FINAL PROJECT

Women’s Studies 200: Gender & Power

Critical Intersections of Gender, Race, Class, Nation, and Citizenship
Final Project: Guidelines

Project Description:
“The Power in Gender, En-gendering Power: Gender Matters”

Students will select a topic that involves a prismatic/matrix approach to examining the systems, institutions, challenges and consequences of gender.

Students will formulate their thesis and arguments centered on the theme in quotes, above. Each student will engage and dialogue with this organizing theme.

The project topic must be both centered and inclusive—specifically examining and intersecting the selected issue with U.S. society at the center of the project’s analysis. The project must examine power structures—at the local, state, regional, national and international spheres.

Students must utilize each of the key texts assigned in the course in both a productive and creative manner.

SINCE THIS IS THE FIRST "GENDER & POWER" COURSE I'VE TAUGHT AT WSU, I DON'T HAVE ANY STUDENT SAMPLES OF WST200 TO SHARE; HOWEVER, THIS COURSE IS MODELED PARTIALLY ON WST372, IN TERMS OF GENERAL METHODS. BELOW ARE SOME TRADITIONAL SAMPLES OF FINAL PROJECTS. THINK ABOUT HOW THEY ARE INTEGRATING DIFFERENT KNOWLEDGES AND DISRUPTING THE MORE LINEAR APPROACHES TO ESTABLISHING KNOWLEDGE; HOW ARE THESE USEFUL?; HOW CAN YOU GO BEYOND?

CLICK HERE FOR SAMEPLE #1 AND SAMPLE #2. (THE SKY IS THE LIMIT)

FINAL PROJECT Components:
A visual presentation (Power Point, Professional Academic Poster, or other professionally prepared media). No more than 10 slides.
Key-word, key-phrase, key-code “exposure” sheet: student will expose and de-mystify the ways in which language is used as a tool of gender oppression.
A narrative paper, or narrative slide notes (for Power Point users), organized and professionally prepared. Page limit: 7 pages, including ‘works cited’, ‘references’, and bibliography.

Details:

Visuals are critical texts for showing the structural inequalities engulfing U.S. society and the groups targeted and the targeted groups’ resistances to injustices and oppression.
Further refine and develop a focused, clear and engaging visual dimension to the subject/topic statement. The images themselves must construct a specific narrative in their relationship to each other. They visuals should show a narrative and conscious strand of meaning. Choose images to engage the viewer into a dialogue and response-mode.
How do the selected visual images educate, inform, and/or mobilize critical thinking and analysis? What is being constructed in the images? Which structures of power are being addressed? How? What are the structures and systems implicated in the image?

Key words/Key phrasing/Key words are critical mappings and codes which you assign value to in your narrative as you intentionally construct their relationship to the images. Be intentional and decisive in the use of and analysis of symbolic and historical meaning assigned to language—at different times, and places.
Further refine and develop minimal wording/phrasing to foreground, surface, and/or illuminate the ways in which language itself is a vector through which inequality and oppression are used as controls, limits and barriers to who is included in ‘we the people’, ‘citizenship’, and human rights.
How do the words, phrasings, and codes of structural systems of oppression inform and mobilize your critical thinking about gendered systems in U.S. society?

Explicative and Exploratory Essay.
Further develop a written statement/essay, (build upon your knowledge and insights from reading responses in your blog, personal journal statements, film response sheets, and/or other in-class or out-of-class texts, contexts and ‘counter-texts.’ (“Counter-texts” means those perspectives which are not visible or apparent in mainstream U.S. society…and which are reflective of voices being marginalized).
Balance factual prose and informative reportage with precise documentation, historical contexts, primary sources, critical approaches.
Balance a social-location narrative (why this project is meaningful to you, introspectively and honestly) with the on-the-ground context of your project. Weave the ‘research’ and ‘we-search’ with the ‘me-search’.
An organized thesis statement and introductory paragraph will guide the reader into your purpose, brief literature review, and a problem statement. This is followed by a well-crafted body where the position/problem is teased out and explored in depth. Examples are utilized to ‘show’ and explicate the issues and problems. And finally, the final paragraph/page will revisit the problem, however will expand the reader’s comprehension of the issue by posing deepened, more complicated problem statements and questions which will further illuminate the complexity of systems, structures and institutions managing inequalities. Furthermore, student will educate the audience about the ‘work’ of oppression and what needs to be done to dismantle oppression, personally and universally. A final page of your references/citations/bibliography…is required. Ommission of references is an automatic deduction of 15 points (from 100).

