HST 347 Sex, Race, and Science

Instructor: Dr. Brad D. Hume            Office: Humanities (HM) 437             Phone: 93447
Email: brad.hume@notes.udayton.edu    Web: http://academic.udayton.edu/BradHume
Office Hours: Tues. and Thurs., 3-4 (sometimes later), every other Wed. 2:00-4:00 (ask) and by appointment.

347.01 Tuesdays and Thursdays at 1:30 in Humanities 125

Objectives of the Course: During the modern era (1700 on) scientists looked to sex and race as key categories for understanding human qualities and human nature. At first the views of scientists reflected larger upheavals in modern society. By the 1810s, however, scientists’ "evidence" for the importance of race and sex were being used to justify denying the vote to women and minorities, imperialism, and a host of privileges for white men. These developments have had a lasting impact on Western society. In this course the student will become familiar with how sex, race, and science have been tied together from the start and how scientists’ views and roles have changed since the 1700s. In this way students will gain a critical perspective on the difficulties of assessing scientific theories in our own society as well as skills for evaluating those theories. We will examine how the scientists pursued their work and how men and women of different sectors of society responded to these influential views. The developments reveal an unfinished struggle in modern society concerning identity on all levels.

This syllabus is subject to change with regard to readings and dates for readings.

This course provides credit in the Women and Culture Cluster as well as the Values Technology and Society Cluster.

Course Requirements: The course will be a mixture of discussion, lecture, and some in-class group work. Discussion (15%), written assignments (5%), three tests (30%), two essay exams (20 %) and the class project (30%). While there will be some lecture, this class will be very discussion-driven. You need to have the readings done and with you ready to discuss.

Participation: NOTE: If you do not participate verbally in class you will NOT receive an A in this course. You are REQUIRED to print out, read, and bring readings to class on the day assigned. I have deliberately kept the number of textbooks low for this class so even the cost of printing will not add significantly to the overall costs. Keeping up with readings and discussion are crucial to doing well in this course. I will regularly take attendance to monitor participation, because if you are not in class, you certainly cannot participate. I will provide you with a list of general questions to think about as well as providing you with things to look for in specific readings. In many cases we will divide into groups to consider questions and then discuss those same questions in general.

Written Assignments: Periodically over the course of the semester you will be asked to do a variety of written exercises that can be as short as "make a list ...," "write a brief paragraph response to ...," or worksheets to be done in groups, or more involved assignments to be done outside of class. Some of them will be graded while others will only receive a "minus," "check minus," "check plus," etc. More will be said about this in class.

Tests and Essays: At the end of each unit there will be a 30 minute exam (the Tuesday of each new unit and on the final examination day). You will answer some objective-style questions and do some quotation analysis. At the mid-term and for the day of the final you will have an essay exam which requires you to choose an essay topic about which you will write an argumentative-style answer in response. There are not necessarily right or wrong answers to the essays but there are good and bad arguments and you will be evaluated on your use of class materials, historical evidence, and quality at crafting an argument. For each exam you will choose one question and write an essay, no less than 5 pages and no more than 7, in response. You will have one week to complete the question. The questions will require you to discuss readings covered in class. If you wish to use other sources, please consult with me beforehand. I have tried to make that unnecessary for these essays.

Papers: You have two options for paper topics, both of which involve outside readings.

Historiographical Essays: Twice during the course of the semester you will turn in an essay discussing a scholarly debate relating to one of the topics covered in class or to a topic related to this course. The first paper should relate to a topic prior to 1800 and the second should be post 1800. You must get your topic approved by me before going ahead. I strongly suggest that you also clear sources with me beforehand. You will read either two books or four scholarly articles on the topic and then write an essay discussing the main themes of the debate and your reflections on whose claims seem soundest and why. Each paper will be five to seven pages in length. See the Historiography Paper assignment instructions for further details.

Research Essays: For this assignment you will write a longer paper using at least two primary sources from class, one primary source from outside of class, and at least three secondary sources. Like the historiography paper assignment you will consider what other historians have to say but you will also examine the evidence for yourself and come up with your own argument on the topic. Your paper cannot simply be a summary of what other people have said with a few quotations from primary sources tossed in but must show that you have reflected on the evidence and attempted to provide your own arguments. They will partially be based on what your secondary authors have said but cannot simply reflect those views. This paper must be no shorter than twelve pages. See the Research Paper assignment instructions for further details.

NOTE: Anyone finding and using a primary source that is not currently online already can earn 5 points on their final grade for providing ten pages of text from that source provided that it is in the public domain (that is, it is older than 75 years). Historiography paper students will only get either 2.5 points on one assignment or 5 points for one source but not 5 points for both. Details on this to follow.

Grading:

Course Grades by percentage: All assignments except quizzes will be worth 100 points and grades will be based on a standard curve, as follows:

Final Grades will be computed based on points weighted for percentages. For example, if an assignment was worth 30% of your grade and you received an 86, the grade would be computed by taking 86 and multiplying it by .30, or 86 x .30 = 25.8. Grade points with decimals of .5 and above will be rounded to the next whole number. In the above example 25.8 would become 26. In other words 30% at the B level computes to 26 points out of 30 possible in that category and 30 out of 100 total points.

