Outline

Overview

This unit explores anthropological approaches to genders, gender relations and sexualities in different cultural settings across the world. Students will gain insights into ethnographically informed analysis of local and global practices and ideas that reproduce, but can also challenge, dominant views of genders and forms of sexuality, and how such views are implicated in structures of inequality that fundamentally shape people's everyday lives and experiences.

Unit details and rules

Academic unit	Anthropology
Credit points	6
Prerequisites ?	None
Corequisites ?	None
Prohibitions ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Shiori Shakuto, shiori.shakuto@sydney.edu.au
Lecturer(s)	Shiori Shakuto, shiori.shakuto@sydney.edu.au

Assessment

The census date for this unit availability is 2 September 2024

Details
Criteria

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Assignment	Final essay See Canvas for details	30%	Formal exam period Due date: 17 Nov 2024 at 23:59	1500wd
Outcomes assessed:
Small continuous assessment	In the Beginning Reflexive introduction	5%	Multiple weeks	500wd equivalent
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Mid-term essay See Canvas for details	30%	Week 09 Due date: 29 Sep 2024 at 23:59	1500wd
Outcomes assessed:
Presentation	Group Presentation Presentation in tutorial	25%	Week 13	1000wd equivalent
Outcomes assessed:
Participation	Participation Participation	10%	Weekly	During tutorials
Outcomes assessed:

Assessment summary

Detailed information about each assignment can be found on Canvas.

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a High distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a Distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name	Mark range	Description
High distinction	85 - 100	HD (85-90): Work that is outstanding for a second year student and shows potential for distinguished performance at higher levels. Written work demonstrates initiative and ingenuity in research, pointed and critical analysis of material, and innovative interpretation of ethnographic evidence. It offers an insightful contribution to anthropological debate, engages with values, assumptions and contested meanings contained within ethnographic evidence, and develops sophisticated, theoretically inflected arguments on the strength of anthropological research and interpretation. It shows a high degree of professionalism in presentation, and the writing is characterised by creativity, style and precision. HD+ (90-100): Work whose quality exceeds normal expectations for outstanding work at second year. Written work more than meets the criteria for a High Distinction, displaying a marked degree of originality and/or scholarly professionalism. Depending on the task assigned, the exceptional qualities might include suggestion of a new perspective from which to view a problem, identification of a problem not adequately recognised in the standard literature, methodological and/or conceptual innovation, or a particularly creative approach to writing.
Distinction	75 - 84	DISTINCTION (75-84%): Work that shows proficiency in the discipline of Anthropology. Written work reflects successful initiative in research and reading as well as complex understanding and original analysis of subject matter, with attentiveness to both the cultural and the scholarly context. It engages perceptively with ethnographic material and takes a critical, interrogative stance in relation to anthropological argument and interpretation. It has near-flawless referencing and evidence to support arguments, and, especially at the higher levels, the writing is characterised by style, clarity and some creativity.
Credit	65 - 74	CREDIT (65-74%): Low Credit (65-69): Promising work suggesting potential for further development. Written work contains evidence of broad reading, offers synthesis and some critical evaluation of secondary material, argues a position in relation to one or more existing scholarly approaches and/or shows some sophistication in its use of primary material. The introduction clearly states the approach being taken and/or the position being argued. The essay is characterised by good selection of evidence, logical argument and grasp of relevant ethnographic material. It shows some evidence of independent thought and an extra spark of insight. High Credit (70-74): Work of significant promise. Written work provides evidence of extensive reading and initiative in research, sound grasp of subject matter and appreciation of key issues and context. It engages critically with the question and attempts an analytical evaluation of primary and/or secondary material as required for the task assigned. It makes a good attempt to critique various scholarly approaches and offers thoughtful comment on the issues in an existing anthropological debate. It shows some evidence of ability to think theoretically as well as contextualise material culturally, and to conceptualise and problematise issues in anthropological terms. Work awarded a high credit is generally well written and always well referenced and supported with appropriate evidence; it often contains evidence of original interpretation or creative thought.
Pass	50 - 64	PASS (50-64%) Low Pass (50-54): Work of a barely acceptable standard. Written work contains evidence of minimal reading and some understanding of subject matter. It typically features summary and paraphrase of relevant material with little interpretation or analysis. It reflects a reasonable attempt to organise material logically and comprehensibly and to provide scholarly documentation. There may be gaps in any or all of these areas. Medium Pass (55-59): Work of a satisfactory standard. Written work meets basic requirements in terms of reading and research. It demonstrates a reasonable understanding of subject matter, offers a synthesis of relevant material and shows a genuine effort to avoid paraphrasing, to offer interpretation and to provide acceptable referencing and evidence. It has a comprehensible structure organised around an identifiable theme. There may be weaknesses in particular areas. High Pass (60-64): Meritorious work containing some elements that are of credit standard. Written work contains evidence of a broad and reasonably accurate command of the subject matter and some sense of its broader significance. It identifies the principal issues and some key scholarly approaches to them, and shows some awareness of the nature and pitfalls of ethnographic evidence. It goes beyond synthesis to propose an argument, although there may be weaknesses of clarity, structure or use of evidence in the case as presented. Properly documented, it shows signs of one or more of the following: attention to expression and fluency; independent thought; and critical response to existing interpretations of ethnographic material.
Fail	0 - 49	FAIL (Below 50%) Work not of an acceptable standard. Work may fail for any or all of the following reasons: lack of sufficient research using appropriate sources; irrelevance of content; failure to answer the specific question or treat the specified theme; wholesale lack of analysis or interpretation; unacceptable levels of paraphrasing; significant deficiencies in presentation, grammar or structure; incomprehensible expression; very late submission without an extension.