Style & Form Guidelines:

What is the writing style of your major? Are you currently using a style, but don’t know if that is appropriate to your field of study? Where can you find the answers? If you do not already have a style, I strongly urge you to visit the Writing Center in the CUE Building, level 3, as soon as possible. They are very friendly J !
When you decide upon a writing style, this will help you give a structure and form to your final essay. Some basic guidelines are:

BASICS:
Always double-space a formal component, such as an essay, unless you are given permission to single-space. Use 12pt. Times Roman—a formal and acceptable style for college papers.
Always write several drafts and then have a trusted reader help you discover areas that need improvement and refining.
When you have a strong draft, go to the Writing Center and ask a staff member to spend half an hour with you to give you some style assistance and critical thinking support. Expect to be put on their schedule, with an appointment.
Always paginate each page with your last name and page number, top right corner—according to the style you are using. Do not wing it, follow the style guide.
Always provide the following on the header of the first page, two spaces above your title:
Last, First
Course Title & #
Professors’ name
Today’s date

MORE BASICS:Don’t write a cover page, unless you are asked to do so.
Always give your project an interesting, eye-catching title!
Yes, you are always required to quote your sources for accuracy and interesting details. Yes, you are required to use footnotes if that is appropriate to establish authorship on a detail you are discussing. Yes, you are required to know about plagiarism rules of WSU and penalties. Yes, you are required to have either a citations page, a reference sheet or a bibliography, depending upon your major’s style guidelines. That is why you must know your style and stick to it (great motivation to go to the Writing Center for more support). I know all the major styles across the disciplines. I will grade you according to how well you know your style.
Citations, references, bibliographies. MLA? APA? Chicago? This is the time to learn your style. I’ll hold you to these national and international standards for college students. Therefore, if you believe you currently deserve an ‘A’ based on your class participation and grades thus far, you may be disappointed if you do not learn your research style and apply it. The library carries all the major style books in the reference section.

PROJECT DUE DATE: FINAL DAY OF SEMESTER OR WHEN YOU PRESENT--YOUR CHOICE. FINAL WEEK OF CLASS. THE SIGN-UP SHEET WILL BE HANDED OUT THE WEEK BEFORE WE BEGIN PRESENTATIONS.


QUESTIONS? CONCERNS? mtamez@wsu

ABSTRACTS: PEER REVIEWS

All:

Here are your assigned peer review partners:

STUDENT>> SENDS TO>> STUDENT
ARATA>> EGGLESTON
EGGLESTON>> HALL
HALL>> HARDMAN
HARDMAN>> JONES
JONES>> JORDAN
JORDAN>> KLINKE
KLINKE>> LANDON
LANDON>> MCGUIRE
MCGUIRE>> MOORE
MOORE>> O'BRIEN
O'BRIEN>> OLSON
OLSON>> RICHARDSON
RICHARDSON>> SCHALLER
SCHALLER>> SCHIEB
SCHIEB>> SMITH
SMITH>> TAN
TAN>> VELASCO
VELASCO>> ARATA

REVIEW METHODOLOGY:

1. 'Praise, Question, Polish & Own It'

This exercise is based on the premise that every person has important perspectives and experiences AND these require an open mind, and positive and supportive environments in which to strengthen and develop into productive writing. This review methods allows each reviewer to contribute purpose and meaning to the reviewed student's work product.

Praise: Sometimes our early draft process is focused on certain aspects of writing, and still lacks certain essential components. At the same time, everyone has something important to add to the conversation. As a reviewer, it is CRITICAL that you contribute a positive feedback to any aspect of the writer's process. Find something positive to PRAISE.

Question: Go over the abstract again, and involve yourself into the content and voice of the writer. Ask pertinent questions that will bring out more interesting details, more complexity, and more awareness. How can you pose questions in a dignified way? Here's an example: "Have you considered ....?" "Have you thought about ...?"

