Students

GEND2030 – Sex, Race, and Rock

2024 – Session 2, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Lecturer
Rebecca Sheehan
rebecca.sheehan@mq.edu.au
Contact via +612 98507947
Office B162, Modern History, Level 1, Arts Precinct, 25C Wally's Walk
By appointment
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
40cp at 1000 level or above
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

In this unit, we explore the cultural history of and links between sexuality, gender, race, and rock music. Influenced by black and working-class cultures, and with sexuality embedded in its form and practice, rock music has challenged and transformed existing norms of family, sex and gender. Music has also been a site of struggle between the freedom that music enables and the commodification that spreads music globally. We begin with slave songs in the nineteenth century and travel through the 1950s boom of rock'n'roll and Elvis, the 1960s British Invasion, the 1970s emergence of disco, the 1980s MTV revolution and hip hop, and conclude with Laura Jane Grace, Beyonce, and the contemporary music scene. Along the way, we uncover the hidden histories and pioneering contributions of women, explore how glam rock, disco, and MTV laid the foundations of performative gender and queer theories, and learn how social identities and ideals have been reflected in and shaped by rock music.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Interpret sexuality, gender, and race in the cultural history of Western rock music and rock’s impact on social norms.
  • ULO2: Critically analyse popular cultural forms in scholarly ways
  • ULO3: Evaluate and express conceptually difficult ideas and independent critical thinking in oral and written forms
  • ULO4: Pose research questions
  • ULO5: Synthesise diverse sources to build and defend a reasoned position in response to research questions.

General Assessment Information

Detailed Assessment Guidelines explaining the requirements for each assignment are available on the GEND2030 iLearn page in the Assessment Resources section. You must read these guidelines in order to successfully complete each task.

All essays are to be submitted electronically through Turnitin on the GEND2030 iLearn page. You can use Turnitin Draft Coach to check your work in advance of submission. Instructions are here: https://students.mq.edu.au/support/technology/systems/ilearn/assignments-grades. 

Please be aware of the following policies in regard to assignments:

Academic Integrity Policy: https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policies/academic-integrity. The university takes plagiarism very seriously and there are penalties for using other people's work as your own. This includes directly quoting other people's work without quotation marks and/or acknowledgement. Please check this unit's iLearn site for resources on how to cite your sources properly and avoid plagiarism.

Special Consideration Policy: https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policies/special-consideration

Assessment Policy: https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policies/assessment. For specifics on Grading Policy, click on the "Schedule 1" tab.

Requests for Extensions

To request an extension for a period up to and including 5 working days, please email your tutor.

To apply for an extension of more than 5 working days please complete a Special Consideration request and submit it online here: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/assessment-exams/special-consideration. For more information see the Special Consideration Policy above and find further details here: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/my-study-program/special-consideration. 

Late Assessment Submission Penalty 

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a mark of ‘0’ (zero) will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical issue.    

This late penalty will apply to non-timed sensitive assessment (incl essays, reports, posters, portfolios, journals, recordings etc). Late submission of time sensitive tasks (such as tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, scheduled practical assessments/labs etc) will only be addressed by the unit convenor in a Special consideration application. Special Consideration outcome may result in a new question or topic. 

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Weekly quiz 20% No Weekly throughout semester, beginning Week 2 through Week 12
Research proposal (1000 words) 30% No 2024-09-06
Research Project--Essay or Blog 50% No 2024-11-01

Weekly quiz

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 48 hours
Due: Weekly throughout semester, beginning Week 2 through Week 12
Weighting: 20%

 

Weekly quizzes based on unit content

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Interpret sexuality, gender, and race in the cultural history of Western rock music and rock’s impact on social norms.
  • Critically analyse popular cultural forms in scholarly ways
  • Synthesise diverse sources to build and defend a reasoned position in response to research questions.

Research proposal (1000 words)

Assessment Type 1: Plan
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: 2024-09-06
Weighting: 30%

 

This 1000 word proposal is the first step in building your final research project. It provides you with the opportunity to research a topic of interest to you within the broad scope of gender, sexuality, race, and popular music. You can choose a question to answer from the list provided, or create your own question in concert with the tutor. This is a research assignment in which you will be expected to address a prompt/answer a question using an evidence-based argument. That evidence must be comprised of primary and secondary sources, including songs.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Interpret sexuality, gender, and race in the cultural history of Western rock music and rock’s impact on social norms.
  • Critically analyse popular cultural forms in scholarly ways
  • Evaluate and express conceptually difficult ideas and independent critical thinking in oral and written forms
  • Pose research questions
  • Synthesise diverse sources to build and defend a reasoned position in response to research questions.

Research Project--Essay or Blog

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 36 hours
Due: 2024-11-01
Weighting: 50%

 

This assignment builds on your research proposal to complete an essay or blog.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Interpret sexuality, gender, and race in the cultural history of Western rock music and rock’s impact on social norms.
  • Critically analyse popular cultural forms in scholarly ways
  • Evaluate and express conceptually difficult ideas and independent critical thinking in oral and written forms
  • Pose research questions
  • Synthesise diverse sources to build and defend a reasoned position in response to research questions.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Each week there will be:

1 x 2-hour lecture.

1 x 1 hour tutorial. For internal/in-person students, there is a tutorial on campus. For online students, there is an online discussion forum on iLearn (see the separate unit guide for online students).

All readings are available via Leganto through a link on the iLearn site.

Unit Schedule

UNIT SCHEDULE

Please note that this schedule is a guide and may be subject to change

Week 1

Lecture 1: Introduction and Rock’s roots: minstrelsy to R&B

Tutorial: Introductions; music and identity

Week 2

Lecture 2: Postwar to the 1950s: From Frank Sinatra to Elvis Presley

Tutorial: Gender, Race & Sex: Sister Rosetta Tharpe & Little Richard

Week 3

Lecture 3: 1950s: Belonging and Rebellion: rock’s fans and opponents

Tutorial: Reactions to rock’n’roll

Week 4

Lecture 4: 1960s: Pop, Artifice, and Cultural Politics

Tutorial: Crossing over: girl groups, Motown, and Nina Simone

Week 5

Lecture 5: 1960s: Rock, Authenticity, and Sexual Politics

Tutorial: Liberation and oppression: women and “cock rock”

Week 6

Lecture 6: 1970s: Liberating and Queering Rock

Tutorial: Performing Difference

Week 7

Lecture 7: 1970s: Resisting the Master: reggae, punk, and the rise of disco

Tutorial: Performing Freedom

RESEARCH ESSAY PROPOSAL DUE END OF WEEK 7

*SESSION BREAK*

Week 8

Lecture 8: 1960s-1980s “Fear of a Black Planet”: from hip hop to gangsta rap

Tutorial: Do the Right Thing

Week 9

Lecture 9: 1980s: “I Want My MTV”

Tutorial: Shape shifters: Madonna, Michael Jackson, Prince

Week 10

Lecture 10: 1990s: Grunge to Riot Grrrls

Tutorial: Gendering and Racialising Authenticity

Week 11

Lecture 11: 1990s-2000s: Erotica and Girl Power, R&B’s Renaissance, and the Digital Revolution

Tutorial: Survivors

Week 12

Lecture 12: The New Millennium; Conclusions

Tutorial: Conclusions

Week 13

Lecture 13: Research Essay consultations

Tutorial: Research Essay consultations

RESEARCH ESSAY DUE END OF WEEK 13

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit connect.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

 

 

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via the Service Connect Portal, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Changes from Previous Offering

This semester we are trialling a weekly quiz instead of tutorial participation as an assessment component.

Unit information based on version 2024.01R of the Handbook