University of Technology Sydney

54083 Sexing Power

Warning: The information on this page is indicative. The subject outline for a particular session, location and mode of offering is the authoritative source of all information about the subject for that offering. Required texts, recommended texts and references in particular are likely to change. Students will be provided with a subject outline once they enrol in the subject.

Subject handbook information prior to 2024 is available in the Archives.

UTS: Communication: Social and Political Sciences
Credit points: 8 cp
Result type: Grade and marks

Requisite(s): (32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10361-C10364, and Category Type = Bachelor's Degree OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10365-C10368, and Category Type = Bachelor's Combined Degree OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10369 Bachelor of Communication (Writing and Publishing) OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10370 Bachelor of Communication (Writing and Publishing) Bachelor of International Studies OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10371 Bachelor of Communication (Digital and Social Media) OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10372-C10383, and Category Type = Bachelor's Combined Degree OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10359 Bachelor of Communication (Digital and Social Media) Bachelor of Creative Intelligence and Innovation OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C09126-C09128, and Category Type = Bachelor's Combined Honours OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10426-C10442, and Category Type = Bachelor's Combined Degree OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10416-C10424, and Category Type = Bachelor's Combined Degree)) OR ((32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10246-C10251, and Category Type = Bachelor's Degree OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10264 Bachelor of Global Studies OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10311 Bachelor of Arts Communication (Creative Writing) OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10312-C10313, and Category Type = Bachelor's Combined Degree OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10314 Bachelor of Arts Communication (Digital and Social Media) OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10315-C10316, and Category Type = Bachelor's Combined Degree OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10317 Bachelor of Arts Communication (Cultural Studies) OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10318-C10337, and Category Type = Bachelor's Combined Degree OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10269 Bachelor of Sound and Music Design OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10270 Bachelor of Sound and Music Design Bachelor of Arts International Studies OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10276 Bachelor of Music and Sound Design OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10277 Bachelor of Music and Sound Design Bachelor of International Studies OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10252-C10263, and Category Type = Bachelor's Combined Degree OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10425 Bachelor of Music and Sound Design Bachelor of Languages and Cultures OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10451 Bachelor of Communication (Media Business) OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10452 Bachelor of Communication (Media Business) Bachelor of International Studies OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10454 Bachelor of Communication (Media Business) Bachelor of Creative Intelligence and Innovation OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10465 Bachelor of Music and Sound Design Bachelor of Creative Intelligence and Innovation OR 32 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10405 Bachelor of Communication (Writing and Publishing) Master of Teaching Secondary Education)) OR ((24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10020 Bachelor of Business Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10129 Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10167 Bachelor of Medical Science Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10215 Bachelor of Construction Project Management Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10243 Bachelor of Science Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10272 Bachelor of Design Interior Architecture Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10302 Bachelor of Sport and Exercise Science Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10303 Bachelor of Sport and Exercise Management Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10305 Bachelor of Design Product Design Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10307 Bachelor of Design Fashion and Textiles Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10309 Bachelor of Design Visual Communication Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10320 Bachelor of Property Economics Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10343 Bachelor of Management Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10388 Bachelor of Forensic Science Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10396 Bachelor of Public Health Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10447 Bachelor of Criminology Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10458 Bachelor of Mathematical Sciences Bachelor of International Studies OR 24 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C10239 Bachelor of Information Technology Bachelor of International Studies)
These requisites may not apply to students in certain courses. See access conditions.
Anti-requisite(s): 58318 Gender, Culture, Power

Description

In this subject students undertake a rigorous and detailed analysis of the notions of sex, gender and sexuality in a wide variety of cultural and social contexts. Students examine in depth how social and political institutions function to regulate sex, gender and sexuality, how gender analysis helps us understand contemporary social and political issues, and how gender and sexual identities are embodied and performed in everyday life.

