(file last updated: [8/10/1998 - 15:29:9])
Undergraduate Program
Women's studies is an interdisciplinaryfield that draws on the sciences, social sciences, humanities,and the arts. The Women's Studies Program at Brandeis integratesthe study of women's lives and of gender with the general curriculum.In addition to examining women's experiences and contemporaryfeminist theory, the courses offered by the program encouragestudents to address sexual, cultural, racial, and ethnic differences.We welcome female and male students to explore these topics inan interdisciplinary framework. Our goal is to provide a forumin which multicultural and women's issues are discussed, debated,and studied. Finally, we seek to create a community that offersintellectual stimulation at Brandeis by hosting visiting exhibitsand scholars; sponsoring concerts, readings, lectures, symposia,and conferences; publishing the Women's Studies Program newsletter,Working Papers Series, All Sides of Ourselves; providingstudent prizes and research opportunities and supporting othergender-related student organizations such as Women's Month andthe Women's Resource Center.
Graduate Programs in Women'sStudies
Interdisciplinary in design,the graduate programs aim to give students a solid grounding intheir discipline-specific studies while offering them tools forincorporating women's studies into their research. Introducingstudents to the latest work in a variety of fields, women's studiesoffers the possibility of cross-disciplinary dialogue. This programenhances the ability of students to compete effectively for facultyopenings in women's studies.
Because the courses in theWomen's Studies Program are listed in many different departments,it is possible to add this program to most concentrations. Studentsshould enroll in WMNS 5a, offered every fall, as early as possiblein their career at Brandeis. A meeting is held every fall at whichinterested students can meet women's studies faculty and studentsto discuss the program. Because the program requirements, listedbelow, offer great flexibility in designing a course of study,each student should work with her or his women's studies facultyadvisor to shape a program that addresses that student's interests.In the senior year, students complete a senior research paperon an approved topic that may also serve as a senior project orthesis in the student's concentration. Students register for theprogram by visiting the women's studies office and being assigneda women's studies advisor. They are then invited to participatein all women's studies events, including a monthly Women's StudiesProgram community meeting.
The joint master's degree inwomen's studies and a discipline has two options.
The first option is a jointterminal master's degree in women's studies and anthropology,women's studies and English and American literature, women's studiesand Near Eastern and Judaic Studies, or women's studies and sociology.Except in rare circumstances, this option is available only atthe time of admission. This degree option may require one or twocalendar years, depending on requirements in the affiliating program.
The second option is availableto Brandeis graduate students who are enrolled in Ph.D. programsin American history, anthropology, comparative history, Englishand American literature, the Graduate Heller School, the InterdisciplinaryProgram of Literary Studies, music, Near Eastern and Judaic Studies,psychology, and sociology. Students may elect a joint master'sdegree in women's studies and their program, with their advisor'spermission as well as the agreement of the Women's Studies Program.This degree option replaces a master's degree in the student'sprogram and may be entered at any time during the student's graduatecareer.
