HIST 411: Human Sexuality in World History

In this course we will trace the evolution of sexualities in historical context and the way human societies around the World construct their notions of sexualities over time. We will survey important developments in the history of sexuality from approximately 5000 B.C.E. to the present. We will concentrate on human beings' changing perceptions of the meaning of sexualities and how they relate to the dynamics of the political, cultural, and social movements that dominated World history throughout this period. In the modern period, people have attached meanings to sexualities that reflect deep social divisions between states and societies about the assignment of sexual and gender norms, regulation, criminalization, and sexual politics. We will try to ascertain the historical development of these contested meanings.