Michigan Feminist Studies invites submissions for its 2008 issue on the theme of “Sexuality & Reproduction.” Women’s sexuality and reproductive capabilities have long been an important topic for feminist researchers, theorists, and activists. This volume of Michigan Feminist Studies seeks to reengage with this subject from many different angles and perspectives. While our empirical and theoretical focus is on women and gender, we also encourage submissions that draw linkages between gender and other social identities, such as race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, class, ability, and nationality.
We welcome submissions in the form of empirical/scholarly analysis, literature reviews, theoretical papers, creative writing, and visual art from emerging or established scholars, graduate students, independent scholars, artists, creative writers, and activists. We encourage scholarly works from all disciplines, including (but not limited to): anthropology, sociology, psychology, English/literature, linguistics, women’s studies, biology, chemistry, physics, history, public health, public policy, philosophy, art history, business/marketing, information sciences, political science, studio arts, communications/media studies, theater, international studies, law, and education. As feminists, we also support interdisciplinary and mixed-methods research.
In this issue of Michigan Feminist Studies we are interested in considering questions such as: How have sexuality and fertility been examined and discussed in feminist research and theory? What does it mean to be a”sexual”woman/man in different societies/contexts? Who deems a sexuality ‘legitimate’? What are the effects of the medicalization of sexuality and reproduction? What is motherhood and does the definition of motherhood vary based on gender, race, class, or other social categories or identities? How is women’s sexuality and/or pregnancy portrayed in art, and have these portrayals changed over time? What is the relationship between sexual health/abstinence education and sexual agency?
More specific topics for submissions could include:
- sexual health, including HIV/AIDS and other STDs/STIs and their global impact
- sex education
- public policies and laws related to reproduction
- abortion and reproductive decision-making
- sexuality and reproduction in literature, music, marketing, and art
- sexual assault and abuse
- sex work/pornography
- the biochemistry or neural correlates of sex(uality)
- issues of consent
- the history of sexuality
- abstinence pledges and purity balls
- genital mutilation
- compulsory heterosexuality
- the regulation of sexuality
- the Viagra phenomenon and its affects on sexual pleasure and experience
- sexualization (of women/children/men/products) in media/advertising
- women’s sexual and reproductive rights
- fertility/infertility (“infertility tourism”, infertility and its effect on different cultures, infertility technologies, the value placed on bearing children, etc.)
- sexuality and women’s leadership
- “natural,” home birth versus in-hospital births
- contraception: new technologies, usage, health effects, empowerment issues, and cost/access issues (e.g., The Pill compared to Viagra)
- sexuality/pregnancy and violence
Please note that these questions and topics are intended as suggestions and not limitations.
Michigan Feminist Studies is an annual publication edited by graduate students at the University of Michigan.
Manuscripts should be roughly 4000-6000 words and double-spaced. Please submit three single-sided copies, and include a 150-200 word abstract, brief biographical note, institutional and departmental affiliation (if applicable), mailing address, telephone number, and e-mail address. Papers may be submitted in the accepted format of your own academic discipline (e.g., MLA, APA). If your paper is selected, you will then be asked to submit an electronic file.
Mail submissions to: Michigan Feminist Studies
1122 Lane Hall
204 South State Street
The University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1290
The Deadline for Submissions is January 11, 2008.
Inquiries can be directed to mfs.editors@umich.edu.
