2. Engl 345: Introduction to Queer Theory

Professor: Thomas Fountain
Times: Mondays and Wednesdays, 9:00-10:15 a.m.

The first in the English department’s new series, Topics in LGBT Studies, Engl 345 will examine queer theory, or, as Fountain describes it, “the set of ideas that try to understand gender and sexuality beyond the rigid, normative construction that society often imposes on them.”

Analyzing texts from the 1980’s to today, the course will look at a number of different mediums of expression, including poetry, short film, memoir, performance and photography. Featured authors include Michel Foucault, Gayle Rubin, Judith Butler, Eve Sedgwick, Leo Bersani, Michael Warner and Lee Edelman.

“These works are trying to understand and come to grips with how we as regular human beings live out our gender or sexuality,” said Fountain. “We are all, every day, enacting and living out what we mean by sex and gender. This is a group of texts, a school of thought if you will, where people are actively thinking about this.”