WOMEN, TECHNOLOGY, AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
IN BRAZIL
Professor Martha Huggins Office hours: Mon. 11-12; Wed. 11-12
and lunch by appointment (Mon. or Wed).
Associacao Alumni, For any other days call ahead:
Rocha Campus, Classroom 204 Cel.: 9105-2229
INTRODUCTION
This course, which examines the contributions and sacrifices of women to Brazil's economic development, will be conducted like an upper-level seminar. This means that you will be responsible for reading the assigned materials and discussing them in class. Do not come to class without having read and thought about the course materials: Your contributions will reflect this lack of preparation and your participation grade will suffer.
Since this course has been awarded WAC 3 extensive writing credit, there will be significant writing and you will be expected to fulfill all of the assignments. Please do not ask me to eliminate any of the required readings or writing assignments: You will learn about Brazilian culture by becoming more educated about it. As you become more educated, you will be more empowered and see more of what this rich culture offers.
ASSIGNMENTS
IN SAO PAULO: There will be two examinations: A take-home (dist. 10/8, due 10-/11) and an
in-class final examination (10/31).
Each student will be required to contribute to developing questions on two sets of readings that your group will lead (See leadership assignment).
You will be required to participate in class and study tour group discussions.
ON STUDY TOUR: You will be required to keep up with the readings and participate in discussions of them; attend the site visits and contribute to discussions there; not sleep on bus trips (so that you can take notes on the surrounding countryside); keep an illustrated diary of the study tour.
GRADING
Each examination will count toward 1/3 of your grade (2/3 for examinations)
Class participation will
count toward 1/3 of your final grade, with the participation grade broken down
into the following parts:
1. Leadership grade
2. Grade on written questions
3. Participation in discussions of readings (in Sao Paulo and on study tour)
4. Participation in study tour site visit discussions
5. Study tour diary
LEADERSHIP ASSIGNMENT
You will lead a discussion of two sets of readings. In order to do this, you must: read the assigned articles in your set; meet with the other students in your leadership group and develop a set of ten questions that cover the readings in your set; identify by an initial who developed each question; Xerox the questions and distribute your group’s set of questions on the assigned date. The questions will be graded on how well you identify the most important points in the readings; superficial, general questions will receive a low grade. You need to really understand the readings to make up good questions; you must demonstrate that you have read and have an academic command of the articles in your set.
You may hand-write the questions and then you are to Xerox copies (one for me) and distribute them to the class. If you do not complete this assignment on time, your grade will suffer. You may ask Alumni to Xerox your questions, but you must submit them to the Xerox person no later than the morning of the day they are due in our class. You must pick them up and bring them to class on time.
On the day of your leadership session, you and the other members of your leadership group will divide up the questions so that each person in your group leads the class in a discussion of some of your questions.
The class is required to be prepared to discuss the answers to your questions. Everyone must bring the assigned articles to class on the day we discuss them. As long as students are prepared for these discussions, I will not require written answers; if students are not prepared, the answers will thereafter be required in writing.
READING SETS: SAO PAULO ONLY (Most Readings in the Xerox packet; some will be distributed, indicated by (+))
INTRODUCTORY SET:
(+) World Fact Handbook. “Brazil.”
(+) Mac Margolis.
“Brazil’s Turn to Hurt?”
(+) A. Fiola. “With the Dazzle Dimmed: Sparks Fly over Energy-Saving Cutbacks.”
SET #1: WOMEN AND DEVELOPMENT
S. Tiano. “The Separation of Women’s Remunerated and Household Work: Theoretical Perspectives on ‘Women and Development’”
SET #2: WOMEN’S ACCESS TO TOOLS
E. Chaney and M. Schmink, "Women and Modernization: Access to Tools"
SET 3: URBAN ORGANIZATION
(+) T. Caldeira, “Sao Paulo: Patterns of Spatial Segregation” and “Fortified Enclaves: Building Up Walls and Creating a New Private Order.”
