Women & Gender Studies (WMST)

This course introduces students to the discipline of women and gender studies, emphasizing the interdisciplinary nature of debates that inform the field. Topics may include: ideologies of femininity and masculinity; gender and psychology, language, sexuality, inequities; women and gender in the context of history, culture, literature, politics, economics; women, gender and intersecting identities, including ethnicity, class, race, disability, workforce and parenting.

This course focuses on women’s literature from the middle ages to the end of the eighteenth century. It covers a variety of literary genres and examines some of the theoretical, historical, and practical concerns pertaining to women’s writing.

This course focuses on literature from the nineteenth century to the present day. It covers a variety of literary genres and examines some of the theoretical, historical, and practical concerns pertaining to women’s writing.

How has religion informed the way that we understand gender and sexuality through time and across cultural contexts? Students takes a comparative and multidisciplinary look at some of the prevailing narratives about women, men, creation, morality, and belief in world religions. Students explores issues such as religious leadership, gender rights, sexuality and sexual identity, and reproduction.

This course examines philosophical issues in feminism, such as sexism, oppression, social construction, essentialism, gender, race, and class. Attention is paid to ties between theory and practice.

These are combined lecture-seminar courses on a selected topic in Women and Gender Studies. Course content will vary from year to year. These courses allow students to take advantage of offerings in other departments relevant to a Women and Gender Studies degree.

These are combined lecture-seminar courses on a selected topic in Women and Gender Studies. Course content will vary from year to year. These courses allow students to take advantage of offerings in other departments relevant to a Women and Gender Studies degree.

Students are introduced to an anthropological perspective on the relationship between culture, biology, and social expectations of male and female behavior. Emphasis is given to examining how individuals and societies imagine, negotiate, perform and contest dominant gender ideologies, roles, relations and identities.

An introduction to the psychological concept of gender as it relates to behavioral, emotional, and cognitive development. Theories as to the sources of gender differences and similarities will be reviewed and discussed in relation to the impact of gender roles on intimate relationships, family, work, and physical and mental health.

This course will examine various aspects of women’s participation in the economies of developed countries (primarily Canada) as well as developing countries. Topics in any year may include analysis of the relationship between the paid and unpaid work of women, changes in labour force participation, trends and determinants of the male/female wage gap, models of household economic decision-making, the impact of technological change, and the international gender division of labour. Particular attention will be paid to policy issues relevant to the economic status of women. The course will also examine gender bias in the theory, methodology and practice of economics and will evaluate various theoretical approaches to the study of women.

Students study the ancient Greek oikos (family, household) and the daily activities, roles and legal position of women, children and other dependents in the ancient Greek households (ca. 800-31 BCE). The focus will be on women of different social classes and family life in ancient Greece, with some comparative consideration of the lives of women in other regions of the ancient world (Italy, Mesopotamia, the Levant and Egypt.

These courses provide an opportunity for students to study in considerable depth and detail selected contemporary issues of feminism both within and outside of academia. For example, a course might focus on inequality of women in the labour force, the role of unpaid work, violence and its use against women, the colonization of knowledge within academia, or on technology including the impact of new reproductive technologies and their control of women.

These courses provide an opportunity for students to study in considerable depth and detail selected contemporary issues of feminism both within and outside of academia. For example, a course might focus on inequality of women in the labour force, the role of unpaid work, violence and its use against women, the colonization of knowledge within academia, or on technology including the impact of new reproductive technologies and their control of women.

This course will engage students in a study of feminist literary theory. Some of the most influential theorists in this area will be analyzed as well as the dominant cultural systems to which they have responded. Students will not be required to have any prior knowledge of the field.

Students will study the emergence of feminist theoretical perspectives, methodologies and analytical approaches in several disciplines in the humanities and social sciences.

Students will develop their analytic skills and apply feminist methodologies and analysis in carrying out their proposed research.

This course examines the role of language and its use in constructing and negotiating social positions of men and women and by men and women. It compares discourse strategies used by powerful/powerless speakers and gender-associated discourse strategies. It examines dialect and generic features used in constructing and maintaining social identities and differences.

Students examine and analyze how the social construction of femininity, masculinity and non-binary gender intersect with other dimensions of identity and power to shape law.

This course will provide an introduction to Francophone women’s writing emphasizing the plurality of women’s voices. Along with a historical overview of Francophone women’s writing, students analyze individual texts based on feminist perspectives and methodologies.

This course examines a number of contemporary public policy debates and dilemmas in light of gender, race and class dynamics. The aim is to gain a better appreciation of the complexity of approaches to, and experiences of, various policy areas. The course begins by unpacking the nature and effects of the state and state policies and then moves to explore a range of economic, social, political and legal policy concerns.

Students explore theoretical and empirical issues raised by a “gender-based analysis” of international relations.

This course examines the contributions of feminist philosophers to historical and contemporary philosophical thought in diverse areas of inquiry, such as ethics, political theory, metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of science, and philosophy of mind.

These courses offer students an opportunity to pursue advanced readings and research in a particular area of Women and Gender Studies. The students and professors will design the programs of study together.

These courses offer students an opportunity to pursue advanced readings and research in a particular area of Women and Gender Studies. The students and professors will design the programs of study together.