To the Editor:
I am writing in response to Elizabeth Howard Wilkens' letter in your May 26 edition. As a senior Women's Studies major, who is currently finishing an honors thesis, I am outraged and offended that Ms. Wilkens would lessen my work by questioning Women's Studies position as a "true academic discipline." Just as any student of religion or philosophy might choose a specific theory to investigate, I analyze two novels through feminist post-colonial theory. My thesis is not a "cultural/political platform," though political in its own ways--as is all academic discourse, especially in the humanities and social sciences.
As a double major in English, I can say without a doubt that in both majors I was pushed to think critically, analyze thoroughly, and pursue intellectual excellence. I would agree with Ms. Wilkens' premise that academic study depends on exploring many different points of view. And I can tell you that I have studied many different aspects of feminism, including equity feminism, at Dartmouth.
I consider myself a feminist. When I read Christina Hoff-Sommers, I react initially with anger, probably much like Ms. Wilkens' reaction when she read the Uncommon Threads story. But I have been taught by my women's studies professors to respect positions different from my own, and to examine them thoroughly in order to fully understand what they are saying and then determine whether I agree. I am glad that feminism has made a place in our society for writers like Hoff-Sommers, Daphne Patai, and Noretta Kortege. Thankfully the intellectual freedom generally respected in this country allows me and those who agree with the above listed authors to study and debate. But close minded folks like Wilkens seriously threaten such freedom.
I would like to speak to Wilkens' final comment, when she suggests that somehow students are not learning about more conservative topics such as "Family Values." One of the impetus' behind creating courses in Gay and Lesbian Studies was to study those subjects neglected by the academic establishment, a neglect that contributed to the further marginalization and oppression of homosexuals and women.
Introduction to Gay and Lesbian Studies is not a course on sex, it is an interdisciplinary and theoretical study of queer cultural production and social realities--using sociological or literary theory. Likewise, we all (well, at least the public school students) took Heterosexual Sex 101 in middle school sex education classes. Education remains filled with classes about "mainstream" topics. But the need for classes which academically investigate subjects suppressed by society at large remains. I urge the administration to continue to support a Women's Studies Program which consistently produces a high level of academic work, and consistently furthers critical values of diversity, community, respect, and justice at Dartmouth.
