27000		1:25-3:45	R			MYERS
A portion of the above section reserved for majors
Above section COAS intensive writing section
Above section open to undergraduates only

Black women’s history is an eloquent and revealing witness to two
intertwined categories of identity that have operated as defining
categories of existence and profoundly shaped the course of American
history:  race and gender. The historiography of this field demands
that students confront the complexities of racial identity as that
which is formed in dialogue with other foundational aspects of
identity such as gender, class, sexuality, and national identity.
Over the semester, students will not only become familiar with the
major issues and debates within African-American women’s history,
they will acquire and develop a historical perspective on race and
gender as cultural and historical constructs rather than as things
immutable, natural, or rooted in physical difference.  In short, in
addition to examining and analyzing the changing historical
conditions under which black women have labored for self-definition
and autonomy, we will seek to understand and illuminate the many ways
that raced and gendered identities have been invented and reinvented
in the American context.

A writing-intensive seminar, the course will focus on the careful
reading and analysis of both primary and secondary sources. Students
will be expected to prepare and lead weekly discussions on the
assigned readings, prepare several short (3-5 page) analytical papers
on those materials, as well as complete a substantial (15-20 page)
final research paper in an area of their interest that corresponds to
the overall focus of the course.