Sex and the City

URBST

717

Sex and the City

This course will examine sexuality and city life. The unique social, political and cultural features of US cities have long made them important to the pursuit of self-discovery and sexual freedom and to the creation and growth of robust sexual subcultures and communities. Yet cities have also found ways to regulate sexuality and to oppress sexual minorities as well. In this course, we will discuss how the modern US city simultaneously shaped and was shaped by the development of modern sexual identities. The course proceeds through four themes: 1) fundamental concepts in the study of sex and the city; 2) specific histories and case studies of sexual oppression and liberation; and 3) landscapes of power and sex in the city today. We will answer questions such as, what role did sophisticated forms of policing and regulation, municipal bureaucracies, and consumer cultures play in encouraging and discouraging the growth of sexual subcultures? How did sexual and gendered ideologies shape the making of urban public and private spaces? And how have the political struggles of sexually oppressed groups, including working class women, gays and lesbians, and transgender people reshaped the city itself?

Fall, Spring

Graduate

Yes