Syllabus

Lecture Outlines

Click on the links for lecture PowerPoint slides. The slides for week 1's lecture on 12 Jan. 2026 are ready to download. Please note that in future weeks, I will update the PowerPoint slides by noon on the Friday before the following Monday's lecture each week. But, for reference, I'm leaving up the slides from the last time I taught the module, as these may be useful resources for advance seminar and or/essay preparation.

NB: Lecture Capture recordings can be found on Moodle as soon as each lecture has ended.

Part I: Heteronormativity and the US military

1) Why sex matters in the US military

2) The US military and commercial sexLink opens in a new window

3) Domestication: a 'family friendly' military?Link opens in a new window

Part II: Gender norms, sex and soldiering

4) Gender, sex and service in VietnamLink opens in a new window

5) Recruitment in the All-Volunteer eraLink opens in a new window

6) Reading Week [no lecture]

7) Women in combatLink opens in a new window

Part III: Managing gender identity and sexuality in the US military

8) Queering the militaryLink opens in a new window

9) Sexual violence: an invisible war?Link opens in a new window

10) Transgender serviceLink opens in a new window

Seminar Topics

Click on the links for full details of seminar topics, including indicative discussion questions as well as required & supplementary readings. Please note that there is no TALIS reading list for this module. However, all the assigned readings are digitally accessible. To search for book chapters or articles, use the Library catalogue: https://warwick.ac.uk/services/library/. The most efficient method is to search by title of book or article, having clicked either "books" or "articles" above the search bar, and placing the title in quotation marks: e.g. "Making War at Fort Hood." If you encounter problems locating any of the readings, please drop me a line as soon as you run into an issue. Don't wait for the seminar!

1) Defining the terms of engagementLink opens in a new window

2) Prostitution, rape and resistance to US militarism in AsiaLink opens in a new window

3) Married in and to the military: 'war brides' and 'army wives'Link opens in a new window

4) Women's work in VietnamLink opens in a new window

5) Assignment writing workshopLink opens in a new window

6) Reading Week [no seminar]

7) The fight over fighting women in Iraq and AfghanistanLink opens in a new window

8) DADT and its repealLink opens in a new window

9) Rape and sexual violence within the US militaryLink opens in a new window

10) Conclusion: an all-inclusive army?Link opens in a new window