Polish: Now go over the abstract and offer a few suggestions for tightening and refining the details: punctuation, spelling, syntax, sentence construction, word choice. The details matter, and you can be very helpful by offering your keen eyes.

Own it: Sign your name and give an encouraging remark! Everyone needs a supportive pat on the back for their efforts.

That's it!

Your review of your colleague's abstract is due next Wednesday in class.

Many thanks,

See you in class, CUE 319, tomorrow.

THE ABSTRACT--ORGANIZING THE PROJECT

The abstract will be a tool to help you get grounded on the key themes and the main arguments that you will be discussing in your final project.

Using your narratives and images from your mid-term assignment, begin to build an abstract.

Here are are the guidelines.

Here is the example of Mari White Shell.

DUE DATE: Friday, April 3.

MID-TERM

Source: www.ctrlaltdel-online.com/images/news/sony_ad.jpg


WST200: Gender & Power
Spring 2009

Mid-Term

Objectives:
1.To give form and definition to the theories, methods and practices which inform your current understanding of gender and power in historical and contemporary contexts. (This is you choosing.)

2.To move from untethered supposition and opinion to intentional, articulated, informed, engaged and specific footholds which speak to your understanding of the ways in which gender, and power relationships, are articulated as gender intersects race, class, hierarchy, patriarchy, religion, militarism, capitalism, global systems, work, labor, citizenship, and nation.

3.To engage deeply in a critical analysis practice regarding the literatures and methods examined in class thus far and to articulate more concretely an appreciation for and understanding of systemic, institutional, and structural components in social relationships.

4.To lay a foundation for the final project, and to begin to develop a critical thesis, abstract, argument and claims.

Part I—Images and the Power of the Message

Identify four images which ‘speak’ a story of gender and power. You may use web and other media sources. Provide an analysis that is engaged and using critical tools which you have had access to thus far in this course. Here is an model which you can build upon, and/or develop your own model. However, your model must have this level of complexity in terms of you are doing intersectional analysis: the INTERSECTION of gender, power, race, class, history, labor, migration, immigration, etc. Bring to class on March 23th for group evaluations.


This image raises numerous interlocking systems of power. The image stirred tremendous controversy in northern Europe where Sony launched a series of images with these two individuals in a set of physical conflict and battle. Public revolt over the ad from people of color and immigrant communities who comprise the large working and under class of Northern Europe, insisted that Sony remove the ad from public view. A student brought this ad to my attention 2 years ago, and posited its numerous problematic assertions. In the series,(not shown here, but available here. Race, sexuality, class, and religion (“Islam v. Christianity”) ‘battle’ each other in ways in these controversial ads, as they re-assert a renewed commitment by the corporate sphere (technology and media) to re-stoke the flames of race war-- new versions of old war--for gamers, a male dominated clientele. In doing so, corporations reinstate and normalize a message that violence and competition—globally--between women is a natural ‘game’ and ‘entertainment’ and a desirable and acceptable form of recreation and profit (for dominantly male corporate owners and gamers). What is noteworthy?... at the same time that the ad went public, Katrina was ravaging the Gulf states and the U.S. struggled in its own confrontation of the legacy of racism, Jim Crow and state-sponsored violence enacted specifically against people of color (dominantly African-descent and immigrants of color) in New Orleans. Sony, after contemplating the negative consequences (street riots and protests) over the “White is Back” billboard series, decided NOT to launch the same ad campaign in the United States in a post-Katrina environment. Race wars, class wars, and gender wars, as a form of public reclamation of physical, intellectual, and cultural power.

Part II: Abstract

Begin to piece together a topic, thesis statement, argument, and a few ‘cites’, meaning, sources which you will build upon as “references, citations, theoretical supports” for your final project.

Draft a well-written and proofed abstract (no more than 200 words), and bring to class March 23 to turn into me so that I can give you feedback right away. Keep a clean copy for yourself, so that you can workshop it in class. Bring Both Copies to Class on the 23rd.

