GLOBAL 144
Gender, Sexuality, and Islam
This course examines the diversity and complexity of Muslim women’s lives and faith around the world. It explores changing constructions of gender and sexuality in the Islamic world over time; the interactions between Muslims and travelers, colonial administrators, the modern state, and local and transnational feminist, secularist, and Islamist movements; and, generally, continuing challenges to the very notion of what a “Muslim” is. The course draws on primary source texts as well as ethnography, literature, film, and media.
Topics
- By the end of this course, you will ideally be able to: • demonstrate a competence of knowledge about Islam and Islamic practice • have a deeper understanding of a range of historical and theoretical perspectives on gender, sexuality, and Islam • compare and contrast the different views on women in Islam • articulate how economic, social, political, and religious changes affecting Muslims have shaped their understanding, and expression, of gender identity and relationships in Islam; • bring a critical and inquiring sensibility to the texts, structures, and ideas to which you are exposed • collaborate effectively in a team • confidently articulate complex ideas in a public setting
Official catalogue course objectives and student learning outcomes
Sources
- Course catalogue ↗2026-2027