*NEW* Online Summer Dance Course
Dance 168: DANCING GENDER: Embodiment, Politics and Feminist Theory
3 Credits
Meets: Online – Canvas
This course explores gender and feminist theories through the lens of dance. Gender theories and feminist theories focus on the body as the main site where gender distinctions are understood. The body holds a central position in the art of dance and the academic discipline of dance studies. Drawing on a wide array of examples and dance genres ranging from across the globe (such as Ballroom, Belly-Dance, Bollywood, Folk Dance, Ballet and more) Dance 168 introduces students to the cultural specificity of gender norms and the ways that dance has the potential to challenge heteronormativity through performance.
Students will learn how the body is treated as a site inscribed and defined by social hierarchies and power structures, and the discussions will, therefore, become increasingly more complex to encompass race, ethnicity, and social status as definitive factors of gendered identity. The class will also move beyond dance performance into examples of political protests and feminist activism to examine how we can view such instances as performances, and what dance studies methodologies have to offer for understanding and analyzing pedestrian performative actions.
The course is introductory. No prior experience in dance, gender studies, or women’s studies is required.
COURSE UNITS:
Unit #1: Introduction To Dance Studies, Gender Studies & Feminism
Unit #2: Queer Dance & Performativity
Unit #3: Global Dance Perspectives
Unit #4: Politicizing Gender