Gender and the Body
Gender and the Body What is your gender and how do you know? In order to answer this question, we need to consider how gender is known through biology, psychology, consumer capitalism, and our everyday embodiment. We will also look at how the meaning and performance of gender have changed over time from Classical Greece to Victorian England to the contemporary U.S. Throughout, we will consider how gender does not operate along, but is always entangled with, race, class, sexuality, nationality, and ability.
There are daily reading responses and most classes are discussion based. Very eye opening class and would recommend this to anybody. You will have to do a project at the end of the semester that is worth a lot of your grade. Laurie is one of the best professors at Middlebury.
This class was super eye-opening. It was the first GSFS class I took at Middlebury and have since taken more because of how much I liked this class. We learned about the history of gender definitions and talked a lot about the gendered ideas that are so pervasive in society. It made me think about the world differently (in a good way). I think this class is useful for anyone with any major because we talked about how gender is involved in every aspect of our lives. Laurie is a really fun professor, while at the same time teaching effectively. She clearly knows A LOT and is good at telling it to a class of students who may not have experience in the GSFS world in a really easily digestible ways. She told us to only spend 90 min on readings and then stop and she just wanted to see that we did the reading and understood it through our assignments, so it wasn't too much pressure.
This class was super eye-opening. It was the first GSFS class I took at Middlebury and have since taken more because of how much I liked this class. We learned about the history of gender definitions and talked a lot about the gendered ideas that are so pervasive in society. It made me think about the world differently (in a good way …Read more
Daily reading responses, which are three quotes and a few sentences on them, are a bit bothersome but the class is super interesting. There is one big project (can be done in a group) to be completed throughout the semester and a couple of papers, but she is definitely a professor who cares more about effort and understanding than a harsh grader. I have learned a lot in this class so far and the large group discussions are fun and valuable!
Daily reading responses, which are three quotes and a few sentences on them, are a bit bothersome but the class is super interesting. There is one big project (can be done in a group) to be completed throughout the semester and a couple of papers, but she is definitely a professor who cares more about effort and understanding than a …Read more
Prof. Essig has a unique way of lecturing that is both entertaining and incredibly informative. I definitely have learned a lot about gender theory. She does require you to submit a Reading Response Form for every class, which can get annoying, but overall the assignments are fair and prompt you to engage with the material. I'd recommend this class as a great intro to gender studies, even if you don't plan on majoring or minoring in the subject.
Prof. Essig has a unique way of lecturing that is both entertaining and incredibly informative. I definitely have learned a lot about gender theory. She does require you to submit a Reading Response Form for every class, which can get annoying, but overall the assignments are fair and prompt you to engage with the material. I'd recom …Read more
I found this course to be truly valuable. Laurie is lovely and very passionate about the material. She also grades mostly off completion which takes a lot of pressure off. The readings are long but generally interesting and engaging.
This was my favorite gender studies class. The professor was great and enthusiastic about the material, and she helped us connect the theory to our own lives which was very useful and unique to the course.
I really enjoyed this course and it helped me understand the complexity of our understanding of gender. I found the readings to be really interesting and valuable, and Laurie is a great professor who really wants her students to succeed. After taking this class I switched from a GSFS minor to a GSFS joint major, and I am so happy I did it!
The readings were a bit dense, but Laurie is highly effective at helping navigate the tough material. The class is super fun and full of real-world examples. Papers were allowed and encouraged to be projects. Grading was fair. The class was a ton of fun!