What do we mean by the words ‘sex’ or ‘gender’ or ‘sexuality’ and where do these terms come from historically? How are all of these categories changing in the 21st Century? Through readings, activities, and media, students will develop tools to critically analyze the socio-cultural, political, economic, and institutional forces that shape individuals and structures in gendered ways, and provide students a broad-based overview in the fields and topics of Gender & Sexuality Studies. The course will look at the way both genders & sexualities – as sets of practices, identities, and relations – are constrained, contained, elaborated on, and created via systems and institutions. This course will dive into the way these identities come into the world, and then examine theoretical approaches in the fields of Gender & Sexuality Studies.