Academics
Academic Courses
There are a variety of courses in which LGBTQ* topics are included and/or explored to varying degrees of depth. Below you will find a list of credit bearing academic courses currently available. To suggest additions to this list or to make any corrections, please contact lgbtqservices@stonybrook.edu. All courses available are listed in the Stony Brook Undergraduate Bulletin's Course website. Please refer to your academic advisors for questions or concerns regarding academic programs and degree requirements.
AAS 222: INDIAN CINEMAS AND CULTURES
The course examines the contemporary global art form known as 'Indian cinemas' from its advent of the moving picture in the late 1800's to the present. In this Asian film course, we explore the various cinemas of India and the Indian diaspora such as Bollywood cinema, art cinema, films by Indian directors inside and outside India, music videos, and documentaries. Factors behind its ascent to the most popular art form as well as a lucrative medium of entertainment and potent vehicle for social change not only in India but also beyond its shores are examined in some depth. We discover how these various Indian cinemas address and depict the social mores, cultural practices and political issues of the South Asian subcontinent. Themes for our discussions include but are not limited to nationalism, sexuality, censorship, activism, tradition, modernity, identity, gender roles, and the pleasures and politics of song, dance and music, as we look at historical, thematic and aesthetic issues of these cinemas and their impact and influence in India as well as globally.
DEC: D
SBC: ARTS, GLO
3 creditsAAS 328: RACE, HUMOR AND ASIAN AMERICA
This comparative ethnic American cultures course examines how contemporary American comedians, fiction writers, visual artists, independent filmmakers, feminist and transgendered comics deploy the language of comedy to invoke serious social matters in contemporary American life such as racism, immigration, homophobia, class biases against the poor and the undocumented, misogyny, war and other burning issues of the day. We will explore how the ends of comedy are more than laughter and how comedy confronts political issues that are constitutive of and threatening to the U.S. body politic.
Prerequisite: U3 or U4 status and one 100- level or higher AAS, AMR, EGL, or CLT course
DEC: K
SBC: HFA+, USA
3 creditsAAS 336: ASIAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDERS IN AMERICAN HISTORY
Asian and Pacific Islanders in American History is an examination of the historical factors that have molded Asian and Pacific Islander life in the United States. Strongly emphasized themes include imperialism/colonialism, immigration, gender/sexuality, second generation, and images/mass media. This course is offered as both AAS 336 and HIS 338.
Prerequisite: U3 or U4 standing; 1 D.E.C. F or SBS course
DEC: K & 4
SBC: SBS+
3 creditsAFH 215: Hip Hop and the Intellectual Tradition
Examines the world of hip-hop, by framing it within the fields of intellectual theory and examining the scholarly and artistic contributions of rap artists, writers, and scholars who intellectualize the global and cultural phenomenon of Hip Hop. This course will attempt to complicate the largely historical and non-theoretical treatment of hip hop in mass-mediated portrayals by engaging in a cultural studies critique of youth cultural formations and the rapid global industrialization of hip-hop. The course will also highlight how contemporary issues concerning racial and gender politics, sexual orientation, globalization, and neocolonialism are tackled by the music and culture.
DEC:G
SBC:HUM
3 creditsAFH 379: PHILOSOPHY OF RACE (III)
Examination of our assumptions about race and the impact of those assumptions on issues concerning gender, class, and sexuality throughout American history. Readings include critical race theory, feminist theory, and critical legal theory. Students examine racial issues from a philosophical perspective and consider the ways in which representations of race may reinforce patterns of power and privilege. This course is offered as both AFH 379 and PHI 379.
Prerequisite: one PHI course
DEC: K
SBC: CER, HFA+, USA
3 creditsAFH 382: BLACK WOMEN'S LITERATURE OF THE AFRICAN DIASPORA
Black women's literature presents students with the opportunity to examine through literature the political, social, and historical experiences of Black women from the African Diaspora. The course is structured around five major themes commonly addressed in Black women's writing: Black female oppression, sexual politics of Black womanhood, Black female sexuality, Black male/female relationships, and Black women and defining self. This course is offered as AFH 382, EGL 382, and WST 382.
Prerequisite: U3 or U4 standing
DEC: G
SBC:DIV, HFA+
3 creditsAFS 306: Gender and Public Health in Africa
Examines approaches to disease prevention and treatment through public health systems in African countries. The impact of global health organizations such as WHO, UNAIDS and other UN bodies and international development organizations on domestic health care policy is also analyzed. An emphasis is placed on identifying the most prominent public health issues in each of the county case studies and identifying points of convergence and divergence among them. More specifically their relationships to gender equality, education, and economic security and population displacement will be evaluated using Intersectionality as a theoretical framework. Disparities in access to health insurance, treatment, and medication, and funding mechanisms will be analyzed.
