Module:

Latest Module Specifications

Current Academic Year 2025 - 2026

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Module Title
Module Code
Faculty		School
NFQ level		Credit Rating

Description

This module will explore how gendered subjectivities and representations of gender and sexuality are constructed in art, mainly literary texts, film and the performative and visual arts. We will explore how these narrative forms work to establish and to subvert stereotypes of masculinity, femininity and further modes of gender and sexual identity.

Learning Outcomes

1. 1D646C1B-2FE5-0001-A6B0-DD3910D0B870
2. Identify the continuities and discontinuities in the literary and artistic representations of gender and sexuality.
5. 1
6. 1D646C1B-BFF0-0001-AB35-103445641192
7. Differentiate between the various discourses of Gender and Sexuality Studies theory.
10. 2
11. 1D75FF83-B7F8-0001-9184-98107770158A
12. Determine which theoretical tools relating to Gender and Sexuality Studies are relevant, and integrate theoretical tools of relevance to his/her argumentation.
15. 3
16. 1D646C1B-65CA-0001-25B6-CE22E8B013D3
17. Demonstrate an understanding of how a literary or artistic artefact addresses the Gender and Sexuality Studies-related debates of the society from which it arises.
20. 4
21. 1D646C1B-DD1A-0001-D5C5-358215201D38
22. Relate the representation of gender and sexuality to broader cultural and societal issues.
25. 5

*Type*	*Hours*	*Description*
Workload	Full time hours per semester
Independent Study	146	No Description
Seminars	24	Attendance of and active participation in seminars.
Fieldwork	30	Completing set preparatory activities (reading and related tasks) in advance of each seminar.
Assignment Completion	50	Assignment preparation and completion.
Seminars	24	No Description
Independent Study	226	No Description
Total Workload: 500

Type	Description	% of total	Assessment Date
Assessment Breakdown
Essay	End-of-semester essay	100%	n/a

Reassessment Requirement Type
Resit arrangements are explained by the following categories; RC1: A resit is available for both^* components of the module. RC2: No resit is available for a 100% coursework module. RC3: No resit is available for the coursework component where there is a coursework and summative examination element. ^* ‘Both’ is used in the context of the module having a coursework/summative examination split; where the module is 100% coursework, there will also be a resit of the assessment

Pre-requisite	None
Co-requisite	None
Compatibles	None
Incompatibles	None

All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml

Indicative Content and Learning Activities

Indicative Content and Learning Activities
We will discuss various literary and filmic productions that address or reflect current debates relating to to gender and sexuality studies. Using a comparative approach, we will look at different ways authors and artists explore these discourses on/of gender and sexuality and their impact on different cultural and artistic domains. Students will conduct both independent and collaborative work in the course of the module, as well as regular reading and viewing, and associated analytical and reflective tasks.

NB:
Please note that all resources listed are subject to confirmation by the lecturer at the start of the semester.

Indicative Reading List

Books:

Jean Genet: 1966, The Balcony, Grove Press, 114, 0802150349
Jeffrey Eugenides: 2003, Middlesex, Macmillan, 978-031299173
Alison Bechdel: 2006, Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 248, 978-022408051
Hervé Guibert: 1994, To the Friend who Did Not Save My Life, Serpents Tail, 245, 1852423285
Angela Carter: 2015, The Bloody Chamber, Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition, 978-014310761
Arthur Schnitzler: 0, Dream Story, Penguin Modern Classics, 978-014118224
Virginia Woolf: 2020, Orlando: A Biography, Penguin Modern Classics, 978-024143630

Articles:

Frank Mort and Lynda Nead: 1999, Sexual Geographies, New Formations, Issue 37, 0950-2378, https://journals.lwbooks.co.uk/newformations/vol-1999-issue-37/,

Other Resources

Book: Gavin Brown and Kath Browne, 2016, The Routledge Research Companion to Geographies of Sex and Sexualities, London, Routledge,
Book: Phil Hubbard, 2013, Cities and Sexualities, Hoboken, NJ, Taylor and Francis,
Book: David Bell et al., 2001, Pleasure Zones: Bodies, Cities, Spaces, Syracuse, NY, Syracuse University Press,
Primary theoretical text: Butler, Undoing Gender,
Primary theoretical text: Halberstam, Judith, Female Masculinity,
Primary theoretical text: Halberstam, Judith, In a Queer Time and Place,
Primary theoretical text: Foucault, HISTORY OF SEXUALITY, volumes 1, 2 and 3,
Journal issue: Nicola Mai and Russell King (ed.), 2009, Love, Sexuality and Migration,