Shulamit Reinharz, Chair
(Sociology)
Erica Harth, Graduate AdvisingHead
(Romance and Comparative Literature)
Jyl Lynn Felman, UndergraduateAdvising Head
(Women's Studies)
Pamela Allara
(Fine Arts)
Joyce Antler
(American Studies)
Silvia Arrom
(History)
Lynette Bosch
(Fine Arts)
Marc Brettler
(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)
Bernadette Brooten
(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)
Olga Broumas
(English and American Literature)
Mary Campbell
(English and American Literature)
Olga Davidson
(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)
Mary Davis
(American Studies)
Susan Dibble
(Theater Arts)
Sylvia Fishman
(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)
Stephen Gendzier
(Romance and Comparative Literature)
Janet Giele
(Heller School and Sociology)
David Gil
(Heller School)
Laura Goldin
(American Studies)
Karen Hansen
(Sociology)
Linda Hirshman
(Philosophy)
Deirdre Hunter
(Women's Studies)
Sherry Israel
(Jewish Communal Service)
Jacqueline Jones
(History)
Hilda Kahne
(Heller School)
Jane Kamensky
(History)
Alice Kelikian
(History)
Thomas King
(English and American Literature)
Jytte Klausen
(Politics)
Karen Klein
(English and American Literature)
Ann Koloski-Ostrow
(Classical Studies)
Margie Lachman
(Psychology)
Sarah Lamb
(Anthropology)
Marya Lowry
(Theater Arts)
Victor Luftig
(English and American Literature)
Robin Miller
(Germanic and Slavic Languages)
Alan Mintz
(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)
Susan Moeller
(American Studies)
Phyllis Mutschler
(Heller School)
Julie Nelson
(Economics)
Jessie Ann Owens
(Music)
Richard Parmentier
(Anthropology)
Angela María Pérez
(Romance and Comparative Literature)
Michal Regunberg
(Public Affairs)
Amélie OksenbergRorty
(History of Ideas)
Eli Sagan
(Sociology)
Nancy Scott
(Fine Arts)
Carmen Sirianni
(Sociology)
Faith Smith
(African and Afro-AmericanStudies)
Susan Staves
(English and American Literature)
Judith Tsipis
(Biology)
Joan Tucker
(Psychology)
Constance Williams
(Heller School)
Dessima Williams
(Sociology)
Leslie Zebrowitz
(Psychology)
Bernadette Brooten
(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)
Janet Giele
(Heller School)
Karen Hansen
(Sociology)
Erica Harth
(Joint Program of LiteraryStudies)
Jacqueline Jones
(History of American Civilization)
Alice Kelikian
(Comparative History)
Thomas King
(English and American Literature)
Sarah Lamb
(Anthropology)
Jessie Ann Owens
(Music)
Shulamit Reinharz
(Sociology)
Joan Tucker
(Psychology)
A.Successful completion of WMNS 5a, preferably by the junior year.(Under certain circumstances, WMNS 105a may fulfill this requirement).
B.Four additional semester courses chosen from the list provided
below.
C.A senior research paper on an approved topic.
Students are urged to takeat least one course that focuses on minority and/or Third Worldwomen or gender issues. No more than one course on the familymay count toward completion of the requirements for the program.
Students who are candidatesfor the joint degree of master of arts in anthropology and women'sstudies must:
A.Complete WMNS 205a, the foundational course in women's studies.Under certain circumstances an alternative course can be takeninstead of WMNS 205a. See advisor for approval.
B.Complete ANTH 144a (The Anthropology of Gender).
C.Complete two elective graduate courses in women's studies chosenfrom the list of courses in the Bulletin, at least oneof which must be from a field other than anthropology.
D.Complete ANTH 190a ([formerly ANTH 200a] History of AnthropologicalThought), and ANTH 193b ([formerly ANTH 203a] Contemporary Issuesin Anthropological Theory).
E.Complete three additional elective graduate courses in anthropology,selected with the approval of their advisor.
F.Submit an acceptable master's research paper, dealing with a topicrelated to anthropology and to women's studies, approved by theiradvisor. The paper must be evaluated by their advisor and oneadditional faculty member.
G.Attendance at the year-long, noncredit, eight-part Women's StudiesColloquium Series.
There is a residence requirementof one full year of course-work. There is no language requirementfor the joint master's degree in anthropology and women's studies.Students interested in the joint degree program should consultwith the anthropology department women's studies liaison.
A.ENG 200a (Methods of Literary Study).
B.WMNS 205a, the foundational course in women studies. Under certaincircumstances, an alternative course may be substituted for WMNS205a. See advisor for approval.
C.Five additional courses in the English department selected from100-level courses and graduate seminars (200-level courses). Atleast two of these courses must be at the 200 level. One of thesefive courses must be listed as an elective with the Women's StudiesProgram.
D.One women's studies course in a department other than the Englishdepartment.
E.Attendance at the year-long, noncredit, eight-part Women's StudiesColloquium Series.
