Gender Studies: Origins and Foundations

• Gender and Society are instructed by Lilibeth A. Calonge, MA

Origins and Foundations (Early 18th-19th Century)

• Gender Studies has early feminist thought roots

• Philosophers like Mary Wollstonecraft argued for women's education and equality

• Foundational ideas challenged patriarchal norms and laid the gender groundwork as a social category

• Women's suffrage movements in the 19th and early 20th centuries emphasized the need to question societal roles assigned based on sex

• Activism provided a political and social context for the eventual academic study of gender

Second-Wave Feminism and the Birth of Gender Studies (1960s-1980s)

• The 1960s saw a surge in feminist movements focused on workplace inequality, reproductive rights, and gender roles
• Simone de Beauvoir's "The Second Sex" (1949) explored the construction of womanhood.
• Gender Studies emerged as a formal academic discipline during the 1970s, initially called "Women's Studies"
• The field sought to examine women's experiences, achievements, and marginalization
• Universities in the U.S., such as San Diego State University, were among the first to offer Women's Studies programs

Theoretical Shifts and the Expansion to Gender Studies

• By the 1980s, scholars began questioning the universal category of "woman," acknowledging differences in experiences based on race, class, and sexuality
• This questioning led to the development of intersectionality, a concept coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw to describe overlapping systems of oppression
• Scholars like R.W. Connell (e.g., Masculinities, 1995) began examining how masculinities are socially constructed and reinforced
• The study of masculinities expanded the field to include all genders
• Judith Butler's "Gender Trouble” (1990) challenged binary understanding of gender, introducing gender as performative
• Queer theory, influenced by figures like Michel Foucault, further critiqued heteronormativity and emphasized fluidity in identities

Global Perspectives (1990s-2000s)

• Gender Studies increasingly addressed global issues such as colonialism, development, and migration, emphasizing the need to consider diverse cultural contexts through Transnational Feminism
• Chandra Talpade Mohanty (Under Western Eyes) critiqued Western-centric approaches to feminism
• Postcolonial theorists like Gayatri Spivak explored how colonial histories shaped gender roles and identities in formerly colonized societies

Contemporary Developments (2010s-Present)

• There is a growing focus on Non-Binary and Transgender Studies
• Gender Studies increasingly engages with the experiences of transgender, non-binary, and gender-nonconforming individuals
• This shift reflects growing societal awareness and activism around these identities
• The field now intersects with disciplines like sociology, anthropology, political science, and cultural studies, exploring topics like media representation and gender in technology through Interdisciplinary Approaches
• There has been a renewed focus on deconstructing harmful aspects of masculinity and promoting healthier gender norms for all genders

Challenges and Critiques

• Gender Studies often faces criticism and backlash, particularly from conservative groups
• The field continues to defend the validity of studying gender as a discipline
• There is an ongoing push to make the discipline less Eurocentric and more inclusive of Indigenous and non-Western perspectives on gender

Exploration of the origins and foundations of gender studies, tracing its roots to early feminist thought in the 18th and 19th centuries. Highlighting the influence of philosophers like Mary Wollstonecraft. Examining the second-wave feminism and the birth of gender studies.