This is an archived course. A more recent version may be available at ocw.mit.edu.
West Point graduating class of 1980. Cadets stand at attention during graduating ceremony. Nearly 900 cadets were in the 1980 graduating class at West Point. For the first time in history 61 female officers were among the rows of the "Long Gray Line." ARC Identifier 530632. (Image courtesy of U.S. National Archives & Records Administration, Photographer James M. Myers, SP4, 05/28/1980.)
Prof. Elizabeth A. Wood
17.118J / SP.412J / WGS.412J
Fall 2000
Undergraduate
This course focuses on a range of theories of gender in modern life. In recent years feminist scholars in a range of disciplines have challenged previously accepted notions of political theory such as the distinctions between public and private, the definitions of politics itself, the nature of citizenship, and the roles of women in civil society. In this course we will examine different aspects of women's lives through the life cycle as seen from the vantage point of political theory. In addition we will consider different ways of looking at power and political culture in modern societies, issues of race and class, poverty and welfare, sexuality and morality.