General provisions

The Department of History is responsible for the course.

Entry requirements

Students admitted to any one-year or two-year Master's programme of the Disciplinary Domain of Humanities and Social Sciences, PhD students and exchange students.

Learning outcomes

The student will:

- acquire up-to-date knowledge of contemporary studies of gender, including relevant methodological and theoretical approaches

- acquire an awareness of the different historiographical approaches to the history of gender in Latin America.

- acquire an awareness of how notions of gender, of being male and female, have shaped Latin American societies

- develop ability to critically evaluate and apply different theoretical and conceptual perspectives employed in studies of Latin America

- develop and improve skills to define research topics suitable to contribute to historical knowledge, and to analyse the topics and present the analyses in concise and comprehensible ways.

Content

For the past two decades, gender has been recognised as a central category for historical analysis and has become an innovative area of research, drawing on the disciplines of social/political history, social and cultural anthropology, and literature. Understanding gendered practices and discourses is integral to understanding political, economic, social and cultural changes and transformations. This course aims to historicize notions of gender, of what it means to be male and female, in Latin American societies while being sensitive to questions of class and ethnicity. It will explore the tensions between normative gender models put forward by the state, the church, as well as local communities and the experience of men and women at home, in the work place, in society. Moreover, the impact of gendered politics on Latin American societies will be discussed. The course thus provides students with advanced insights and deeper understanding of the current research debates in the humanities and social sciences as concerns Latin America.

Assessment

Examination will include active participation in seminars and the writing and examination of a final essay. Grades will be given in accordance with the Swedish grading system. The following grades will be used: A and B (pass with distinction), C, D and E (pass), and Fx and F (failed).

Other regulations

Graduates with a Master's degree in humanities/history will be employable in a wide variety of occupations. A Master in history provides a good basis for responsible positions in secondary and higher education (PhD programme), civil service on the local, regional and national levels, personnel management, journalism, international organisations, tourism as well as enhancing cultural heritage in its various manifestations including archives, museums and libraries. Knowledge provided in the course on Gender in Latin American History is particularly relevant for students and professionals working internationally in the fields of development, social work as well as policy analysis who aim at widening their general competence in international history.