Home>Courses>Selected Themes on Gender in China

This course takes an anthropological perspective to debate a general human category, gender, in the context of contemporary Chinese society. Through this approach, the course will show how the notion of gender is largely a sociocultural product. The anthropological approach helps us contemplate taken-for-granted beliefs regarding gender and sexuality. Gender politics in essence address differences and inequality. Reflecting upon how gender became a category of analysis for anthropologists, we bring to the fore the relationship between culture and power. Students will explore material, economic, political, and sociocultural factors that underpin such processes of construction. This course will start by introducing core concerns, arguments, and approaches related to gender and sexuality in China. After the introductory sessions, we will focus, week by week, on common (or controversial) gender and sexual issues we encounter in our daily lives. Students are encouraged to examine their own gender identities and beliefs critically; to not only understand how our gender assumptions are shaped but also to develop one’s own gender statements.

WEEK 1 (6 Jan): What is Gender, and Why do We Study Gender?: An Anthropological Approach to Gender and Sexuality

NO TUTORIAL

WEEK 2 (13 Jan): Performing Chinese Femininities

NO TUTORIAL (Sign up for the tutorial facilitation)

WEEK 3 (20 Jan): The Hybridity and Pluralism of Contemporary Chinese Masculinities

WEEK 4 (27 Jan): Gender and the Chinese State

WEEK 5 (3 Feb): NO CLASS (Lunar New Year Holiday)

WEEK 6 (10 Feb): Gender, Marriage, Power and Resistance

WEEK 7 (17 Feb): Empowerment or New Forms of Exploitation?: Gendered Mobility in Contemporary China

WEEK 8 (24 Feb): Gender, Class, and Work

WEEK 9 (3 Mar): NO Class (Reading Week)

WEEK 10 (10 Mar): Gender, Body and Consumption

WEEK 11 (17 Mar): Gender, Aging and Caregiving

WEEK 12 (24 Mar): Gender, Eating and Cooking

Final Research Paper Proposal Due (Optional)

WEEK 13 (31 Mar): Individual Consultation Sessions (TBA)

NO TUTORIAL

WEEK 14 (7 Apr): Romancing and Queering the Cyberspace: Gender and the Charm of “Beautiful Men”

WEEK 15 (14 Apr):  Gender, Feminism and the Future: Alternatives and Challenges

NO TUTORIAL

Friday, 25 April 2025: Final Paper Due

Attendance and Participation            15%

Discussion Facilitation                         20%

Reflection Paper                                  30%   

Final Research paper                          35%   

Students should submit written assignments to the Veriguide system and print out the Veriguide receipt and scan it into a PDF file before submitting to the Blackboard. See the website: https://services.veriguide.org/academic/login_CUHK.jspx. Any cases of plagiarism will be severely penalized and reported to the Dean of the Faculty of Arts, which could result in failure or expulsion from the University. http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/.