Prerequisite: U3 or U4 standing
DEC: J
SBC: GLO, SBS+
3 creditsAFS 373: SEXUALITIES: AFRICAN AND CARIBBEAN PERSPECTIVES
Designed to introduce students to the complexities of human sexuality from a perspective that places subaltern individuals at the center of the analysis. It locates these individuals, and their sexual practices, in the tropics--or "warm, warm climates"--first in those man-made communities where sexuality was one of the (unspoken) exigencies of the slave economy and later in the modern era where the slave economy gave way to "neocolonies."
Prerequisite: U3 or U4 standing
DEC: J
SBC:DIV, SBS+
3 creditsAFS 381: AIDS, Race, and Gender in the Black Community
Review of current biological and epidemiological knowledge about the HIV virus, and examination of the virus' social impact on the Black community. This course is offered as both AFS 381 and WST 381.
Prerequisite: U3 or U4 standing; one D.E.C. E or SNW course
DEC: H
SBC:SBS+
3 creditsCLL 315: GENDER AND SEXUALITY IN ANCIENT GREEK LITERATURE
This course offers a comparative overview of the ways in which the roles of men and women were depicted in the literature and thought of ancient Greece. Major issues will include: the shift from matriarchal to patriarchal pantheons, sanctioned and unsanctioned homoeroticism, the sorceress and the hysteric as dominant tropes in the mythology of the period, and the role of women in the polis, among others. This course is offered as both CLL 315 and WST 315.
Prerequisite: one D.E.C. G or HUM course
DEC: I
SBC: HFA+
3 creditsCLT 123: SEXUALITY IN LITERATURE
An exploration of the expression and interpretation of sexual experience in literature and culture, through discussion of selections from world literature and art, both classic and contemporary. Themes include temptation and gratification, desire and fulfillment, and how societies shape gender roles and deviance and set limits on sexual representation in literature and art.
DEC: B
SBC: CER, HUM
3 creditsHIS 116: Women as a Force in US History
Surveys the history of women and gender in the United States from 1900 to the present. The course focuses on three kinds of changes: in women's work and the gendered division of labor; in relationships between gender, politics, and the state; and the rise of consumer and mass cultures. Students will read what historians and other scholars have written about women and analyze historians' sources in the form of documents and images. We will pay particular attention to differences among women in such areas as race and ethnicity, class, religion, and sexuality. Students should acquire a deeper understanding of the forces influencing women's lives and gender norms and a better appreciation of how women and gender have shaped the history of the United States.
DEC: K & 4
SBC: SBS, USA
3 creditsHIS 229: VICTORIAN BRITAIN
This course explains the social, cultural and political history of Britain in the nineteenth century. It pays particular attention to the impact of empire, industrialization and major constitutional reform and revolution on domestic politics, social attitudes and intellectual and cultural life in Britain. Topics to be explored include industrialization and class; Reform Acts; the gospel of work; the condition of England question; urban anthropology and the discovery of poverty; the cult of true womanhood, feminism and the public sphere; the impact of the Indian Mutiny of 1857; Africa and the Victorians; the regime of sexuality; Jack the Ripper and the others within. We explore these issues through lectures, reading, films, discussion exams and essays. Formerly offered as HIS 305. Not for credit in addition to HIS 305.
Prerequisite: HIS 101 or HIS 102
DEC: I
SBC: GLO, SBS
3 creditsHIS 338: Asian and PAcific Islanders In American History
Asian and Pacific Islanders in American History is an examination of the historical factors that have molded Asian and Pacific Islander life in the United States. Strongly emphasized themes include imperialism/colonialism, immigration, gender/sexuality, second generation, and images/mass media. This course is offered as both AAS 336 and HIS 338.
Prerequisite:U3 or U4 standing; 1 D.E.C. F or SBS course
DEC:K & 4
SBC:SBS+
3 creditsHIS 378: WAR AND THE MILITARY
The causes and origins of wars, and the impact of war on social change, considered in the context of various wars and battles. Topics covered include issues of military organization, recruitment, training, morale, war planning, and the integration of women, gays, and minorities in the military. This course is offered as both HIS 378 and SOC 378.
