WMST488E

How are girls distinguished from women? This course is about why and how this question has been answered in varying ways over the past two and a half centuries. We will delve into the distinctions drawn between girls and women across the globe (including the United States). We will engage with historical material about health, medicine, law, religion, visual and popular culture. In particular, we will think about how girlhood is imagined in idealized ways, and ask which girls have access to, or are denied, idealized girlhood.