A college-level women's studies course on the experience of American women is presented in three units on the emerging American woman, woman and others, and the transcendent self. Unit 1 focuses on biological and psychological explanations of being female; the socialization process; Black, Native American, and immigrant women; schooling and its function as a gender-role modifier; and the effect of conflicting forces in one's life. Unit 2 discusses the patriarchal family; the family in American history; matriarchies, communes, and extended families; women alone and female friendships; women and work in America; and caring for women's bodies, souls, and minds. Topics in the final unit include the status of women, women as agents of social change, and women as artists. Athletics, centering, assertiveness training, and consciousness raising are also discussed. Materials from literature and the social sciences form the focus for each unit, which contains an introduction, study questions, and an annotated list of required and suggested reading. The appendix includes guidelines for oral history interviews and research papers. A general bibliography includes a guide to audiovisual materials. (KC)