I. LGBTQIA identities and representations
You’ll begin collecting data week 2 for submission beginning week 4. Look for representations of LGBTQIA identities and briefly describe them (you may also provide a web address or a digital file of scanned material) and comment on each, i.e., indicate that you deem it positive or negative, a joke, insult, compliment, etc., and why. Put the date of the class they are due (the first will be “Week 4 Jan. 28“) and number each description listed under the date. Name your Word document and email subject heading “ [your last name] LGBTQIA” and send the document as an email attachment to the professor’s email address above by midnight the Tuesday before class on Wednesday (the first submission date will be by midnight Jan. 27). Each week you will add 2 more annotated descriptions (or more, if you wish) of representations you come across, numbered and under the class date, and resend the document to the professor by midnight the Tuesday before class on Wednesday. These will not be graded for content, only for submission by the due date. Late submissions will receive a grade of zero.
These representations may be in any format and from any source, such as ads in any media, characters in books/movies/TV shows/song lyrics/etc., characterizations you hear on TV/in the news/in conversations, self-descriptions by LGBTQIA individuals, etc. Just be sure to clearly identify where you got them and to provide a reference (name of resource, date viewed, etc.). Be prepared to present and briefly discuss your finds in class and how you interpret them.
II. LGBTQIA issues
You’ll begin collecting data week 3 for submission beginning week 5. On the Additional Course Resources page of the class website are links to scholarly journals and LGBTQIA websites and blogs. Each week peruse 2 different resources and send the professor a brief description of 2 issues (1 per resource) they identify as important for LGBTQIA communities and individuals and how each resource positions itself in relation to the issue (i.e., does it just present the issue, support it, oppose it, explain and raise awareness about it, suggest how to deal with it, etc.). Also provide your own brief assessment of their presentation and/or suggestions. Refer, if possible, to class materials that help you make this assessment. You may also include copied portions of material dealing with an issue in your description, but be sure to identify the material by separating it from your description by a blank line and providing a reference [site, date visited, section, title heading, etc.]. You may also describe information about an important LGBTQIA issue you find information about elsewhere; just be sure to document the source. These will not be graded for content, only for submission by the due date. Late submissions will receive a grade of zero.
For each week’s assignment, put the date of the class these issues are due and number each description you’ve listed under the date (the first will be “Week 5, Feb. 4”). Name your Word document and email subject heading “[your last name] Issues” and send the document as an email attachment to the professor’s email address above by midnight the Tuesday before class on Wednesday (the first will be due by midnight Tues., Feb. 3). Each week you will add 2 more descriptions (or more, if you wish) of issues you find, numbered and under the class date, and resend the document to the professor by the Tuesday before class on Wednesday. Be prepared to present and briefly discuss your finds in class and how you interpret them.
III. Analyses of films and other cultural artifacts
Nikki Sullivan provides an analysis of a film or other cultural artifact in chapters 3-11. The class will be divided into 6 groups, each of which will take responsibility for presenting to the class an analysis of one of the films or the art project Sullivan treats. The group will be responsible for obtaining a copy of the film to watch (the art project is documented online and linked on the syllabus) and, building on Sullivan’s treatment, the group will provide a more comprehensive analysis of the film or art project that will help clarify the week’s reading and also illustrate various aspects of the theories studied in the class that the analysis will specifically refer to. The presentation will identify the key concepts and major points of Sullivan’s analysis in the chapter (do not simply copy from the text, explain each). The group will provide a handout for students, including an outline of the presentation, references to course materials illustrated by the presentation, perhaps details from the film or art project not provided by Sullivan but important to the group’s analysis, and whatever other information is deemed appropriate. The outline will be sent to the professor by email attachment by 4:00 the Tuesday before the presentation on Wednesday so she can have it copied. If the group misses that deadline, they will be responsible for providing copies for all class members and the professor. On the day of the presentation, the group will give its presentation for the first ½-1 hour, including questions from the class, then the class will discuss the Sullivan chapter for the next hour, and, time permitting, the final 30 minutes will be spent on analyzing LGBTQIA representations and issues gathered by class members.
Each group must get in contact with each other a minimum of 3 weeks before their presentation to start working on it. A group member will email the professor the 3rd and 2nd week before the presentation with some basic information about what the group has done up to that point and indicate whether all members have participated. Groups who miss either of these reports will have their presentation grade lowered.