Gender Metaphysics from Marginalized Perspectives

Catalog description

What is the relationship between gender, sex, and sexuality? What distinguishes one gender or gender identity from another, especially when two of them might look very similar from an "outside" perspective? How internal is the process of identifying with a gender? This course explores these and other questions primarily from the perspective of the so-called "border zones" where lines between different identities, labels, and experiences are more obscure. In particular, we will consider how to define amorphous yet deeply significant concepts like "masculinity" in a way that is compatible with and accounts for the wide variety of people who identify with them - including, for instance trans men, some cisgender lesbians, and some people who don't fit neatly into the categories of "man" or "woman".