Course Policies:

The following policies are mine in addition to the Department of History's policies, posted on the main page of my website. You are responsible for all of them so read them carefully.

NOTE: I do NOT give extra credit assignments. Please do NOT come to me at hoping to be able to bring up your grade with extra work. In addition to the Department of History policies, please note the following.

Turn off all cell phones before class. Accepting phone calls or engaging in text messaging of any kind (computer or phone) is strictly prohibited. I reserve the right to ban all laptops from class if you appear to be violating these prohibitions.

Make-up exams are permitted for legitimate emergencies and for university-approved events that lead to absences. You are required to provide formal documentation before a make-up exam and changed due date will be arranged between you and me. In-class assignments handed out in class cannot be made up.

Objectives and General Understanding: This syllabus is designed to give you all the information you need to understand what will happen in this course. You are responsible for reading and understanding this syllabus. I am responsible for making sure that all your questions are answered. Unless you tell me otherwise, I will assume that you have read and understood what we will be doing and how your grade will be determined. You may ask questions at the start of each class, via email, or in my office hours. You are being advised as to major due dates from the very beginning, please be sure to budget your time so that you are not faced with doing last minute work.

Objectives and General Understanding: This syllabus is designed to give you all the information you need to understand what will happen in this course. You are responsible for reading and understanding this syllabus. I am responsible for making sure that all your questions are answered. Unless you tell me otherwise, I will assume that you have read and understood what we will be doing and how your grade will be determined. You may ask questions at the start of each class, via email, or in my office hours. You are being advised as to major due dates from the very beginning, please be sure to budget your time so that you are not faced with doing last minute work.

Assignments: Unless I specifically say that you may work with others on your assignments, you should assume that all assignments are to be done by you alone. The student handbook has all the definitions of plagiarism and other infractions against the academic code. Be sure to read and understand them so that you do not make any accidental mistakes. Keep a copy of all assignments (papers, etc.) on your hard drive through the entire semester. Inability to provide copies of assignments electronically (when possible) could result in a failed grade. If there are any questions about the paper I will request it to examine it on plagiarism programs.  If you have any confusion about an assignment be sure to ask me – not another student! – about it long enough in advance that I will have time to give you a response. I am happy to answer all questions and provide any guidance that I can to help you produce quality work. Office hours are for students and you may visit me during those hours as often as you need to.

Due Dates: All assignments are due in class on the date assigned. Be sure to keep a copy on your computer in case I need an additional copy, but unless I specifically give you permission, do not send papers to me via email. Late papers will be docked 5 points (roughly one-half grade) for each day late (e.g., 3 days late = 15 points off the total points for the assignment; e.g., an 84 would become a 69). Weekend days count.

Required Texts:  

For the main texts, the books will be referred to by the last name of the only or first author/editor of the volume.

Jackson = John P., Jr. Jackson, Nadine M. Weidman, Race, Racism, And Science: Social Impact And Interaction (Paperback) (Rutgers, 2005) ISBN: 0-8135-3736-3

McLaren = Angus McLaren, Twentieth-Century Sexuality: A History (Blackwell, 1999) 978-0-631-20813-6

Schiebinger = Londa Schiebinger, The Mind Has No Sex? Women in the Origins of Modern Science (Harvard, 1989) ISBN: 0-674-57625-X

Unit 1 Inventing Sex and Race

W1 1/7-1/11 -- Ancient Bodies

Course Introduction

Jackson, Preface, Prologue, and 1-4; Schiebinger, 160-165
* Carolyn Merchant, The Death of Nature, Ch. 1 (1989), 1-16 (stop at the paragraph beginning "The Aristotelian theory of generation ...") (quickplace)
* Aristotle, from Politics (quickplace)
* Pliny, the Elder, from The Natural History [ca. 77 BCE]
* Galen, from On Hippocrates On The Nature of Man (quickplace)

W2 1/14-1/18 Medieval Bodies

Jackson, 4-7; Schiebinger, 10-20
* Carolyn Merchant, The Death of Nature, Ch. 1 (1989), 16-41 (quickplace)
* Amerigo Vespucci (1452-1512): Account of His First Voyage, 1497

W3 1/21-1/25 Early Modern Views, Scientific Revolution

Jackson, p. 7-12; Schiebinger, 20-26, 44-59, 119-146, Ch. 6
* Steinbrugge, from The Moral Sex, 11-20 (quickplace)

W4 1/28-2/1 Natural History & Exploration

Jackson, 13-20
* Buffon, from Natural History [1781] 
Johann Friederich Blumenbach, "On the Natural Variety of Mankind" [1775] (Jackson, 256-268)
* Dorinda Outram, from The Enlightenment (Ch. 5) (quickplace)

    1/28 Last day to withdraw without record

W5 2/4-2/8 -- Seeing Difference

Schiebinger, 26-44, 146-159 Ch. 7
* Steinbrugge, from The Moral Sex, 35-43 (quickplace)
* Jean Jacques Rousseau, from Emile [1762]
* William Smellie, The Philosophy of Natural History [1791] (you do not need to read the synopsis at the end but you might find it useful to do so).
 

