September 02, 2015

New visiting instructor, Claire Robison.

Meet visiting instructor, Claire Robison, who will be teaching GEND 231-Genders and Sexualities in Global Perspective and a new gender studies elective, RELS 398-Islam, Gender, and Modernity fall semester 2015.

We are happy to welcome visiting instructor, Claire Robison, who will be teaching GEND 231-Genders and Sexualities in Global Perspective and a new gender studies elective, RELS 398-Islam, Gender, and Modernity this fall semester 2015.

Claire Robison studies South Asian religions and cultures, focusing on Hindu and Islamic traditions. She uses ethnographic methods to explore communities, media, and public culture in contemporary India. She has taught courses widely on topics related to Asia and the Middle East, and is interested in the relationships between globalization, religion, changing gender norms, and Asian modernities.  

GEND 231 Genders and Sexualities in Global Perspective   
TTH 1:50-3:20pm                                       

Gender as it has been socially, culturally, and historically constituted in different times and places. Theoretical developments in the anthropology of gender. Cross-cultural exploration using examples from a wide range of societies, past and present. The relationship between cultural definitions of gender and the social experience of women, men, and alternative gender roles, such as the Native American two-spirits, the hijra of India, and global perspectives on contemporary transgender experiences. 

    

RELS 398-Islam, Gender, and Modernity   
MWF 1:50-2:50pm

Explores life for Muslim women in modern times, based on autobiographical and narrative accounts written over the past century. Queries categories of gender, from femininities andmasculinities to alternative sexualities. Examines how social and gender norms are changing in the modern era, and explores the negotiation of normative and ideal gender roles in contemporary Muslim-majority countries. A focal point for analysis is the power of interpretation (of Islamic texts, tradition, and culture) in determining gender norms and practices for Muslims in a globalizing world.