Study of Women, Gender and Sexuality 200 - The Queer ’90s

This course immerses students in the 1990s, looking specifically at the emergences and points of contention that made the ‘90s a queer, radical, deeply contested decade. This course examines the moment in lesbian and gay studies when the recuperation of the term "queer" emerged. By engaging with the readings and films assigned in this course, students gain an understanding of the AIDS crisis and the rage that mobilized ACT UP. Students learn what the Culture Wars, Welfare Reform, and the conservative attacks against the National Endowment for the Arts have to do with one another. In order to grasp the charged feeling, the urgency, and the upheaval of this era, students read foundational queer theoretical texts and analyze a selection of films from the movement known as New Queer Cinema. Prerequisite: SWG 150. Enrollment limited to 25.