What Is Women's Studies?

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What is Women's Studies?

Women's Studies is an interdisciplinary field that examines socially- and culturally-defined gender roles. Drawing upon academic areas such as history, psychology, media sociology, sociology, literary criticism, and anthropology, it crosses the boundaries of traditional disciplines raising important questions regarding the way we have organized ourselves, our chief social and political institutions, and knowledge itself. As an area of academic study, Women's Studies provides new frameworks that are sensitive not only to issues of gender, but also race, class, and ethnicity. By analyzing the powerful and problematic impact of sexual inequalities, Women's Studies revises the way we see ourselves and our world.

The Women's Studies Program at Castleton State College offers courses across several subject areas. The emphasis is on encouraging students to think critically and re-examining history cross-culturally using a feminist perspective.

The small class sizein all Women's Studies courses fosters a learning environment that nurtures intelligent discussion and application of that knowledge to practical issues.

What Women's Studies Is:
- A way for students of all backgrounds and experiences to understand their own life and the lives of others from new perspectives

- An interdisciplinary approach that raises important epistemological questions about all other academic areas

- A recovery and celebration of women's voices lost in canonical "malestream" art, literature, music etc.

- An opportunity for students to take an active role in bringing about social change both inside and outside the classroom

What Women's Studies Isn't:
- A meeting ground of a bunch of angry male-hating radicals

- Simple-minded male bashing rather than an examination and exposition of biases and privileges enjoyed by certain men throughout history

- A victim's perspective, that sees all women as blameless victims

- An emotional, touchy-feely class with no theoretical backing or practical value