Certificate Course in Understanding Women, Power and Politics
From 24 Jan 2022; 1:30 to 3:00 pm
This course is essential for understanding the contemporary issues of women in private and public spaces. The rationale for developing the course is to sensitize the students about the relation between women and power. This paper will help the students understand the fundamental issues women face in political life as participants. The paper shall be taught from a feminist perspective to understand women’s role in family, community, and state. It will try to develop the appreciation of domestic labor and sex workers without making any moral judgment. The course develops an awareness of women’s empowerment and appreciates women as independent and radical social agents. The first unit will deal with the concept and debates surrounding Patriarchy. The sex-gender debate says sex is natural and biologically given facts, whereas gender is culturally constructed. The culturally constructed nature of being a man and a woman is so opposite and so biased against women that it leads to male domination and the subjugation of women. Then we will talk about the distinction between public and private space from a gender perspective. Then comes the issue of power. Power in the sense of decision making, agenda-setting, and formation of thought. How far can a woman exercise power at these three levels? Then this course will deal with the history of the women’s movement in India, work labor, and the ethics of child care.
Course Objectives:
- to propose the idea of women as active participants in politics and national development;
- to teach feminism as a method of study;
- to develop a rethinking of women’s labor;
- to teach the dignity of labor of women;
- to enhance gender equality in personal;
- and professional life of the young minds; and
- to equip the students for higher studies on gender issues