Prerequisite: One HIS course or SOC 105
DEC: F
SBC:SBS+
3 creditsMUS 314: Music, Gender, and Sexuality
A study of music from the perspectives of gender and sexuality in a global context. Topics may include women as composers, performers, and listeners; genres understood as gay or queer; music as an expression of identity within various gender or sexuality social groups, and depictions of gender and sexuality in musical drama. All types of music may be considered, including classical, rock, pop, hip-hop, electronic styles, folk, and jazz. This course is offered as both MUS 314 and WST 314.
Prerequisite: MUS 101 or 119 or 130
DEC: F
SBC: SBS+
3 creditsPSY 347: PSYCHOLOGY OF WOMEN
The psychological impact of important physiological and sociological events and epochs in the lives of women; menstruation, female sexuality, marriage, childbirth, and menopause; women and mental health, mental illness and psychotherapy; the role of women in the field of psychology. This course is offered as both PSY 347 and WST 377.
Prerequisite: WST major or minor; or one of the following: WST 102, WST 103, PSY 103, WST/SOC 247
DEC: F
SBC: SBS+
3 creditsSOC 204: INTIMATE RELATIONSHIPS
The dynamics of forming, maintaining, and dissolving intimate relationships. Attention is focused on dating, partner selection, sexuality, marriage, divorce, and remarriage.
DEC: F
SBC: SBS
3 creditsSOC 378: WAR AND THE MILITARY
The causes and origins of wars, and the impact of war on social change, considered in the context of various wars and battles. Topics covered include issues of military organization, recruitment, training, morale, war planning, and the integration of women, gays, and minorities in the military. This course is offered as both HIS 378 and SOC 378.
Prerequisite:one D.E.C. F or SBS course or U3/U4 status
DEC: F
SBC: SBS+
3 creditsSOC 393: SPECIAL TOPICS IN HEALTH, MEDICINE, AND SOCIAL CHANGE
Selected topics in health, medicine, and in social change. Topics may include the Sociology of Aging, Sociology of Sexuality, Healthcare Delivery, and the Sociology of Disability. Designed for upper-division students, this course provides an in-depth study of a specific topic within social sciences disciplines. Students will be expected to demonstrate an understanding of the methods social scientists use to explore social phenomena, and knowledge of the major concepts, models, and issues of the discipline. May be repeated as the topic changes.
Prerequisites:one D.E.C. F or SBS course or U3/U4 status
DEC: F
SBC: SBS+
3 creditsSUS 340: ECOLOGICAL AND SOCIAL DIMENSIONS OF DISEASE
The ecology and evolutionary biology of disease will be examined to provide a more general context for human diseases. Pathogens may have large effects on many different types of organisms, from bacteria to plants to humans. We will build on this biological background to examine the social dimensions of disease in human populations and societies, including historical, political and economic aspects to issues of money, power, sexuality, international development and globalization. Specific case studies (the chestnut blight in North America, AIDS in Africa, etc.) will be used to examine concepts and principles in detail in a real-world context. This course will investigate basic fundamentals and recent research on these issues in a unified framework. Formerly offered as EHI 340; not for credit in addition to EHI 340.
Prerequisite: BlO 201
DEC: H
SBC: STAS
3 creditsTHR 319: AIDS Drama, 1980s & 90s
A study of the early years of the AIDS epidemic and the theatre's response. This course will focus on the seminal AIDS plays and films of the 1980s and 90s, with emphasis on the artists who revealed the impact of AIDS on the gay community, and the social-political reaction to both. Parallels to the COVID-19 pandemic will also be made. Guest speakers may be invited to address scientific and social aspects of HIV/AIDS, as they relate to the topics addressed in the plays and films.
Prerequisite: U3 or U4 standing; WRT 102; HUM; ARTS; and any 200- or 300- level THR or EGL course
SBC: HFA+
3 creditsWSE 201: Society and Gender in STEM
This course examines how gender intersects with science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in historical and contemporary contexts.This examination highlights how social, ethical, political, economic and cultural factors shape historical and contemporary understandings of STEM knowledge, as well as attitudes toward those who practice in STEM fields. The course focuses on women's historic and current participation in STEM disciplines, including why so few women are involved in these fields. We will consider how stereotypes are reinforced by popular culture and explore how we might reimagine STEM knowledge and practice to incorporate greater diversity. Not for credit in addition to WSE 242.
