Gender, Marriage and Family in American History

Catalog description

This course will examine the history and meaning gender, marriage, and the family in American History from the colonial era through present day. Particular emphasis will be placed on the ways in which structures and meanings of these institutions have changed over time. The meanings of both femininity and masculinity will be considered in the context of how Americans have defined the proper ordering of society and familial relations. The history and meaning of the institutions of marriage and the family will be analyzed as a reflection of the religious intellectual, political, economical, social, and cultural trends of the American past.