Herculine Barbin Paper Assignment

Abstract

This is a paper assignment for the book Herculine Barbin, by Michel Foucault. This book is particularly interesting in that it shows the effect of competing definitions of gender. Herculine's life as an intersexual person raised as a girl in a Catholic convent school, then suddenly 'discovered' to be a man by a local doctor, is a fascinating view into...

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Details

Subject Area(s):

Sex and Gender

Resource Type(s):

Assignment

Class Level(s):

College 300

Class Size(s):

Small

Usage Notes

I have used this essay assignment for several years in my upper level gender class. I find that many, although not all, students are able to identify the competing narratives and write compelling answers to the central questions. I usually spend some time in class talking about the context of the book and the time period. I also engage students in a...

Learning Goals and Assessments

Learning Goal(s):

1. Students will be able to identify four competing narratives of gender from the book Herculine Barbin
2. Students will be able to make an analytical argument about what gender is based on the text
3. Students will be able to answer Foucault's question (do we really need a 'true' sex?) with their own argument

Goal Assessment(s):

1. Successful completion of an essay explaining the concepts
2. Successful completion of an essay using appropriate quotes from the text
3. Successful completion of an essay with a reasoned analytical answer to Foucault's question.