Theories of Gender Hierarchy for an Introductory Women's Studies Class

Abstract

Issues of gender hierarchy are central in an introductory women's studies class.1 My own approach to teaching feminist theory is informed largely by my interests in public policy and my background in social anthropology. I wish to give students an overview of some of the classical feminist theories and also some of the newest thinking. Also, through showing them multiple feminist perspectives, I would like them to learn that there is no single hegemonic feminist view. My selection is idiosyncratic to some degree, in that it does not include frameworks such as postmodernism or psychoanalytic feminism, nor any inspired by religious traditions. One cannot, however, cover everything in one semester, and it seems to me that students, particularly those who take no other women's studies class, need to understand the assumptions underlying public debates about women, family, and gender roles. My class presentation is shaped by my teaching context, namely a Roman Catholic mid-sized comprehensive university located in west Los Angeles. Most of our undergraduates come from California or adjacent states. Whites still constitute over half of our students, and about 60 percent of the students are Catholics. Consistent with national trends, about 60 percent of our undergraduates are women, as are nearly all of our women's studies students. Few of my introductory women's studies students enter as ardent