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If you’re like Nora Rubel, associate professor in the Department of Religion and Classics and director of the Susan B. Anthony Institute for Gender, Sexuality, and Women\u2019s Studies, then you are a fan of the hit Amazon series Transparent<\/em> \u2013 the show that the New Yorker\u2019s Emily Nussbaum calls a \u201cstealth masterpiece.\u201d<\/p>\n\u201cI’ve wanted to be in a room with interesting people saying interesting things about\u00a0Transparent<\/em>\u00a0since I binge-watched the first season back in 2014,” said Rubel. And this coming December, she’ll get her wish.<\/p>\n On Dec.1 and 2, the Institute will hold a two-day symposium aimed at fostering conversations aimed at the nexus of sex and gender studies, Jewish studies, American studies, and media studies. Through this symposium, Rubel hopes to bring together scholars, writers, and critics who are asked to submit research and questions related to the show\u2019s content, as well as the show\u2019s soundtrack and score and changing patterns of television viewing.<\/p>\n Transparent<\/em> tracks the journey of the Pfeffermans, a secular Jewish family based in Los Angeles in the aftermath of their father’s decision to transition from Mort to Maura. The show has won many awards since the first season began streaming on Amazon in the fall of 2014, including Golden Globes for both \u201cBest Television Series\u2014Musical or Comedy\u201d and \u201cBest Actor in a Television Series\u2014Musical or Comedy\u201d for actor Jeffrey Tambor.<\/p>\n Rubel says that from the first episode, the show \u201cseemed personal to me in a way that was almost uncomfortable. I really felt that the transgender angle of the show was the hook, but that the story of the Pfefferman family was what kept me pressing ‘Play Next Episode.\u2019\u201d In her academic life, Rubel writes mostly about Judaism and gender and she says that out of these two topics, she was struck most by the very real and relatable portrayal of the modern Jewish family that the Pfeffermans present.<\/p>\n