BUILDING GROUP NARRATIVES, MAKING SPACE FOR DIFFERENCE, ARTICULATING DIFFERING CLAIMS

USE THESE NOTES TO REMIND YOUR GROUP ABOUT THE CRITERIA

STUDENTS POSITION TO KEY FRAMES OF THE COURSE

In a quick review of student posts thus far, I wanted to give prominance to the standpoints and differentiation which is occuring as students give voice to self and community identifications.

A NOTE TO THE VIEWER: Students in the WST200 course come into the class with very little critical preparation of historical processes and movements of the 20th century, much less U.S. history, or the history of U.S. foreign policy. However, in this course, they are mandated to learn fundamental theories and literatures of 'gender and power', through the matrix of race, class, sexuality, labor, migration, militarism, family, religion, and empire. The students work below reveals certain standpoints which students struggle to voice and certain resistances to applying critical theories required of the course syllabus, which are general applications in the fields of Social Sciences, Gender Studies, Critical Race, etc. Note the leaning toward 'opinion' in several posts, rather than a critical weighing in directly to the theoretical positions and historical contexts of readings assigned. This is a sampling of writing from students in the complex (and exicting!) struggle to use the tools, not merely critique,avoid, disavow the ones which are in conflict/contradiction to their personal values. At this point, students will be increasingly challenged to pick up the tools provided to them, as if they were 'microscopes, petri dishes, beakers,' --the stuff of 'evidentiary scientific laws' which they do not question in the context of a 'science lab.' They will be further challenged to confront critically the personal and group resistances to the sciences, methods and theories of gender, race, sexuality, systems, and histories of oppressed communities and polities.

RACHEL JONES:
When I first looked over the Declaration of Independence this semester I noticed a few things. Men is capitalized "all men are created equal" When you scan the document all you see is "He" Words like War, Alliance, Commerance all remind me of men. Why is this? Is this because the very men that wrote this and founded our country established these ideas for me? Another question I had "Is there gender unity when they say "we" and and speak of the people of the colonies? As we discussed the reading in class more ideas formed for me. I now believe that there was no gender unity when the word "we" is discussed. We was meant for the colonies. Not involved in that we were slaves, indigenous, poor, children, women, elders, impaired and some men. Immediately I think "Great, my founding fathers did not want me to be apart of this nation."


KELLEY O'BRIEN:
It’s sickening to me that people actually have an incentive to continue inequality; that injustice pays. Maybe that’s nothing new. Again, it seems to go back to these white men in corporations and all they want is to make money without regard to whom they hurt. They spend so much money to paint their victims as the people who have something wrong with them, when the problem originates with them. But they make it so they never have to answer for it, and the political deck is stacked in their favor. Like the book says, we should be asking “what kinds of families produce CEOs and government officials who make decisions that cost the lives of hundreds, sometimes thousands of people?” And maybe I would add my own question to that: Why don’t people question what’s going on around them? The more I think about it, the more I feel like the people in the location I grew up in, mostly white, Christian and middle class, have no idea or don’t care what’s going on. They have their own idea of why things are happening; they’re convinced it’s because people are losing their moral grounding in God.

BRITTANY RICHARDSON:
According to the reading, Americas use the most water at a huge amount of 585 liters per day. Comparing this to europeans at say around 300 on average, this is a huge difference between two industrialized countries or groups of countries. So my question is, where is all this water going to? This is not even to mention some of the poorest people in the world who only use between five and thirty liters per day, and most of them have to walk miles and miles a day to get it from a watering hole, or if they are lucky, a local pump. I feel that since water is a non renewable resource and probably the most important necessity to survive that water should be payed for. But, because not everyone can pay for water and it is necessary, like I said to survive, the United Nations and World Bank should look greatly into finding the amount of water necessary in liters per person, per day for a person to live compfortably.

HILDEGARDE VELASCO:
I kind of can't help that I'm so prone to gendering. I think it's become sort of automatic for most people. It's what we've been taught and what we've grown up with. I know many have had the experience of being told that they are not acting like their gender. For me, my mom would often tell me "That's unladylike, stop it" when I was doing something she perceived as "tomboyish". In the Lorber piece, she refers to gender as a "social instution". This social institution is quite oppressive in itself. Lorber writes: "In social interaction throughout their lives, individuals learn what is expected, see what is expected, act and react in expected ways, and thus simultaneously construct and maintain the gender order." (pg. 25)
What is the keyword throughout this particular idea? Expected.

