Introduction

Women's and Gender Studies (WGS) courses are a common feature on a large number of college and university campuses, with over 700 programs in the United States alone. Many stereotypes and misconceptions about feminism, feminists, and the field of Women's and Gender Studies circulate in our culture. These stereotypes and misconceptions pop up in the right-wing blogosphere and so-called lad mags like Maxim, but also in magazines like Time and Newsweek, in Hollywood movies and television shows, and in everyday conversations. This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book introduces readers to the ways of seeing, thinking, and knowing that characterize the field and are valued by its practitioners. It structures in purposeful ways in order to introduce reader to the definitions of the threshold concept and to offer grounding examples that will deepen reader's understanding.