Subject learning objectives (SLOs)

a. Examine in depth how social and political institutions function to regulate sex, gender and sexuality
b. Analyse theories and social/cultural practices relating to gender and identity within a transnational context
c. Explain theories of gender, culture and power through contemporary issue-centred debates
d. Examine gender from a critical theoretical, interdisciplinary and cross-cultural framework
e. Reflect on students’ own practice

Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)

This subject engages with the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs), which are tailored to the Graduate Attributes set for all graduates of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences:

  • Possess information literacy skills to locate, gather, organise and synthesise information across diverse platforms to inform the understanding of the communication industries (2.1)
  • Be reflexive critical thinkers and creative practitioners who are intellectually curious, imaginative and innovative; with an ability to evaluate their own and others' work (2.2)
  • Demonstrate an awareness and knowledge of global contexts and openness to cultural exchange (3.1)
  • Possess the awareness of ethical practice in the personal, political and professional contexts of civil society (5.1)
  • Possess well-developed skills and proficiencies to communicate and respond effectively and appropriately across different contexts (6.1)

Teaching and learning strategies

This subject is taught based on a modified flipped learning method through UTS online and case studies through a variety of classroom activities. It includes interactive lectures and class discussions based on in-class student presentations using various multimedia/ open education resources; Intense student-initiated small-group tutorial ‘theme-explorations’ and online discussions sustaining collaborative investigations and debates. Students receive formative/diagnostic feedback on their assignments through the provision of “benchmarking”, discussion of criteria, feedback from tutors and peers, self-assessment and reflection.

Content (topics)

This subject enables students to undertake a rigorous and detailed analysis of the notions of sex, gender and sexuality in a wide variety of cultural and social contexts. Students examine in depth how social and political institutions function to regulate sex, gender and sexuality, how gender analysis helps us understand contemporary social and political issues, and how gender and sexual identities are embodied and performed in everyday life. The subject examines gender from a critical theoretical, interdisciplinary and cross-cultural framework. We start with the introduction of key theoretical concepts and debates drawn from feminist theory, queer theory, post-structuralism and post-modernism. This includes debates on gender/sex and sexuality, embodiment and performativity. We explore gender blindness in western thought, examine the ethnocentricity of Western feminist theory in general and introduce the diversity of feminist approaches. Following theoretical exploration, the subject applies these key concepts and debates to a range of contemporary issues and practices we face, such as globalisation, international relations, multiculturalism, religion, indigenous communities and environmental issues.

Assessment

Assessment task 1: Workshop facilitation and presentation

Objective(s):

a, b and c

Weight: 20%
Length:

10 minutes

Criteria linkages:
Criteria Weight (%) SLOs CILOs
Depth of engagement with set readings 40 c 2.1
Coherence of structure 20 b 2.2
Clarity of verbal expression 20 c 6.1
Relevance of examples and sources 20 a 3.1
SLOs: subject learning objectives
CILOs: course intended learning outcomes

Assessment task 2: Online Discussions/ Gender Diary

Objective(s):

a, b, c and e

Weight: 30%
Length:

300 words x 4 postings

Criteria linkages:
Criteria Weight (%) SLOs CILOs
Depth of engagement with readings 30 a, b, c 2.2
Reflection of own practice 30 e 5.1
Integration of class and online discussion 10 c 3.1
Clarity of written expression 20 c 6.1
Accuracy of referencing 10 c 6.1
SLOs: subject learning objectives
CILOs: course intended learning outcomes

Assessment task 3: Critical essay

Objective(s):

a, b, c and d

Weight: 50%
Length:

2000 words

Criteria linkages:
Criteria Weight (%) SLOs CILOs
Depth of analysis 40 b, d 2.1
Breadth of reading 20 c 3.1
Relevance of arguments 20 a, c 2.2
Clarity of written expression 10 c 6.1
Accuracy of referencing 10 c 6.1
SLOs: subject learning objectives
CILOs: course intended learning outcomes

Minimum requirements

In this subject assessment tasks are cumulative so that each task builds understanding and/or skills, informed by formative feedback. Consequently, all assessments must be submitted in order for you to receive feedback. Students who do not submit all assessments will not pass the subject.

