Purpose: This assignment provides the foundation for the Research Essay (Assignment 4) by helping you develop a focus and structure. It consists of three parts: a thesis statement, an outline and a bibliography. I want customwriting to write this short research essay and if the writer does a good job, I will give my next assignment which is 12 pages long to it as well.
Due: Upon completion of Unit 4
Topic Selection and Development
- Your essay will focus on the social construction of gender in relation to the two-sex binary system, and will draw directly on the gender theory presented in this course. Begin by selecting ONE type of gender performance or the representation of gender performance (as in the media or popular culture):
- Femininity (girls or women)
- Masculinity (boys or men)
- Intersex
- Queer
-
Note: The research essay must not be an overview of any of the course units.
- Narrow down your topic further by selecting a particular group or context—for example, women and sport, gay men and parenting, queer youth and schooling or trans identified individuals and health.
- Develop a central argument. Your argument will be organized around answering the following questions: in what ways do the gender performances you will discuss reinforce the two-sex binary? In what ways do they challenge it?
- Conduct preliminary research to ensure you can find suitable information on your topic. Take a look at the References and Selected Bibliographyfor the unit(s) associated with your topic for relevant sources of information. You should also check the reference lists at end of any relevant required readings. The AU Library has an extensive collection of electronic journals and databases. The Google Scholar link may be helpful as well.
Proposal Instructions
- Review the requirements for Assignment 4: Research Essay.
- Email your tutor with your topic and your ideas for your central argument to confirm that you are on the right track.
- Review the information describing the process of writing and the features of an academic essay found in the following sections of the Course Manual: Essay Evaluation Guidelinesand The Writing Process. This is a critical step if you have not written a senior-level social science research paper recently. The AU Write Site (see the link in the Resources section on the course home page) also has a number of excellent resources on academic writing.
- Prepare a tentative thesis (two to four sentences in length) that outlines the central argument of your essay.
- Prepare an outline of the main sections of the essay. The outline is not a summary of the essay. Rather it lays out, in numbered sections, each main point you will discuss as well as the types of supporting details you plan to include. You are advised to use short sentences or point form. For each point, you must indicate which source(s) you plan to reference. Use APA in-text citations (author, date).
Note: Outlines that do not follow this format will be returned unmarked for revision.
- Prepare a preliminary reference list. Check the referencing guidelines for Assignment 4. For this Research Essay Proposal, your preliminary reference list must include at least half of the required number of references. You must use the APA style of documentation for both Assignments 3 and 4.
Unit 4:
References
Atencio, M., & Wright, J. (2008). “We be killin’ them”: Hierarchies of Black masculinity in urban basketball spaces. Sociology of Sport, 25(2), 263–280.
Clarkson, J. (2006). “Everyday Joe” versus “pissy, bitchy queens”: Gay masculinity on StraightActing.com. The Journal of Men’s Studies, 14(2), 191–207.
Coltrane, S. (1989). Household labor and the routine production of gender. Social Problems, 36(5), 473–490.
Courtney, J. (2009). Real men do housework: Ethos and masculinity in contemporary domestic advice. Rhetoric Review, 28(1), 66–81.
Evans, J. (2002). Cautious caregivers: Gender stereotypes and the sexualization of men nurses’ touch. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 40(4), 441–448.
Gilligan, C. (1982). In a different voice: Psychological theory and women’s development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Jordan, E., & Cowan, A. (1995). Warrior narratives in the kindergarten classroom: Renegotiating the social contract? Gender & Society, 9(6), 727–743.
Lorber, J., & Moore, L. J. (2007). Gendered bodies: Feminist perspectives. Los Angeles: Roxbury Publishing Company.
Lorber, J., & Moore, L. J. (2011). Gendered bodies: Feminist perspectives. (2nd Ed.) New York: Oxford University Press.
Mandell, N. (Ed.). (2010). Feminist issues: Race, class and sexuality (5th ed.). Scarborough, ON: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Massey, D. B. (1994). Space, place, and gender. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.
Peralta, R. L. (2007). College alcohol use and the embodiment of hegemonic masculinity among European American men. Sex Roles, 56(3/4), 741–756.
Sanday, P. R. (2007). Fraternity gang rape: Sex, brotherhood, and privilege on campus (2nd ed.). New York: New York University Press.
Shire, E. (2015, August 26). Is Old Dominion’s Sigma Nu America’s dumbest fraternity? The Daily Beast. Retrieved August 27, 2015, from http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/08/26/is-old-dominion-s-sigma-nu-america-s-dumbest-fraternity.html
Selected Bibliography for Research and Study
Bordo, S. (1999). The male body: A new look at men in public and in private (1st ed.). New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
Bridges, T. (2014). A very “gay” straight? Hybrid masculinities, sexual aesthetics, and the changing relationship between masculinity and homophobia. Gender & Society, 28(1), 58–82.
Cameron, D. (1997). Performing gender identity: Young men’s talk and the construction of heterosexual masculinity. In S. A. Johnson & U. H. Meinhof (Eds.), Language and masculinity (pp. 47–64). Oxford: Blackwell Publishers.
Connell, R. W. (2000). The men and the boys. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.
Connell, R. W. (2005). Masculinities (2nd ed.). Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.
Connell, R. W., & Messerschmidt, J. W. (2005). Hegemonic masculinity: Rethinking the concept. Gender and Society, 19(6), 829–859.
Grogan, S., & Richards, H. (2002). Body image: Focus groups with boys and men. Men and Masculinities, 4(3), 219–232.
Hennen, P. (2005). Bear bodies, bear masculinity: Recuperation, resistance, or retreat? Gender & Society, 19(1), 25–43.
Jhally, S. (Director). (1999). Tough Guise [Motion picture]. United States: Media Education Foundation.
Jung, S. (2010). Korean masculinities and transcultural consumption: Yonsama, Mrain, Oldboy, K-Pop Idols. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press.
Kehily, M. J., & Navak, A. (1997). Lads and laughter: Humor and the production of heterosexual hierarchies. Gender & Education, 9(1), 69–87.
Kiesling, S. F. (2005). Homosocial desire in men’s talk: Balancing and recreating cultural discourses of masculinity. Language in Society, 34(5), 695–726.
Kimmel, M. S. (2006). Manhood in America: A cultural history (2nd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.
McCune, J. Q. (2008). ‘‘Out’’ in the Club: The down low, hip-hop, and the architexture of Black masculinity. Text and Performance Quarterly, 28(3), 298–314.
Messner, M. A. (2007). Out of play: Critical essays on gender and sport. Albany: State University of New York Press.
Nardi, P. M. (2000). Gay masculinities. London: Sage Publications.
Pascoe, C. J. (2005). “Dude, you’re a fag”: Adolescent masculinity and the fag discourse. Sexualities, 8(3), 329–346.
Pope, H., Phillips, K. A., & Olivardia, R. (2000). The Adonis complex: The secret crisis of male body obsession. New York: Free Press.
Quinn, B. A. (2002). Sexual harassment and masculinity: The power and meaning of “girl watching.” Gender & Society, 16(3), 386–402.
Ridge, D., Plummer, D., & Peasley, D. (2006). Remaking the masculine self and coping in the liminal world of the gay “scene.” Culture, Health & Sexuality, 8(6), 501–514.
Virinder, K. S. (2009). Between emasculation and hypermasculinity: Theorizing British South Asian masculinities. South Asian Popular Culture, 7(2), 113–125.
Watson, J. (2000). Male bodies: Health, culture, and identity. Philadelphia, PA: Open University Press.
