Module ARA2118 for 2016/7
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
ARA2118: Gender-Identity and Modernity in the Middle East
This module descriptor refers to the 2016/7 academic year.
Module Aims
The module explores interrelationships between gender, identity and modernity in the contemporary Middle East. It provides a critical analysis of the various debates, tensions and transformations that are linked to changing gender relations in the region. These debates are framed within the parameters of modernisation, nationalism, feminism and Islamism. A critique of modernity in the context of the Middle East involves a close examination of the traditional vs. modern and authentic vs. western dichotomies, which are not only prevalent in academic writings, but also constitute forceful oppositions in the cultural, historical and political discourses within the region.
| On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
|---|---|
| Module-Specific Skills | 1. demonstrate an ability to identify and assess the changing social, cultural, economic and political contexts that shape gender roles and relations. 2. critically evaluate different theoretical and methodological approaches employed in the study of gender in the Middle East |
| Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. demonstrate ability to analyse and assess academic texts and prevailing cultural notions critically 4. demonstrate ability to distinguish between a range of methodological approaches as well as variety of genres, i.e. anthropological and sociological texts, (auto)biographical writings and fiction |
| Personal and Key Skills | 5. demonstrate ability to engage in independent study and group work, including the presentation of material for group discussion 6. demonstrate an ability to digest, select and organise material to produce, to a deadline, a coherent and cogent argument, developed through the mode of assessment 7. demonstrate a capacity to critically examine and review existing literature. 8. demonstrate an awareness and be sensitised to the various processes by which gender, i.e. femaleness and maleness, are socially and culturally constructed |