AMBER MCGUIRE:
Jews in the U.S. (1994/5755)
Personally, the concept of race to me has always been based on a scientific perspective, and because of that, I have always believed that race is due to a gene line. Therefore I do not necessarily agree that a type of religion should be considered a race. However, for this piece, I will go ahead and consider it a race while keeping my own thoughts and feelings about it. Throughout the article many of my own views were challenged, and I have to say, I disagreed with many aspects of it, and am partially disappointed with the piece in general. Besides claiming that Judaism is a race, I disagree with the claims that everyone hates Jews, that they are seen as “different,” and that they have to fear being who they are.

JESS MOORE:
Is it ‘fair’ to compare the sacrifices mothers make raising their children to the sacrifices men in the military make in times of war and peace? Why?
Is it ‘fair’ to ask our government for more support in raising our families (like the support offered by European countries)? Why?
As Crittenden states: “The Mommy Tax is obviously higher for well educated higher income individuals and lowest for poorly educated people who have less potential income to lose.” This makes me feel like Americans have a hard time looking beyone their immediate circumstances. I feel that it is pretty selfish of professional women to complain so loudly about their loss of a pension when other young mothers are struggling to be able to provide the daily necessities for their families. How does this make you feel? How do mothers in different circumstances (say the Octo-mom and Angelina Jolie) cause us to view mothers?

CAITLIN ARATA:
Sanitation Shortfall
In the book The Penguin Atlas of Women in the World, it surprised me that the absence of adequate sanitation affects girls, more so in a negative way, then men and boys. Who would have thought that collecting water is a major factor in the absence of women in school? I never before realized that water/sanitation makes women more susceptable to attacks and how it makes their household work even more arduous and complicated. Their roles are demanding and necessary in order for them and their families to survive, yet, these women are still denied the type of education that men/boys recieve. The importance of their roles are once again over looked.

MICHELE OLSON:
Tough Guise.....
This film is very interesting and brought up many points that people just do not seem to think about when we learn about violence. What I thought was interesting was the point about the media's influence on our impressions from what we read or see on television. I have been trying to find articles that specifically name the victims in the headlines and keep coming up short. I think about the boys that did all the killings and wonder about the victims part and what if they had been nicer people and not have caused so much trouble. Can we blame the schools for not recognizing bullies and noting their aggressive behavior towards the less than average individuals? Or do we blame the parents of the perpetrators for not noticing that their children had an arsenal of weapons and the minds to use it. It is a blame game that has been going on for decades and is not about to stop. I am just glad that Sociologists are looking at the outlying reasons that can be causing our kids to grow up in a not so happy world.

ASHLEY SMITH:
Patriarchal Terrorism
The phrase "patriarchal terrorism" is used by sociologist Michael P. Johnson as a way to conceputalize the violence by male figures in some families. Growing up, my best friend, lets call her Jane, was abused by her father on a daily basis. Being nine, I did not quite understand what the bruises and burn marks meant. As I got older, our famlilies (being military families) and about six months ago, I got a chilling call from my mom. My best friends mother was in the hospital from a deadly beating that she got from her husband. Even to this day, I do not understand how she stayed for those ten years in a relationship that was completely belittling and physically h-armful to both her and her children. While reading Chapter 11: Interpersonal Gender Violence, my complete relationship with Jane and the rest of her family came to mind. The patriarchal terrorism that played out in that family relied heavily on the general idea that you are not suposed to interfere with other people's households. While thinking about why Jane's mother did not leave, I read that minimally, 50% of women in an abusive household leave. The reasons why are definitely hard to pinpoint. But I think the fact that affordable housing today is so hard to find, especially for women, domestic violence (if the woman decides to leave) becomes a cause for homelessness for women, could play a part. I think that if we really wanted domestic violence, and the patriarchal terrorism to end, then we would help those women who put themselves out because they are in danger.