    All students should have consulted about the first historiography paper and emailed Dr. Hume with topic ideas by 2/7. Topics must be approved and I strongly suggest that you provide a list of your proposed sources.

W6 2/11-2/15 -- Enlightenment & Revolution

Jackson, 20-27; Schiebinger, Chs. 8 & 10
Thomas Jefferson, from Notes on the State of Virginia [1781] (Jackson, 269-275) and from Query 14, "Laws" 
* Mary Wollstonecraft, Vindication of the Rights of Women [1792] (quickplace)

    All students should have consulted about the research paper project and emailed Dr. Hume with their final topic by Thurs. 2/14. Any topics not formally decided on that date will mean that you are doing the historiographical essays and must still consult with me on a topic.

Unit 2 The Tyranny of Race and Sex

W7 2/18-2/22 -- Peoples and Nations

Test 1
Jackson, Ch. 2
Robert Knox, from The Races of Man [1850] (Jackson, 276-281)
* Samuel G. Morton, from Crania Americana [1844] (quickplace)
* Cynthia Eagle Russett, from Sexual Science: The Victorian Construction of Womanhood (Harvard, 1989)? (Intro. and 16-39) (quickplace)

W8 2/25-2/29 -- Evolutionary Theories & the Workshop of Nature

Jackson, Ch. 3
Charles Darwin, from The Descent of Man [1871] (Jackson, 281-287)
* Charles Darwin, from On the Origin of Species (quickplace)
* Cynthia Eagle Russett, "The Physiological Division of Labor," from Sexual Science: The Victorian Construction of Womanhood (Harvard, 1989) (quickplace)

    Historiography paper 1 is due 2/28 in class

W9 3/3-3/7 -- Race, Class, History

Jackson, 97-109; McLaren, 1-63
William Ripley, from The Races of Europe [1899] (Jackson, 287-293)
Georges de Lapouge, from Old and New Aspects of the Aryan Question [1899] (Jackson, 294-299)
* Karl Pearson: National Life From the Standpoint of Science, 1900 (quickplace)

    3/6: Essay Exam 1 will be assigned (covering material through week 8). Due the following Thurs. in class.

W10 3/10-3/14 -- Sexology, Social Science, Medicalization

Jackson, Ch.129-153; McLaren, Chs. 5 & 6
* Havelock Ellis, from Sexual Inversion [1915] (quickplace)
Franz Boas, from New Evidence in Regard to the Instability of Human Types [1916] (Jackson, 304-309)
* Elsie Clewes Parsons, The Old-Fashioned Woman: Primitive Fancies about the Sex [1914]

    All students should have consulted with Dr. Hume on research paper progress no later than this week. That consultation should include a discussion of sources and proposed plans. Face to face meetings are best but email can do some of the work.

    All students should have consulted about the second historiography paper and emailed Dr. Hume with topic ideas no later than 3/13 Topics must be approved and I strongly suggest that you provide a list of your proposed sources.

    3/14 Midterm break begins after last class

W11 3/17-3/21 -- Midterm break, no classes

    Begin readings for week 12.

W12 3/24-3/28 Eugenics and Race Hygiene

Jackson, 109-127 & 153-159; McLaren, Chs 4 & 7
Madison Grant, from The Passing of the Great Race [1916] (Jackson, 299-304)
Hans Günther, from The Racial Elements of European History [1927] (Jackson, 324-334)
SKIM AND READ CONCLUSION: Carl Brigham, from A Study of American Intelligence [1922] (Jackson, 309-323)

    3/26 Last day to withdraw with a record of W

Unit 3 Bodies, Science, and Culture

W13 3/31-4/4 -- Liberation?

Test 2
Jackson, Ch. 6;  McLaren, Ch. 8
"The Effects of Segregation and the Consequences of Desegregation," [1952] (Jackson, 334-348)

W14 4/7-4/11 -- Counter Culture

Jackson, Ch. 7; McLaren, Ch. 9
Washburn, "The Study of Race," (Jackson, 348-53)
Scott, "Black Science and Nation Building" (Jackson, 353-366)
American Anthropological Association Statement on "Race" (Jackson, 366-370)

Research Papers are due in class 4/10

W15 4/14-4/18 -- Modifying the Body (1), Maintaining the Sexes

McLaren, 193-223
* Joanne Meyerowitz, from How Sex Changed (2002) (quickplace)

Historiography Paper 2 are due 4/17 in class

W16 4/21-4/25 --

4/24 Last day of classes

Study Days: 4/25-4/27
Final Examinations 4/28-5/2 -- Our exam is Thurs. May 1 from 12:20 to 2:10 -- Exam Essay two will be due in that session