The format of the exam will be short answers and an essay. A short answer should be about one paragraph in length, a sort of "mini-essay." The longer essay will run from three pages upward to ten (it all depends on how much you want to write!). Succuss in both the short answer and the essay sections of the exam will depend on you providing support for your assertions drawn from lectures and readings.

The questions will be chosen from the following:

Short answers--answer five of the following questions briefly (ten points each):

1) What is the difference between sex, gender, and sexuality?

2) How do female and male humans differ physically? Why are male and female humans different physically from one another?

3) What is the difference between a primary and a secondary sex characteristic? Name two of each for males and two of each for females.

4) What is patriarchy?

5) What social purpose does patriarchy serve in a patrilineal society?

6) How does the Biblical story of Adam and Eve represent the values of patriarchy?

7) What is matriarchy, and what would be the differences between a patriarchal and a matriarchal culture? What social purpose does matriarchy serve in a matrilineal society?

8) Why do societies differentiate between male humans and female humans?

9) What is the purpose of legal restrictions on political rights like ownership or voting based on gender?

10) Why do you think people confuse sex and gender? Give at least one example of a confusion of sex with gender that you have encountered.

Essay questions--answer one of the following in a concise essay. Be sure to provide examples and to draw from your readings whenever possible.

1) Jay was born with XY chromosomes, a penis, and testicles; at the age of ten, Jay first kissed a girl. At the age of twenty, Jay began to wear women's clothing at all times and had waist-length hair; Jay began to date women who were comfortable with cross-dressing and who called themselves bisexual. At the age of thirty, Jay underwent surgical reassignment and became Jaye, acquiring a birth certificate which listed, under sex, "female"; after the surgery, Jaye started dating Harry, a man who had played college football on the same team as Jaye. What were Jay/Jaye's gender, sex, and sexuality at ages fifteen, twenty-five, and thirty-five? Be sure to defend your answers by explaining the data and theories you used to make each determination. How does the experience of the man-woman illustrate the ways in which different cultures construct gender, sex, and sexuality?

2) Why is women's history significant? How does knowing women's history play a role in one's life in the present (either one's life as a woman or as a man?) Knowing that women are all individuals, and that categories like race, class, and sexuality can greatly affect women's experiences, how do feminist historians conclude that there is such a thing as a "women's" history? Be sure to draw from the readings to provide examples to support your argument.

3) What are the connections between sex and gender? How has sex difference been used to support the argument that women are lesser (biological) versions of men? How has this resulted in social sanctions placed on both women and men (gender "rules")? What do societies lose and gain by treating men and women differently, and thus what are the ultimate benefits and costs of such sanctions?