F.Language requirement: A reading knowledge of a major foreign language(normally modern European or classical Greek or Latin) must bedemonstrated by passing a written translation examination. Thecompletion of the language requirement at another university doesnot exempt the student from the Brandeis requirement.
G.Thesis requirement: This project must be 25 to 35 pages long.Papers written for course work, papers presented at conferences,and papers written specifically for the M.A. degree are all acceptable.The paper must engage a feminist perspective or deal with literarysubjects appropriate to women's studies. The paper must satisfythe reader's standards for excellence in M.A. degree level work.Each paper will be evaluated by a reader for whom the paper wasnot originally written. For further information, contact the women'sstudies advisor in the English department.
Students interested in thejoint two-year terminal M.A. degree program must first be admittedto the M.A. degree program in NEJS in the regular manner.
Program of Study
Courses must include a designatedfoundational course in women's studies, one women's studies coursein NEJS, one women's studies course outside of NEJS, and the year-long,noncredit, eight-part Women's Studies Colloquium Series. The remainingcourses must be jointly approved by each student's NEJS advisorand by the NEJS women's studies advisor.
Residence Requirements
Ordinarily, two years of full-timeresidence are required at the normal course rate of seven courseseach academic year. Students who enter with graduate credit fromother recognized institutions may apply for transfer credit forup to four courses, or, with prior approval of the M.A. advisor,candidates may receive transfer credit for up to four coursesfor study at a university abroad.
Language Requirement
All candidates are requiredto demonstrate proficiency in biblical or modern Hebrew or inArabic.
Comprehensive Examination
All candidates for the Masterof Arts degree are required to pass a comprehensive examination.
Thesis
In areas of NEJS that do notrequire an M.A. thesis, students receiving a joint M.A. degreein women's studies and NEJS must complete a research project onan issue connected to women's studies.
Research Project
This project must be at least25 pages long, in a format suitable for submission to a specificjournal or for presentation at a professional conference. It maybe a revision of a paper previously completed while enrolled inthe M.A. degree program at Brandeis. It must concern a topic relevantto NEJS and women's studies. The project is read by two facultymembers within NEJS and by an additional member of the Women'sStudies Program Committee. It must be defended before that three-personcommittee by the first week of May of the year in which the candidateintends to receive the degree. (Check the date with the Officeof the University Registrar. It may vary with the academic calendar.)Once the project is found to be of acceptable M.A. degree quality,one copy of the project should be submitted to the women's studiesoffice, and an additional copy should be deposited in the BrandeisLibrary.
Program of Study
The joint Master of Arts degreein sociology and women's studies is a one-year (12-month) program.Requirements include the completion of seven courses to be distributedas follows: the foundational course in women's studies (WMNS 205a);one graduate course outside sociology listed as an elective inwomen's studies; one graduate sociology course listed as an electivein women's studies; plus three other regular graduate sociologycourses (one methods, one theory, and one outside the area ofgender). Also required are a directed study focused on studentresearch, year-long attendance in the eight-part Women's StudiesColloquium Series (noncredit), and submission of two substantialM.A. papers or a thesis.
Residence Requirement
One year.
Language Requirement
There is no foreign languagerequirement for the joint master's degree.
The length of time and thenumber of courses required varies since programs have their ownrequirements for a master's degree. Each program has a women'sstudies advisor who works with students to develop their courseof study. Students are thus able to take full advantage of theinterdisciplinary nature of women's studies by designing an individualizedprogram that cuts across several fields.
WMNS 205a Graduate FoundationalCourse in Women's Studies
This is an interdisciplinarycourse offered through the Women's Studies Program. It includespresentation of feminist material in various fields. Specificthemes vary from year to year.
Additional Courses
Two courses cross-listed withwomen's studies (one inside the student's program and one outside)and two or more additional courses that can be non-women's studiescourses in the student's program.
Colloquium Series
Provides an opportunity forstudents to hear a wide range of feminist scholars speak abouttheir work. Students are encouraged to participate in selectingspeakers whom they wish to hear.
