the role of gender in defining and shaping politics, political institutions, political behavior and public policy; (2) the various ways in which women themselves, as political actors and theorists, have challenged and redefined "politics as usual;" (3) the question of whether women are a political (interest) group; and (4) the relationships between gender, class, race, ethnicity, and sexual identity. Thus, we will study gender both as a political construct or ideology and as a system of political (economic and social) stratification. In addition, we will examine how these aspects of gender affect the political behavior and experiences of women as citizens, voters, political leaders, political candidates, and public officials.