課程說明

This is the third and the last course in our (perhaps my first) trilogy of courses on the complex issue of sexuality. To set the foundation for the discussion, we had begun with 20th century classic works on sex-pol, including Freud, Reich, Marcuse, and our contemporaries Gayle Rubin and Jeffrey Weeks. In the second course, we read extensively into feminist debates on sexuality in the 80s surrounding the issues of pornography, sadomasochism, cross-generation sex, etc. In the present course we will try to familiarize ourselves with the basic texts in the most recent development in the area of sexuality and identity politics, namely, lesbian and gay studies. My purpose is, as always, to build up some understanding of the key lines of argument as well as their implications for the larger issues of essentialism and social constructionism.

Readings:

• Abelove, Henry, Michele Aina Barale, & David M. Halperin, eds. The Lesbian and Gay Studies Reader. New York: Routledge, 1993.
• Butler, Judith. Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity. New York: Routledge, 1990.
• Differences. Special Issue. (More Gender Trouble: Feminism Meets Queer Theory.) Vol. 6, Nos 2+3, 1994.
• Foucault, Michel. The History of Sexuality, Vol. I: An Introduction. Trans. by Robert Hurley. New York: Vintage, 1980.
• Fuss, Diana, ed. Inside/Out: Lesbian Theories, GayTheories. New York: Routledge, 1991.
• Sedgwick, Eve Kosofsky. Epistemology of the Closet. Berkeley: U of California P, 1990.