GSWS7900 - New Directions in Queer and Trans Studies

In this course, we will read recent work in queer and trans studies addrressing a number of topics that have been central over the last several decades. We will address the ongoing expansion of the field in historical and geographical directions, overlaps and tensions between queer and trans studies, AIDS historiography, social class in trans life writing, queer environmental studies, the persistence of gay and lesbian studies, black feminism and disciplinary history, uses of the first person in criticism, and a queer critiques of liberalism in the present. In addition to new theoretical and critical writing, we will also consider recent queer and trans cultural production, considering the relation between politics, theory, and experience. Although this is designed as an advanced graduate seminar, we will ground our discussions in canonical readings in the field, which will make it accessible to students with different levels of preparation.