NICHOLAS KLINKE:
Tough Guise

After viewing the film, I had many mixed feelings. At it's core, it's an argument that has been made multiple times in multiple formats. The media image of men and maleness that dominates our culture is hardly realistic, but the idea behind the ideal man has been around for the ages across multiple cultures. Would Michaelangelo's David be just as compelling or well received were it not an image of a powerful, well developed male specimen? Probably not, as it's noted for being an image of ideal male form. Who's ideal is that though?
I think that the ideal exists for a reason beyond some marketing campaign or shallow constructions of a powerful minority. There is an underlying psychology behind attraction.

SIERRA SCHALLER:
With America in an Economic Crisis, will Interpersonal Violence Increase?

With the economic crisis at the foot of American society, we have found that it has taken a serious toll on the way people live and function in current society today. Reading about domestic abuse in the American society also brought to mind the movie “Tough Guise”, where Katz analyzed the world of masculinity and what makes a man masculine in American culture. When it comes to poverty in America, there is an obvious connection between living below the poverty line and having an abusive home. The question though is why? The first thought that came to my mind was the value of control in American culture. We live in a society where independence is extremely valued, which is a great gift to many, but at the same time independence can bring on a mind set of needing to be in control of one’s life, one’s own identity and place in society. When one looses that independence, especially when it comes to supporting one’s own family financially, one must depend on others to support their own independence, which means a loss of control of what their life is worth financially. How does one gain control back? As a result of having a violent culture, in terms of proving masculinity and independence, one can regain control if they control someone else’s life, whether that would be physically or mentally. Becoming dependent on others in America is something of humiliation and shame in many families, but why such a negative stigma? The American family is valued for being extremely close and being able to lean on each other in times of struggle, but as Chasin mentions in chapter 11, usually one partner does have the “control” in the household, when it becomes unhealthy.

DUSTIN HALL:
One "white" man's struggle to understand...
LisaNa M. Red Bear’s speech was interesting. It pulled in a lot of different directions. From an art perspective, I respect where she is coming as an artist and understand to some extent the messages behind the work, but I have to say I was not a fan of it aesthetically. For a graduate student, I feel like her work is not up to par to what I’ve seen out of other artists at the same stage in her career. I think her pieces could have been executed a lot better. Her video piece was cool with the face paint, but that was collaboration with another artist. Art critique aside, what she had to say brought up a lot of difficult thoughts for me.

First off, I have to say that it is really hard for me with identify to those who have a native culture. I myself have nothing in my family passed down from any of the various blood lines that have crossed to create us. The largest percentage of my blood is Swiss, but I don’t know the first thing about being Swiss. I know no Swiss history and I don’t know how, why or when my family came to this country. I don’t even have any idea what Swiss food is like except maybe the cheese or the hot chocolate. The only title I have in terms of ethnicity is "white" and there is no culture attached to that. The only culture I somewhat identify with is Gay culture, but that is an entire different sect of what culture is and it certainly isn’t native. What I’m getting at is I guess being so detached makes it hard for me to empathize with the idea of Native American loss.

KAYLEE HARDMAN:
This chapter largely dealt with the prevalence of hate crimes and racial violence throughout time. For the most part, it focused on crime committed by white individuals against black individuals. As I was reading through this chapter, I was thinking to myself, "Have we improved our situation as a collective society?"
The reason why I ask this to myself is that as I read through this, I was wondering whether our society has become less violent towards other races over time. I wonder whether or not different outlets in the media may be encouraging violence in younger and younger people; and even in women. On YouTube, there is a rise in videos of young girls fighting each other, just so they can be seen as tough and hardcore by their peers. What makes women think that they have to be seen in this way? What makes people feel that they need to resort to violence against people they are prejudice against? I think that in the 1960's most people weren't necessarily prejudiced against black people, but it was a social normality that many just blindly accepted.

Feminisms, War, Democracy, Justice & the United States

U.S. Political Scientist, Cynthia Enloe, comments on women, gender, militarism(s), and the "militarization of women's rights" in Afghanistan.




Cynthia Enloe: "Women and Men in the Iraq War: What Can Feminist Curiosity Reveal"