Thesis
The thesis must have a women'sstudies focus and be approved by the student's program and theWomen's Studies Graduate Committee.
Additional Requirements
Students should consult thewomen's studies advisor from their program to ensure that allmaster's degree requirements in their program are satisfied.
WMNS 5a Women in Cultureand Society: A Multidisciplinary Perspective
[ cl12 wiss ]
Enrollment limited to 45.
This introductory, interdisciplinarycourse explores women's experiences in the United States and othersocieties, focusing on the diversity of women's lives. Basic socialscience assumptions and new feminist perspectives are used toexamine a broad range of topics, fields, and issues. Usually offeredevery fall.
Ms. Felman
WMNS 92a Internship in Women'sStudies: Prevention of Violence Against Women and Children
Prerequisite: WMNS 5a. Enrollmentlimited to 15.
This course combines fieldworkin violence prevention programs with a weekly seminar concerningviolence against women and children. The seminar examines thetensions and commonalities between "family violence"and "feminist" approaches, with an emphasis on feministscholarship. Usually offered every fall.
Staff
WMNS 98a Independent Study
Signature of the instructorrequired.
Independent readings, research,and writing on a subject of the student's interest under the directionof a faculty advisor. Usually offered every year.
Staff
WMNS 98b Independent Study
See WMNS 98a for special notesand course description. Usually offered every year.
Staff
WMNS 99a Senior Research
Signature of the instructorrequired.
Independent research and writingunder faculty direction, for the purpose of completion of thesenior research paper. Usually offered every year.
Staff
WMNS 99b Senior Research
See WMNS 99a for special notesand course description. Usually offered every year.
Staff
WMNS 105a Feminism for theYear 2000 and Beyond
[ wi ss ]
Prerequisite: WMNS 5a oranother WMNS course. Signature of the instructor required.
Topics for discussion include,but are not limited to: the politics of gender and culture; essentialismand anti-essentialism; interconnections and disconnections betweenracism and sexism; motherhood, career, and the time bind; andthe current, backlash against feminism. Usually offered everyyear.
Ms. Felman
WMNS 106b Women in the HealthCare System
[ ss ]
Enrollment limited to 25.
Explores the position and rolesof women in the U.S. health care system and how it defines andmeets women's health needs. The implications for health care providers,health care management, and health policy are discussed. Usuallyoffered every year.
Ms. Arndt
WMNS 120a Race and the Law
[ ss ]
Enrollment limited to 100.
Explores how race has beendefined and used to uphold or undermine the principles espousedin the Constitution and other sources of the law in the UnitedStates. Issues discussed range from treatment of American Indiansat the nations birth to the modern concept of affirmative action.One of our premises is that ideally the law represents the synthesisof the narratives of various elements of a society. Special one-timeoffering. Will be offered in the fall of 1998.
Ms. Hill
WMNS 180a Reading and WritingAutobiography
[ wi ss ]
Prerequisite: WMNS 5a. Signatureof the instructor required.
Explores the ways lives areembedded within their social and cultural contexts, how thesecontexts change over time, and the ways men and women constructtheir lives. Particular focus will be on the impact of sexuality,race, and religion, with attention also given to class, gender,and ethnicity. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Felman
WMNS 205a Graduate FoundationalCourse in Women's Studies
This is an interdisciplinarycourse offered through the Women's Studies Program. It includespresentation of feminist material in various fields. Specificthemes vary from year to year.
Staff
WMNS 220a Women, Media,and the Law
Explores the role of womenas judges, attorneys, parties, and commentators in legal proceedings.By examining cases, legal commentary, and other materials, weexplore how the law has been shaped by womens participation. Wediscuss the advances that are necessary for equality to be achieved.Through high profile cases we Examine whether the gender of theindividuals involved shape the way the media reported the cases.We also discuss how media reporting shapes public perception ofthe legal system. Special one-time offering. Will be offered inthe fall of 1998.