Prerequisite:WSE 105
SBC:DIV, HUM, Partially fulfills: GLO
3 creditsWST 111: INTRODUCTION TO QUEER STUDIES IN THE HUMANITIES
A survey of historical representations of queer difference from the late 19th century to the present. Through the examination of works of visual art, literary representations and philosophy, students develop an understanding
of the moral and ethical issues surrounding lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgendered/queer identity. Themes include the construction of sexual and political difference, heterosexism and the nature of oppression, race/class/
gender and sexuality, psychological theories of sexuality, and historical roots of these issues.DEC: G
SBC:CER, DIV, HUM
3 creditsWST 112: INTRODUCTION TO QUEER STUDIES IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES
An introduction to the field of queer studies from the perspectives of the social and behavioral sciences. Through the examination of sociology, anthropology, psychology (and others), students develop an understanding of the moral and ethical issues surrounding lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgendered/queer identity. Themes include the construction of sexual and political difference, heterosexism and the nature of oppression, race/class/gender and sexuality, psychological theories of sexuality, and historical roots of these issues.
DEC: F
SBC:CER, DIV, SBS
3 creditsWST 210: Contemporary Issues in Women's and Gender Studies
A survey of contemporary issues in the field of Women's and Gender Studies. Potential topics for the course are timely and topical. Topics will consider legal, ethical, social, and political issues of the day, and will address the moral and ethical issues raised by them. Topics examples include Gender and Political Activism, Gender and Music Culture, Gender and Reality TV, Gender, Race, and Sports, Gender and Education, Sexual Medicine, and Gender and Social Media. May not be repeated for credit.
DEC: F
SBC:CER, DIV, SBS+
3 creditsWST 291: INTRODUCTION TO FEMINIST THEORY
An introductory survey of historical and contemporary interdisciplinary theories used in Women's and Gender Studies. Theoretical debates on sex, gender, sexuality, race, class, knowledge, discourse, representation are among the topics to be considered. The course will provide a strong theoretical foundation for further studies in Women's and Gender Studies.
Prerequisite: WST 102 or WST 103
DEC: G
SBC:DIV, ESI, HFA+
3 creditsWST 315: GENDER AND SEXUALITY IN ANCIENT GREEK LITERATURE
This course offers a comparative overview of the ways in which the roles of men and women were depicted in the literature and thought of ancient Greece. Major issues will include: the shift from matriarchal to patriarchal pantheons, sanctioned and unsanctioned homoeroticism, the sorceress and the hysteric as dominant tropes in the mythology of the period, and the role of women in the polis, among others. This course is offered as both CLL 315 and WST 315.
Prerequisite: one D.E.C. G or HUM course
DEC: I
SBC: HFA+
3 creditsWST 374: HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES ON GENDER ORIENTATION
An examination of contemporary American gender orientation from an historical perspective. Topics include gay marriage, gay clergy, medical definitions of gender orientation and gays in the military.
Prerequisite: U3 or U4 standing
Advisory Prerequisites: One of the following: WST 102, WST 103, WST 111, or WST 112
DEC: F
SBC: SBS+
3 creditsWST 377: PSYCHOLOGY OF WOMEN
The psychological impact of important physiological and sociological events and epochs in the lives of women; menstruation, female sexuality, marriage, childbirth, and menopause; women and mental health, mental illness and psychotherapy; the role of women in the field of psychology. This course is offered as both PSY 347 and WST 377.
Prerequisite: WST major or minor; or one of the following: WST 102, WST 103, PSY 103, WST/SOC 247
DEC: F
SBC: SBS+
3 creditsWST 381: AIDS, Race, and Gender in the Black Community
Review of current biological and epidemiological knowledge about the HIV virus, and examination of the virus' social impact on the Black community. This course is offered as both AFS 381 and WST 381.
Prerequisite: U3 or U4 standing; one D.E.C. E or SNW course
DEC: H
SBC: SBS+
3 creditsWST 390: SPECIAL TOPICS IN WOMEN'S AND GENDER STUDIES IN THE HUMANITIES
Designed for upper-division students, this course provides an in-depth study of specific current topics in women's and gender studies within humanities disciplines such as literature, art, music, religion, and philosophy. Past topics include World Women Writers, Music and Sexuality, Contemporary Memoirs, and Alice Walker. May be repeated as the topic changes.
Prerequisite:one 100- or 200- level WST course
DEC: G
SBC: HFA+
3 creditsWST 399: TOPICS IN GENDER AND SEXUALITY
Past topics have included titles such as Sexual Citizens and Queer Theory. Designed for upper-division students, this course provides an in-depth study of a specific topic within humanities disciplines such as music, art, literature, religion, and philosophy. Students will be expected to demonstrate knowledge of the conventions and methods used in the humanities discipline(s) studied. May be repeated as the topic changes.
Prerequisite:one 100- or 200- level WST course
DEC: G
SBC:DIV, HFA+
3 credits