FREN 6730

The Normal and the Pathological

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2020-2021.

What does the term "normal" mean?  It is a modern invention, but one based on millennia of theories on what is natural or unnatural, regular or irregular, orderly or monstrous.  All of these terms are loaded with the histories of gender, racial, and ability-oriented differences.  This course, based on the work of Georges Canguilhem and Michel Foucault, will explore current theories of the normal in the domain of disability studies and queer studies, and return to the past of these concepts to examine their ancient origins.  Authors will include Shelly Tremain, Lennard Davis, Nirmala Erevelles, Robert McRuer, Elizabeth Beardon, and Jasbir Puar.

When Offered Spring.

Comments Conducted in English.

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