Ms. Hill
WMNS 299a Directed Readingsin Women's Studies
Usually offered every year.
Staff
WMNS 299b Directed Readingsin Women's Studies
Usually offered every year.
Staff
Elective Courses
The following courses may becounted among the four electives required for completion of theprogram. They are not all given in any one year, and thereforethe Course Schedule for each semester should be consulted.
The Literature of the Caribbean
Women and the Environment
Gender and the Professions
The American Jewish Woman:1890-1990s
Women in American History:1865 to the Present
American Love and Marriage
Reporting on Gender, Race,and Culture
The Family in the United States
Medicine, Body, and Culture
AIDS in the Third World
The Anthropology of Gender
Anthropology of the Body
Human Reproduction, PopulationExplosion, Global Consequences
Topics in Greek and Roman Artand Archaeology
Women, Literature, and Film
Feminism and Film
Feminist Theory in Literaryand Cultural Studies
Gender and Economics
Nineteenth-Century African-AmericanLiterature: Texts and Contexts
Eighteenth- and Nineteenth-CenturyAfro-American Literature
The Woman of Letters, 1600-1800
The Body as Text: Castiglioneto Locke
Modern Irish Literature
Lesbian and Gay Studies: Desire,Identity, and Representation
American Women Poets
Making Sex, Performing Gender
The Political Novel in theTwentieth Century
Sex and Culture
Representations of Eighteenth-CenturyMarriage: Literary Texts, Historical Documents
Lives of the Artists
Inventing Tradition: Womenas Artists, Women as Art
Center Stage: Women in ContemporaryAmerican Art
Georgia O'Keeffe and StieglitzCircle
Advanced Seminar
The History of the Family
Women, Sexuality, and FamilyLife in Early Modern Europe
Women, Gender, and Family
Americans at Home: Familiesand Domestic Environment, 1600 to the Present
Women in American History:A Survey, 1600-1865
Problems in American Women'sHistory
Hidden Bonds of Womanhood:Women in the South, 1830-1990
Anatomy, Sexualities, and Gender
Work, Individual and SocialDevelopment, and Social Welfare
Race, Class, and Gender
Families, Work, and the ChangingEconomy
Family Policy
Sex Discrimination and theLaw
Marriage, Divorce, and Parenthood
Construction of Gender in Opera
Women and American Theater
Women and the Bible
Jewish Women's SpiritualityThrough the Ages
The Construction of Genderin Modern Hebrew and Yiddish Literature
Lesbian, Gay, and BisexualJews and Christians: Sources and Interpretations
History of Jewish and ChristianWomen in the Roman Empire
The Political and Social Studyof Women in Israel
Women in American Jewish Literature
Changing Roles of Women inAmerican Jewish Life
Seminar in American JewishFiction: Literary Readings: Roth and Ozick
Revisioning Jewish Life inFilm and Fiction
The Women's Voice in the MuslimWorld
Gender and Jewish Studies
Western Philosophical TraditionsIncluding Men and Women
After Vice: Politics, Philosophy,and the Regulation of Sexuality
Women in American Politics
Seminar: The Politics of theModern Welfare State: Women, Workers, and Social Citizenship
Seminar on Sex Differences
Women and Madness
The Heroine in Nineteenth-CenturyRussian Literature
Feminist Critiques of AmericanSociety
Topics on Women and Development
Sociology of Work
Theories in Social Psychology
Families
Women's Biography and Society
Women and Intellectual Work
Freud, Women, and Society
Issues in Sexuality
Women Leaders and Transformationin Developing Countries
Advanced Topics in Family Studies
Feminist Theory
Sociology of Work and Gender
Studies in Latin American Literature
Contemporary Hispanic Women'sFiction in Translation
Through cross-registration,additional courses are available to graduate students from theGraduate Consortium in Women's Studies at Radcliffe College. Insome cases students may apply to the Women's Studies Program touse a course offering from the consortium to fulfill their foundationalcourse requirement.