Gender and Sexuality

The course provides a broad empirical and theoretical overview of gender and sexuality within anthropological research. The course draws on theoretical insights from feminism, psychoanalysis, gay and lesbian studies, and queer theory to illuminate and analyse a range of concrete examples of how societies and cultures deal with gender and sexual relations. The course demonstrates how anthropological knowledge challenges western assumptions surrounding kinship, the family, and gender-related behaviours, as well as the meaning of the terms ‘gender’, ‘sex’ and ‘sexuality’. Themes taken up include reproductive technology, the body, nationalism, and masculinities and femininities. Special emphasis is placed on how gender and sexuality are implicated in relations of power.