J. Pearlman, “Rio’s Favelas and the Myth of Marginality.”
R. Gay, Neighborhood Associations and Political Change in Rio de Janeiro.”
R. Levine and J.C. Sebbe The Life and Death of Carolina Maria de Jesus (required, Chs. 2 & 3)
SET 4: THE INFORMAL SECTOR
L. Kowarick, "Capitalism and Urban Marginality in Brazil"
H.P. de Melo “Feminists and Domestic Workers in Rio de Janeiro.”
E. Chaney and M.G. Castro, “What is Bought and Sold in Domestic Service?”
(+) B. Parker, “Life on the Streets: The Informal Economy in Sao Paulo, Brazil.”
SET #5: WOMEN AND GLOBALIZATION OF POVERTY
Maria Patricia Fernandez-Kelly, “Gender and Industry on Mexico’s New Frontier.”
Diane Elson and Ruth Pearson, “Nimble Fingers Make Cheap Workers: An Analysis of Women’s Employment in Third World Export Manufacturing.”
Kevin Bales, “Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy.”
SET 6: WOMEN AND VIOLENCE
Maria Mac Dowell dos Santos, “Gender Under Construction by/in the State: The Case of Women’s Police Stations in Sao Paulo
Americas Watch, Criminal Injustice: Violence Against Women in Brazil.
L. Rohter, “Slow to Yield, Brazil Passes Equal Rights for Women.”
AI. “Violence Against Women Still Rampant.”
L. Delong, “Poor Protection for Victims of Sex Trade.”
SET 7: SEX TOURISM
Marie Claire Magazine, “These Girls Were Rescued from Prostitution.”
B. Harris, “If Thee were no Sex Tourism, There Would be No Child Sex Tourism: Travel Industry Embarrassed by Sex Tourism.”
M. Staebler, “Tourism and children in Prostitution.”
C. Smolenski, “Sex Tourism and Sexual Exploitation of Children.”
C. Kussalanant, “Officials in the Dark on Child Sex Trade.”
SET 8: RACE
R. Reichmann, “Brazil’s Denial of Race.”
Diana Schemo, “The Elevator Doesn’t Lie.”
SET 9: STREET YOUTH
Martha K. Huggins and Myriam Mesquita, “Scapegoating Outsiders: The Murders of Street Youth in Modern Brazil.”
Rodrigues, Sandra and Martha Huggins “Working Kids on Sao Paulo, Brazil’s Paulista Avenue.”
Gilberto Dimmenstein, “Little Girls of the Night.”
SET 10: WOMEN AND CHANGE IN BRAZIL
M. G. Castro, “The Rise of Working Class Feminism in Brazil.”
READING AND LEADERSHIP ASSIGNMENT DATES
DUE DATE
QUESTIONS READING SET TOPIC LEADERSHIP
NA Introduction Introduction/expectations NA
NA Set 1 Women and work 9/17
9/17 Set 2 Access to tools 9/19
9/19 Set 3 (Pearlman; Gay) Urban Org. 9/24
9/1
Set 3 (Caldeira; Levine/Sebbe)
Urb. Org.
9/26
Lecture and Favela Trip (FRIDAY) 9/28
Lecture: Prof. Maria Lucia Montes
9/24 Set 4 (Kowarick & Parker) Street Sector 10/1
9/26 Set 4 (Cheney/Castro & de Melo) Domestics 10/3
10/1
Set 5 (Fernandez-Kelly/Elson & Pearson)
Glob. Poverty
10/8
10/8 Mid-Term Examination distributed (ALL MATERIAL UP TO SET 5)
10/3 Set 5 (Bales) Glob. Poverty 10/10
10/11 (THURSDAY)
Mid-Term Examination due--Hand in to Prof. Willison
10/8 Set 6
Women/Violence
10/15
10/10 Set 7
Sex Tourism
10/17 10/15 Set 8
Race
10/22
10/17 Set 9
Street Youth
10/24
(Set 10 will be read on study tour along with other readings)
NA IN-CLASS FINAL EXAMINATION 10/31
(Exam. emphasizes readings after mid-term but includes theories from the first half).