Assignment 1 – due Wednesday January 14, 2009

Readings: Conway et al, Preface; “Old Gender Roles With Your Dinner?” by Frank Bruni (New York Times, October 7, 2008); “Women Gain in Education but not Power, Study Finds,” by REUTERS (New York Times, November 12, 2008); “The Return of the Interview Suit,” by Eric Wilson (New York Times, November 12, 2008).

Assignment:

We’ll discuss this in class and each of you will be expected to participate and contribute to the discussion. This and all other assignments will be graded as satisfactory, marginal, or unsatisfactory (see the syllabus for details).

After reading each of the three NY Times articles, respond in a paragraph for each:

1. Why do women around the world have so little power despite their educational advances? What would be required to achieve parity? (Reuters article)
2. Is the return of the interview suit good or bad? Why? And how do you dress for an interview? (Wilson article)
3. What are your experiences in dining as part of a mixed gender pair or group? Who gets the menu first/ Who gets served first? Who gets the check? Do you agree or disagree with the analysis in this article and how each gender views the dining experience? (Bruni article)