Even though the world continues to consider itself by and large straight, there is nothing ‘naturally’ straight-forward about human relations.

Some 70+ countries continue to consider homosexuality illegal and even more still have constraints in place where it concerns same-sex marriage, childrearing/ adoption, and even the right to raise awareness of the existence of non-normative sexualities.

This course steps away from these pressing judicial and political concerns and instead treats the world as inherently queer. It asks how societies and cultures across the globe have engaged with categories of gender and sexuality categories that appear to deviate from the norm.

Reading and discussing text from across the social sciences and humanities the guiding question will be what can we learn by studying gender and sexual diversity about societies in general? How do other aspects of society such as socioeconomic difference, race & ethnicity, and religious beliefs relate to this? We will also examine the potential of queer theory to understand diversity and inequality elsewhere in society. What alliances are possible between queer activists and other marginalised communities? Students should be willing to familiarise themselves with the unfamiliar. 

Timetable

We now expect that all lectures can take place on-campus. In case the situation changes, you will be notified. You can find the timetable on Datanose.

Registration

Registration is open for second-year or third-year Bachelor's students participating in an Honours programme. Between 30 November 10 am and 3 December 11 pm, you can register by completing the online registration form that will appear on Honoursmodules IIS. Placement is random and students will hear within two weeks for which course(s) they are registered.

Please note: There is no guarantee for placement if you register after December 3, so make sure you register on time. For questions about registration, please contact us at Honours-iis@uva.nl.

More information