Gender, Sexuality and Power in Brazil

3 units

This course examines the nexus of gender, sexuality, and power in Brazil through an interdisciplinary lens. We will aim to understand how varying understandings of gender and sexuality have impacted the development of Brazilian society in history and continue to shape contemporary society and politics. We will pay special attention to the ways in which the intersections of race, gender, sexuality, class, ethnicity, and so on impact people's lived experiences and how heteronormativity and homophobia shape current politics. We will take an intersectional feminist approach to analyze topics such as slavery in colonial Brazil, national aspirations to modernity, authoritarian repression and moral panics, domestic labor, motherhood, sex tourism, Brazilian feminisms, and LGBTQ+ activism. Scholarly work from various fields of study -- with an emphasis on gender studies, history, and anthropology -- will be supplemented by documentaries, film, podcasts, and other media. This is a Writing Intensive and a Social Contrasts class in the IQ curriculum. Prerequisite: L45 165D, or two courses on Latin American or Women and Gender Studies, or permission of instructor.