References

Abbott, P. et al 2005, ‘Feminist theoretical perspectives’, in An Introduction to Sociology: Feminist perspectives, 3rd ed, Routledge, Milton Park, pp. 31-55.
Ahmed, L. 1992, ‘The discourse of the veil’ in Women and Gender in Islam: Historical roots of a modern debate, Yale University Press, New Haven, pp 144-168.
Arneil, B. 1999, ‘Politics and Feminism: Deconstructing the theoretical frameworks’, in Politics and Feminism, Blackwell, Oxford, pp. 121-151.
Bartky, S.L. 2000, 'Body politics', in A.M. Jaggar & I.M. Young (eds), A Companion to Feminist Philosophy, Blackwell, Malden, pp. 321-329.
Bulbeck, C. 1998, ‘Individual Versus Community’, in Reorienting Western Feminisms: Women’s diversity in a postcolonial world, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp. 57-96.
Carbin, M. 2014, ‘The requirement to speak: Victim in Swedish Policies against honour-related violence’ Women’s Studies International Forum, 46: 107-114.
Connell, R. W. 2002, Gender, Polity Press, Cambridge.
Hochschild, A. R. 2002, ‘Love and Gold’ in Global Woman: Nannies, Maids and Sex Workers in the New Economy, B.Ehrenreich and A. R. Hoschschild (eds), London: Granta Books, pp. 15-30.
Holliday, Ruth and Joanna Elfving-Hwang. 2012. “Gender, Globalization and Aesthetic Surgery in South Korea” Body and Society, 18 (2): 58-81.
Kotef, H. 2015, ‘Little Chinese Feet Encased in Iron Shoes: Freedom, Movement, Gender and Empire in Western Political Thought’, Political Theory, Vol. 43(3), pp334-355.
Langton, M. 1996, ‘The Hindmarsh Island Bridge Affair: How Aboriginal women’s religion became an administrable Affair’, Keynote address to the International Interdisciplinary Congress on Women, Australian Feminist Studies, v.11, no.24, pp. 211-217.
Meyer, D. 2012, ‘An Intersectional Analysis of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) People’s Evaluations of Anti-Queer Violence’, Gender and Society, vol. 26 no. 6, pp. 849-873.
Mohanty, C. T. 2003, Feminism Without Borders: Decolonizing Theory, Practicing Solidarity, Durham: Duke University Press.
Moreton-Robinson, A. 2000, ‘Tiddas Speakin’ Strong: Indigenous Women’s Self-Presentation within White Australian Feminism’ in Talkin' up to the white woman: Indigenous women and white feminism, University of Queensland Press, St Lucia, pp. 150-178.
Okin, S. M. 1999, excerpts, Is Multiculturalism Bad for Women? , Princeton University Press.
Pande, R. 2015, ‘I arranged my own marriage': arranged marriages and post-colonial feminism, Gender, Place & Culture: A Journal of Feminist Geography, 22:2, 172-187.
Poynting, Scott, Noble, Greg, Tabar, Paul & Collins, Jock, 2004, Bin Laden in the Suburbs: Criminalising the Arab Other, Sydney: Sydney Institute of Criminology Series.
Westbrook, L. and K. Schilt 2014, ‘Doing Gender, Determining Gender: Transgender People, Gender Panics, and the Maintenance of the Sex/Gender/Sexuality System’ Gender & Society 28: 32-57.
Yea, S. 2015, ‘Masculinity under the knife: Filipino men, trafficking and the black organ market in Manila, the Philippines’, Gender, Place & Culture: A Journal of Feminist Geography, 22:1, 123-142.
Zion-Waldoks, T. 2015, ‘Politics of Devoted Resistance: Agency, Feminism, and Religion among Orthodox Agunah Activists in Israel’, Gender and Society, 29:1, 73- 97.