Intro. to Women’s Studies was an interesting course to take this semester and really opened up a new world of learning for me. Prior to taking this course I wasn’t very much invested in the topics that we discussed in the class like gender myths and theories or feminism early on. Although I consider myself to be a woman, I was never one to have strong opinions based on the identities of women. I learned to continue unraveling myself from the things I have been taught, the typical cultural expectations of a woman being a wife and mother and doing things like taking care of the home. 

It was such a coincidence to see The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan once more, as I had previously read it for my senior English class back at my high school. It was one of my favorite readings from that class and I held admiration for my teacher too. It was such a nostalgic moment for me which I found to be really nice. The Feminine Mystique, when I read it back then, was like a catalyst for me and changed the way I saw the cultural and traditional aspects that I have been taught by my parents.  

Being a part of this class really changed my outlook on that and made me want to be a part of something more than someone who is like a bystander. The research project made me feel accomplished in helping others be informed on abortion rights, which is something that has been on the news lately. Hopefully what we presented could have inspired others to be part of a bigger cause and really keep up with the news on the reproductive rights of women in the U.S. Thank you professor Ashton for this wonderful class, I thoroughly enjoyed the conversations we had during class and the work we did.

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