For more information see sydney.edu.au/students/guide-to-grades.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and automated writing tools

You may only use generative AI and automated writing tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator. If you do use these tools, you must acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section. The assessment instructions or unit outline will give guidance of the types of tools that are permitted and how the tools should be used.

Your final submitted work must be your own, original work. You must acknowledge any use of generative AI tools that have been used in the assessment, and any material that forms part of your submission must be appropriately referenced. For guidance on how to acknowledge the use of AI, please refer to the AI in Education Canvas site.

The unapproved use of these tools or unacknowledged use will be considered a breach of the Academic Integrity Policy and penalties may apply.

Studiosity is permitted unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission as detailed on the Learning Hub’s Canvas page.

Outside assessment tasks, generative AI tools may be used to support your learning. The AI in Education Canvas site contains a number of productive ways that students are using AI to improve their learning.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Support for students

The Support for Students Policy 2023 reflects the University’s commitment to supporting students in their academic journey and making the University safe for students. It is important that you read and understand this policy so that you are familiar with the range of support services available to you and understand how to engage with them.

The University uses email as its primary source of communication with students who need support under the Support for Students Policy 2023. Make sure you check your University email regularly and respond to any communications received from the University.

Learning resources and detailed information about weekly assessment and learning activities can be accessed via Canvas. It is essential that you visit your unit of study Canvas site to ensure you are up to date with all of your tasks.

If you are having difficulties completing your studies, or are feeling unsure about your progress, we are here to help. You can access the support services offered by the University at any time:

Support and Services (including health and wellbeing services, financial support and learning support)
Course planning and administration
Meet with an Academic Adviser

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Introduction to Anthropology of Gender and Sexualities	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 02	Challenging Binaries	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 03	Gender Performance	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 04	Intersections of Race, Sex and Gender	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 05	Feminist anthropology	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 06	Black Feminist Anthropology	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 07	Queer Anthropology	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 08	Ways of Knowing and Communicating	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 09	Writing culture	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 10	Group consultation	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 11	Fieldwork	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 12	Special Topic: After Love?	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 13	Conclusion	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance: According to Faculty Board Resolutions, students in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences are expected to attend 90% of their classes. If you attend less than 50% of classes, regardless of the reasons, you may be referred to the Examiner’s Board. The Examiner’s Board will decide whether you should pass or fail the unit of study if your attendance falls below this threshold.
Lecture recording: Most lectures (in recording-equipped venues) will be recorded and may be made available to students on the LMS. However, you should not rely on lecture recording to substitute your classroom learning experience.
Preparation: Students should commit to spend approximately three hours’ preparation time (reading, studying, homework, essays, etc.) for every hour of scheduled instruction.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

Week 1 Introduction to Anthropology of Gender and Sexualities

Readings  

Torres, M. Gabriela. 2019. “Feminist Anthropology Is Teamwork.” Anthropology News website, November 7, 2019. DOI: 10.1111/AN.1305 https://www.anthropology-news.org/articles/feminist-anthropology-is-teamwork/    
Lee-An, Jiyoung. 2019. “Feminist Reflexivity on Positionality and Knowledge Production” Carleton University Department of Sociology and Anthropology website. https://carleton.ca/socanth/2019/feminist-reflexivity-on-positionality-and-knowledge-production/

Part I Beyond Binaries

Week 2 Challenging Binaries

Readings

H.L. Moore 1999 “Whatever happened to women and men? Gender and other crises in anthropology” In H.L.Moore (ed) Anthropological Theory Today. Polity Press: Cambridge. 

