Gloria Steinem often said “The personal is political.” In this course we will explore how women’s lives, even their bodies and cycles, have been caught in the intersection of the political and the personal. Over the semester, students will survey historical, philosophical, political, social and religious attitudes toward women and women’s reproductive abilities/freedom with an emphasis on cultural comparisons. Through readings, discussions and group activities, students will trace the attitudes and trends that gave rise to social reform movements and survey the contemporary controversies that still surround reproductive rights in the US. From there we will compare the US with contemporary Europe and expand our view to survey cultural differences in attitudes and practices in selected developing nations (in South/Central America, Africa, Middle East). Special attention will be given to how “Western” attitudes, and foreign policies have impacted these countries, particularly as they relate to women’s health issues, family planning and cultural practices.
Gale Virtual Reference Library
Full text of reference books covering many types of information.
More info on Gale Virtual Reference Library
The Oxford encyclopedia of women in world history [electronic resource] / Bonnie G. Smith, editor in chief.
Available to the UNCG community via the WWW through Oxford reference online.
The women's movement today : an encyclopedia of third-wave feminism. 2006.
Reference HQ1115 .W644 2006 V.1 and v. 2
Encyclopedia of women's health. 2004.
LOCATION: Jackson Library Stacks RA778 .E5825 2004 (c.1)
Encyclopedia of sex and gender : men and women in the world's cultures.
2003. Reference HQ16 .E53 2003 V.1 and V. 2
Encyclopedia of women's health issues. 2002. Jackson Library Stacks
RA778 .G39 2002
The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Women's Issues Worldwide. 6 vols. 2003
Location: Ref HQ1115.G7440
Encyclopedia of Women and Gender : Sex Similarities and Differences and the Impact of Society on Gender.
2 vols. 2001
Location: Ref HQ1115.E52
Library Catalog – includes print, audio, and online books, videos, music recordings and other materials.
Keyword Searching – guide to choosing and using keywords to get the best material.
Because Women's & Gender Studies is interdisciplinary, you usually need the resources in the subject area closest to your topic. For example, if you have a literature topic, use the English sources; if you have a psychology topic, use the Psychology sources. Some relevant subject areas include:
For other subject areas Electronic Databases by Subject provides a database list for each UNCG academic department or program
Choosing and using search terms
In any search, choosing the best terms is essential. For example, if you want information on “women” – some databases also use the term “females.” If you want information on women’s wages, you might try terms such as “salaries” “wages” “pay equity” or “equal pay. ”
Search Connectors in Databases (Boolean Searching) - information on combining terms.
How to Find Scholarly Articles in WGS
Academic Search Premier (EBSCO) –
** Note : while Academic Search Premier and Academic One File are very similar in scope, each covers unique titles that aren’t included in the other source.
Newspapers – National and International
Sometimes library databases will only provide the citation and / or abstract for an article, and not the full text. If the article you want isn't available, check to see if the library has access to it by looking for this link: Check for full text availability of this item.
Clicking this link will open a new window and do a search for the journal you want in Journal Finder, Jackson Library's guide to the magazines, journals and other periodicals available to you through our system.
Journal Finder will tell you if:
Tips for using Journal Finder:
If the article you need is not in Journal Finder, don't despair! There are other options. Ask a librarian for more help!
WEBSITES
Women's & Gender Studies web sites – several useful sites from the UNCG Libraries website.
Research Tutorial – a self paced interactive introduction to library research.
Evaluating Web Sites – tips for determining the reliability of web resources.
Author info: Mary Krautter
Head of Reference and Instructional Services, Jackson Library, UNCG, email: mmkrautt@uncg.edu
