Women, Gender, and Power

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

Women, Sex, and Power: Gender, Religion, and Cultural Identity in the Abrahamic Traditions: This course critically examines the representation and roles of female-identified figures within the religious, cultural, and textual traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, focusing on how these representations have been constructed, interpreted, and mobilized across different historical and social contexts. Through a post-modernist lens, students will explore the complex dynamics of gender, power, and sexuality in religious discourse, particularly emphasizing marginalized women and those from the Global South. The course interrogates how gendered subjectivities are shaped within these traditions and addresses the ways in which religious women engage with and resist hegemonic structures of power. The course also highlights contemporary feminist, womanist, and other post-colonial critiques as tools for re-reading and deconstructing traditional narratives.