HIST 204 - Special Topics in American History

Seminar: Gender and Women Workers Since 1945

This seminar will examine the history of gender and women’s paid work in the context of the U.S. and its global reach since 1945. In this perspective, “U.S.” does not denote only the bordered mainland United States, but also a political, economic, and cultural hub for currents of labor and capital. While women have always worked, ideas about “woman’s work” shift across race, class, region, and citizenship as well as time. Readings will include histories of women laboring for U.S. businesses from home piecework and agriculture to care work and IT. We will discuss influential theories in the field of women’s labor studies, gender, and the body and how they apply to such history. All students interested in gender as a category of historical analysis as well as history majors will benefit from the seminar.

Anticipated Terms Offered: Offered periodically