210076 SE BAK14: Gender and Politics (2022W)

CONTENTS

"Not gay as in happy, but queer as in fuck you" - this activist slogan describes quite well that queerness in the context of the seminar will not only serve as an umbrella term for LGBTIQ* identities and issues, but will be treated as an activist, political and theoretical concept. We will deal with the social as well as theoretical emergence of "queer", with breaks and continuities in the different theoretical approaches and with the socio-critical potential of sexuality, heteronormativity critique and queerness.

TEACHING/LEARNING APPROACH

In this seminar we will try out a holistic queer approach. For me, this means that queer is not only the content of the course as a scientific and identity-political concept, but also a teaching and learning method. Together we will try to break down and queer binaries and hierarchies on all levels in the seminar room (e.g. between teachers and learners, body and mind, reason and emotion). We will unlearn and relearn how we produce knowledge and what all can count as knowledge outside of eurocentric, androcentric, and heteronormative standards. In keeping with feminist standpoint theories and the method of autotheory, we will do this by incorporating our own emotions, experiences, and situatedness within the social structures that surround us.
Our learning together will not be about finding the "right" answers to predefined questions, but about developing and discussing together the questions that are relevant to us in the first place. So-called mistakes and failures are part of the collective learning process and very much welcome. This seminar will be very much about questioning what has been taken for granted so far and about exposing and enduring contradictions - especially contradictions that also affect ourselves as individuals in a discriminating patriarchal-capitalist social system. It is possible that some discomfort or other emotions may arise in the course of the seminar. Catching and working on these together will also be part of our collective learning process.

WORKING LANGUAGE/S

The primary working language of the course is German. All participants are welcome to contribute other languages. If German is a big hurdle for some participants, we will try to work a lot with whispered translations or, if that is possible for everyone, with English. In any case, a language barrier should not be the reason why people decide not to attend the seminar, we will certainly find a solution for that.

We will be reading English texts, some of which are quite challenging. Where available, I will also provide German versions, but this will not always be possible. There are also translations of some texts into many other languages, which may be found if needed.

ACCESSIBILITY

Participants are, of course, entitled to non-discriminatory and barrier-free access (as far as possible) to the course. I strive to provide materials in the most accessible form possible and would ask all participants to do the same. If you have specific requirements, please feel very free to let me know at the beginning of the semester.

INTER, TRANS, NON-BINARY.

It is important to me that names, pronouns, etc. are in accordance with the wishes of their bearers - both by me and by all other participants. I myself use gender-neutral pronouns (e.g. they/them/their) or none at all and I am happy to be referred to with gender-neutral salutations (e.g. "Hello" or "Dear*") in emails etc.

DUZEN

I would like us to be on a first name basis. Please let me know if this is not okay for you.