Ugalde, Maria Fernanda 2020. What ancient gender fluidity taught me about modern patriarchy. Sapiens https://www.sapiens.org/archaeology/archaeology-biases/

Week 3 Gender Performance

Gatt, Caroline. 2019. “Performance” International Encyclopedia of Anthropology.

Hegarty, Benjamin. "Governing Nonconformity: Gender Presentation, Public Space, and the City in New Order Indonesia". Journal of Asian Studies. vol.80,no.4, 2021, pp. 955-974.

Week 4 Intersections of Race, Sex and Gender

Hoang, Kimberly Kay. 2015. Dealing in Desire: Asian Ascendancy, Western Decline, and the Hidden Currencies of Global Sex Work. University of California Press. Pp. 1-25.

Meiu, George Paul. 2014. “‘Beach-Boy Elders’ and ‘Young Big-Men’: Subverting the Temporalities of Ageing in Kenya’s Ethno-Erotic Economies” Ethnos. 80(4), pp. 472-496.

Further Reading

Carrier-Moisan, Marie-Eve, 2020. Gringo Love: Stories of Sex Tourism in Brazil. University of Toronto Press. [Graphic Novel]

Stout, Noelle 2014. After Love: Queer Intimacy and Erotic Economies in Post-Soviet Cuba. Duke University Press.

Manalansan, Martin. 2003. Global Divas: Filipino Gay Men in the Diaspora. Durham: Duke University Press. Introduction.

Part II Gendering and Queering Anthropological Cannons

Week 5 Feminist anthropology

Reading 

Mahmud, Lilith, 2021. “Feminism in the House of Anthropology” Annual Review of Anthropology. 50:345–61.  

Lutz, Catherine, The Gender of Theory (1995). Ruth Behar and Deborah Gordon, eds., Women Writing Culture/Culture Writing Women, Berkeley: University of California Press. 

Further reading

Abu-Lughod, Lila 1991. “Writing against Culture” from Richard G. Fox (ed.) Recapturing Anthropology: Working in the Present (1991)  

Dennis, Simone and Behie, Alison (2022) Mentored to Perfection: The Masculine Terms of Success in Academia. Rawman and Littlefield.

Week 6 Black Feminist Anthropology

Reading 

Ebron, Paulla A. 2001. “Contingent Stories: Anthropology, Race, and Feminism.” In Black Feminist Anthropology: Theory, Praxis, Politics and Poetics. Irma McClaurin, editor. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers. pp. 211-232.

Bolles, Lynn. “Telling the Story Straight: Black Feminist Intellectual Thought in Anthropology”. Transforming Anthropology, Vol. 21, Number 1, pp. 57–71, 

Further Reading

Moreton-Robinson, Aileen 2021. Talkin’ Up to the White Women: Indigenous Women and Feminism. University of Minnesota Press.

Mohanty, Chandra Talpade Mohanty 1984. Under Western Eyes: Feminist Scholarship and Colonial Discourses. 12(3) On Humanism and the University I: The Discourse of Humanism. 333-358.

Smith, Malinda. 2010. “Gender, Whiteness, and ‘Other Others’ in the Academy.” In States of Race: Critical Race Feminism for the 21st Century, edited by Sherene Razack, Malinda Smith, and Sunera Thobani, 23–35. Toronto: Between the Lines. 

Mirza, Heidi. 2017. “‘One in a Million’: A Journey of a Post-Colonial Woman of Colour in the White Academy.” In Inside the Ivory Tower: Narratives of Women of Colour Surviving and Thriving in British Academia, edited by Deborah Gabriel and Shirley Anne Tate, 39–53. London: ioe Press. 

Bilge, Sirma. 2020b. “We’ve Joined the Table but We’re Still on the Menu: Clickbaiting Diversity in Today’s University.” In Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Racisms, edited by John Solomos, 317–31. London: Routledge.

Mirza, Heidi S.. 2018. "Decolonizing Higher Education: Black Feminism and the Intersectionality of Race and Gender." Journal of Feminist Scholarship 7 (Fall): 1-12.  

