Women, Work & Family

This course examines the relationship between women’s work for pay and the (mostly unpaid) labor they do in their homes.  Attending to both the realities of women’s lives and popular representations of working women, the course includes materials from anthropology and history, literature and film, sociology and public policy.  We will examine the historical separation of work from home under capitalism and the gendered division of labor that resulted from it.  We will explore a variety of historical and contemporary social arrangements to enable both wage-earning and domestic labor—socialized housework and day care, telecommuting, part-time and flex-time work, experiments with communal living.  We will examine household division of labor between men and women and its impact on professional life.  We will ask how class, race/ethnicity, and sexuality constrain and enable women’s choices, and how they structure relations between women as mothers and employers, child care and service workers.  The course examines corporate and public policies that structure work and family life.

Texts:

Estelle Freedman, No Turning Back:  The History of Feminism and the Future of Women (2002)

Arlie Hochschild, The Second Shift:  Working Parents and the Revolution at Home (2003)

Nancy Folbre, The Invisible Heart:  Economics and Family Values (2001)

Barbara Ehrenreich and Arlie Hochschild, eds. Global Woman:  Nannies, Maids, and Sex Workers in the New Economy (2002)

Dorothy Canfield, The Home-Maker (1924)

Selected chapters/articles on e-reserve at:

http://utdallas.docutek.com/eres/coursepage.aspx?cid=198

All texts are available at Off-Campus Books and the campus bookstore

Method of Evaluation:

class participation
one class presentation/leading of discussion OR 5 reading journals
midterm and final essay exams
two short papers and summary of findings to class

Learning Objectives:

1. Students will be able to explain how gender structures social institutions (families, workplaces) and our ways of thinking about them.
2. Students will be able to give examples of gender, race, class, nation, religion, and sexuality as interactive systems. 
3. Students will be able to critically analyze cultural representations of women and work. 

Course Schedule:

Course Requirements

Participation -- You are expected to come to class prepared for discussion. Your participation includes not only expressing your own ideas, but also the respect and seriousness with which you treat the ideas of your colleagues.  Sometimes I will take attendance at the start of class.  I take attendance at the start of class, after the break, or at both times.

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Presentation -- You and a partner are responsible for getting discussion of the day's reading started once during the semester. You should meet in advance and plan the background, issues, passages to examine closely, and questions you want to bring to the class. Presentations will be the first 10 minutes of class, although discussion of questions may run much longer. You will distribute to everyone a hand-out with 3-5 questions for us to address at the start of class.  Classes marked with an asterisk are available for presentations. 

OR

Journals - Five times over the course of the semester, you will hand in a one-page (MAX) typed response to the reading that summarizes the major arguments of the readings, draws connections between it and other readings or discussion, links it to real-life experiences or current events, raises questions, etc. Goal is to (1) prove you've done the reading; and (2) show some thoughtful consideration of the issues or questions it raises. These are reaction papers vs. more formal writing. If you spend more than 20-30 minutes writing, you are working too hard. You must hand in two journals by Mon. 12 Mar. Journals are due on the day we discuss a reading. Late journals will not be accepted. E-mailed and faxed journals will not be accepted.  I will not accept journals from students not present in class that day. 

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Midterm and Final Exams -- Essay questions designed to test your mastery of course readings and class discussion, and your ability to synthesize the material and think critically about it. Midterm is two hours in-class on Mon. 26 Feb. Final Exam is a take-home exam due on Fri. 27 Apr. I will hand out the questions in advance.

Interview Paper (5-7 pages) -- an analysis of an interview you conduct with someone different from you about their work/family decisions, interpreted in light of class readings and discussion.  Due Mon. 2 Apr. at the start of class.  

Cultural Reading Paper (5-7 pages) - a critical reading of a novel, film, television show, or ad campaign (contemporary or historical) about gender, work & family.  I will have suggested titles, or you can get one of your own approved in advance.  Due Mon. 23 Apr. at the start of class. 

Grading Policy -- Your grade will be based on:

You must complete all course requirements in order to pass the class (e.g. if you do not hand in a paper, you will fail the class, even if the other grades average out to a passing grade). Attendance and participation will be reflected in your grade (i.e. it doesn't matter how well you do on the other things, if you regularly don't show for class or don't participate). If you miss more than 5 classes (for whatever reason), you will fail the course.  Habitual lateness, absences or failure to hand in a paper on time will be reflected in your grade. Please consult me in the event of illness, emergency, or other extenuating circumstances.

I have a zero tolerance policy about cheating and plagiarism on exams, papers, or journals.  Those caught cheating will at minimum flunk the assignment and probably flunk the course. 

A NOTE ON CELL PHONES AND PAGERS - TURN THEM OFF!!! They are rude, disruptive, and show a lack of respect for me and for your classmates.

University Policies

INTERVIEW PAPER HANDOUT

CULTURAL READING PAPER HANDOUT

Homemaker Questions