The spring semester of my junior year (aka: the last four months) has been a fascinating part of my life. After returning from studying abroad in the fall, I had to get used to a lot: the English language, the availability of personal space on public transportation, expensive alcohol, junk food, and the wonders of refills at restaurants. None of this was particularly easy, including my time in Ithaca and readjusting to college/the lifestyle I've created here.
While the social scene was easy to adapt to, the academic side was less clear from the start. I wasn't sure how I felt about taking Intro to Women's Studies; I declared the women's studies minor pretty late in the game and felt as though an intro class seemed odd and out of place for my sixth semester in college. Nevertheless I was happy to see an interesting-looking reading list about feminism and hoped for the best.
In the end, the class has taught me many, many things--but not necessarily in the same way it maybe impacted others in the course. While I never read any of the books before and certainly absorbed lots of new and interesting information, the challenging part for me wasn't accepting the social construction of sex and gender (and race). I had realized the political reality of sexism a few semesters earlier. Hell, I knew how to bring up the "double standard" example to uninformed individuals like the back of my hand.
However, this class challenged me in new and exciting ways. I learned from the reactions and statements of others. I saw people in the class go through a process I could in some ways compare to my own--realizing the inclusivity of feminism and its utility as an analytic tool and critical lens for further thinking, etc. I also learned that clarity is charity. You give so much to others when you can actually explain things in a way that is very useful and tangible. You don't want to tell someone what something is, but rather how something could work.
At the beginning of the semester, I'm not sure I always did this. Throwing out "racialized gender" or colonizing the sexed body as commentary doesn't make sense in a class that is just trying to ask, "what the fuck is feminism and how does it apply?"
As a result, the course was humbling and refreshing. I learned from the insight of others who helped me argue more thoughtfully (whether out loud or in my head) by challenging feminist and gender theories with new perspectives and experiences. I learned that intro classes can, in fact, be great spaces for thinking and discussion when you have a mix of dynamic interests and backgrounds--something we don't always get at the first year level (especially in Park...).
In the end, I learned that we all play an important role in guiding the dialogue and prioritization of topics in class and it's up to you to figure out what your role might mean and how you can play it well.
Also--and I swear this isn't for brownie points---I have never looked forward to attendance more in my life. Jamie is hilarious and did a great job proving how feminism and humor aren't mutually exclusive.
Thanks for the great semester, everyone,
Your thinking, arguments, reactions and stories made this a great class,
Chris