Lewis, Eshe 2021. “Preserving Black Women’s Stories as a Labour of Love”. Sapiens. https://www.sapiens.org/culture/irma-mcclaurin-black-feminist-archive/

Week 7 Queer Anthropology

Reading

Dutta, A. & Roy, R., 2014. “Decolonizing Transgender in India: Some Reflections.” Transgender Studies Quarterly, 1(3), pp.320–337.

Boellstorff, Tom 2007. “Queer Studies in the House of Anthropology” Annual Review of Anthropology.

Further Reading

Weiss, Margot 2024. Unsettling Queer Anthropology: Foundations, Reorientations, and Departures. Duke University Press.

Hartemann, Gabby Omoni. “Stop Erasing Transgender Stories from History” https://www.sapiens.org/archaeology/transgender-people-exist-in-history/

Part III Rethinking Representation

Week 8 Ways of Knowing and Communicating

Reading

Chin, Elizabeth 2020. “Needle Work” Feminist Anthropology. 1(1) 7-13.

Cox, Aimee. 2009. “The Blacklight Project and Public Scholarship: Young Black Women Perform Against and Through the Boundaries of Anthropology.” Transforming Anthropology 17 (1): 51-64. 

Further reading

Chin, Elizabeth. 2010. “Katherine Dunham’s Dance as Public Anthropology.” American Anthropologist 112 (4): 640-42. 

Loveless, Natalie. 2019. How to Make Art at the End of the World: A Manifesto for Research-Creation. Durham, NC: Duke University Press. 

Nargi, Lela. 2016. “6 Math Concepts Explained by Knitting and Crochet.” Mental Floss, September 13. Accessed 8/17/2019. http://mentalfloss.com/article/86016/6-math-concepts-explained-knitting-and-crochet. 

Campt, Tina. 2017. Listening to Images. Durham, NC: Duke University Press. 

Williams, Bianca C. 2018. The Pursuit of Happiness: Black Women, Diasporic Dreams, and the Politics of Emotional Transnationalism. Duke University Press. Introduction.

Week 9 Fieldwork

Reading

Visweswaran, Kamala 1994, ‘Feminist Ethnography as Failure’, in Fictions of Feminist Ethnography, NED - New edition, p. 95–113, University of Minnesota Press.

Günel, Gökçe, Saiba Varma, and Chika Watanabe. 2020. "A Manifesto for Patchwork Ethnography." Member Voices, Fieldsights, June 9. https://culanth.org/fieldsights/a-manifesto-for-patchwork-ethnography

Further reading

Hodgkins, Jamie and Thompson, Jessica 2022. “Impossible Choices at the Crossroads of Motherhood and Fieldwork” Sapiens. https://www.sapiens.org/archaeology/motherhood-and-fieldwork/?utm_source=SAPIENS.org+Subscribers&utm_campaign=58b5c177e1-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2022_7_21_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_18b7e41cd8-58b5c177e1-136183309&ct=t

Week 10 Writing culture

Reading List 

Wolf, Margery. 1992. A Thrice-Told Tale: Feminism, Postmodernism, and Ethnographic Responsibility. Stanford University Press. Chapter 5. 

Tsing, Anna Lowenhaupt. In the realm of the diamond queen: marginality in an out-of-the-way place. Princeton University Press. Chapter 7. 

Week 11 Group Project Consultation

Week 12 Special Topic: After Love?

Reading

Freeman, Carla. 2014. Entrepreneurial Selves: Neoliberal Respectability and the Making of a Caribbean Middle Class. Chapter 2. Pp. 57-95.

Inhorn, Marcia. 2023. Motherhood on Ice: The Mating Gap and Why Women Freeze their Eggs. NYU Press. pp 25-51.

Week 13 Conclusion

There is no reading for this week.

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. understand the breadth and significance of the ethnographic record pertaining to gender and sexuality.
LO2. understand anthropological writings on sexuality and gender in the context of how these have been debated in the discipline.
LO3. reflexively engage with the implications of cultural difference in the study of gender and sexuality
LO4. work collaboratively in small groups to improve each other’s learning experiences
LO5. use ethnographic observations to appraise and critique anthropological practices, cannons, and theories of gender and sexuality.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

I added more work on queer anthropology. Additionally, the reading list has been modified to incorporate more indigenous scholarship.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Support for students

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect

Current students

ANTH2623: Anthropology of Gender and Sexualities

Semester 2, 2024 [Normal day] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Support for students

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect