Pauline Jewett Institute of Women's and Gender Studies
(Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences)
Women's and Gender Studies (WGST) Courses
Introduction to Women's and Gender Studies
Overview of the major issues in women's and gender studies. Topics include the social construction of femininity and masculinity, violence, sexuality, representations of women, the treatment of women in the workplace and in education, women and the arts, and women's health.
Lectures and discussion three hours a week.
Intersectional Identities
Critical examination of the multiple intersections between gender, as a relation of power and social identity, as these intersect with (neo)colonialism, racism, poverty, ableism and heterosexism in a globalized world.
Prerequisite(s): one of WGST 1808, HUMR 1001, FYSM 1402 or FYSM 1403 or permission of the Institute of Women's and Gender Studies.
Lectures and discussion three hours a week.
Activism, Feminisms, and Social Justice
A comparative, interdisciplinary examination of feminist activism in the modern era. A range of perspectives and materials are used to examine the objectives, scope, and impact of feminists' efforts to effect social and political change in different historical, cultural, and national settings.
Prerequisite(s): second-year standing.
Lectures and discussion three hours a week.
Body Matters: The Politics of Bodies
Introduction to feminist studies of globalization and politics of bodies. Globalization of ideas, cultures, economics and politics, movement of bodies, bodies as spaces for disrupting norms of sex, gender, race, class, ability, sexuality, embodiment and embodied resistance in a globalized world.
Lectures and discussion three hours a week.
Issues in Reproductive Health
Global health challenges affecting the lives of women, men and children. Topics may include reproductive health, innovations in health research, caring and mothering, violence, ageing, health as a right, poverty and health, assistive reproductive technologies, sexually transmitted infections and HIV/AIDS, contraceptives and abortion.
Masculinities
Theoretical, experiential, cultural and policy issues around masculinities studies. The complexities of masculinities; the intersections of feminist and masculinity studies. Topics may include hegemonic, racialized, homosexual, and Other(ed) masculinities. Feminist theories and transnational perspectives frame course content and discussions.
Lectures and discussion three hours a week.
Selected Topics in Women’s and Gender Studies
An interdisciplinary analysis of one or more topics in women’s and gender studies.
Prerequisite(s): second-year standing.
Lectures and discussion three hours a week. This course is repeatable when the topic changes.
Gender, Sexuality and Cultural Production
How gender and cultural (re)production (literature, visual/performing arts, social media) and consumption articulate, circulate, and transform each other within economic, political, and social contexts. Emphasis on role, object, processes, and representations.
Lectures and discussion three hours a week.
Feminists and Feminism in Canada
Interdisciplinary examination of feminism's impact on Canadian history, culture and politics, and Canadian approaches to feminism in a global context. Surveys the role of feminist thinkers, activists and organizations in shaping Canadian society.
Prerequisite(s): 1.0 credit in WGST courses or permission of the Institute of Women's and Gender Studies.
Seminar three hours a week.
Feminisms and Transnationalism
Feminist analyses of the diversity of transnational experiences around rights, health, education, motherhood, fathering, work, social media and technological change, among others. Topics may include: migration, environment, wars/conflicts, neocolonialism, diaspora, human trafficking, refugee issues and displaced populations.
Gender and Literature
Study of autobiographical writing, novels, short stories, and poetry by women writing primarily since 1970 in a variety of cultural settings. Cross-cultural point of view informed by feminist literary theory. All texts available in English translation.
Prerequisite(s): third-year standing and 1.0 credit in WGST or permission of the Institute of Women’s and Gender Studies.
Lecture three hours a week.
Girlhoods
The emerging discipline of girlhood studies; social and cultural constructions of girlhood and categories of difference. Topics may include the commercialization of girlhood, popular culture and girls, negotiating identities, violence, sexualities, agency and activism in a globalizing world.
Lecture three hours a week.
Gendered Violence
Theories, concepts and contexts of the complex manifestations of gendered violence in the lives of women, men and children globally.
Prerequisite(s): third-year standing and 1.0 credit in WGST or permission of the Institute of Women's and Gender Studies.
Lecture three hours a week.
Feminist Thought
Interdisciplinary approach introducing students to contemporary feminist thought and theories. Themes, issues and conflicts in feminist theorizing, including: debates around the concept of ‘woman’, sex wars, the politics of difference, epistemology, ontology, feminist knowledge, and power.
Precludes additional credit for WOMN 3808 no longer offered).
Prerequisite(s): third-year standing and 1.0 credit in WGST or permission of the Institute of Women's and Gender Studies.
Lecture three hours a week.
Feminist Research
Examination of feminist methodologies and critiques of prevailing approaches to the construction of knowledge. Feminist epistemology, subjectivity, and ethics in feminist research are central themes.
Precludes additional credit for WOMN 3808 (no longer offered).
Prerequisite(s): third-year standing and 1.0 credit in WGST, or permission of the Institute of Women's and Gender Studies.
Lecture three hours a week.
Selected Topics in Women's and Gender Studies
An interdisciplinary analysis of one or more topics in women's and gender studies.
Prerequisite(s): third-year standing and 1.0 credit in WGST.
Lecture three hours a week.
Traversing Feminisms
Interdisciplinary overview of key historical concepts and issues in Women’s and Gender Studies in the areas of theory, epistemology, and research design. Topics will vary from year to year. Provides additional background for students entering Women’s and Gender Studies from other disciplines.
Prerequisite(s): permission of the Institute.
Also offered at the graduate level, with different requirements, as WGST 5003, for which additional credit is precluded.
Seminar three hours a week.
Women’s and Gender Studies Practicum
Experience in research through a combination of classroom seminars and a field placement. Each project will be negotiated individually as a contract between the student, instructor and institutional partner.
Precludes additional credit for WGST 4903 (no longer offered).
Prerequisite(s): WGST 3809 and WGST 3810, and fourth-year standing with a minimum 6.5 CGPA in B.A. Hons. Women’s and Gender Studies program or permission of the Institute.
Women's and Gender Studies Practicum
Experience in applied feminisms through a combination of classroom seminars and internship. Each project will be negotiated individually as a contract between the student, instructor and institutional partner. Students must complete both the in-class and the internship portion of the course.
Precludes additional credit for WGST 4800, WGST 4903 and WGST 4904 (no longer offered).
Prerequisite(s): WGST 3809, WGST 3810, and fourth-year standing with a minimum 6.5 CGPA in B.A. Hons. Women's and Gender Studies program or permission of the Institute.
Also offered at the graduate level, with different requirements, as WGST 5920, for which additional credit is precluded.
This full-credit course is offered intensively in one term.
Globalized Bodies
Capstone course on globalization. Considers issues of migration, diaspora, globalization, territoriality, citizenship, human and sex trafficking, and human security in a globalized world, among others.
Digital Lives in Global Spaces
Capstone seminar in culture and production, digital worlds and globalization. Current debates and emerging issues in popular cultural productions in the areas of arts, literature, music, performance, film or digital and social media.
Seminar three hours a week.
Gender and Health in a Globalized World
Capstone course on health. Considers issue of health in a global context, including the environment and health, technologies and health, gender and health, access to health care, and reproductive rights.
Seminar three hours a week.
Feminist Theory
Advanced analyses of contemporary feminist theories. The contributions of, and tensions between, various feminist theoretical frameworks.
Prerequisite(s): fourth-year standing in Women’s and Gender Studies and WGST 3809, or permission of the Institute of Women’s and Gender Studies.
Seminar three hours a week.
Honours Research Project in Women’s and Gender Studies
Students will undertake a major research project on some aspect of women’s and gender studies under the supervision of a faculty member.
Prerequisite(s): a major CGPA of at least 11.00, plus WGST 3809 and WGST 3810 and fourth-year standing in B.A. Hons. Women’s and Gender Studies program, or permission of the Institute of Women’s and Gender Studies.
Selected Topics in Women’s and Gender Studies
Prerequisite(s): fourth-year standing and 1.0 credit in Women’s and Gender Studies or permission of the Institute of Women’s and Gender Studies.
Seminar three hours a week. This course is repeatable when the topic changes.
Independent Study
Reading or research course supervised by a faculty member. Written proposal approved by the supervisor must be submitted before last day of course changes. Normally, only 0.5 credit of independent study may be counted in the program.
Prerequisite(s): fourth-year standing in a Women’s and Gender Studies program or permission of the Institute of Women’s and Gender Studies.
Women in Management
Organizational and personal challenges arising from changing gender roles and the increased participation of women in management and professional organizational roles.
Prerequisite(s): third-year standing, and one of: (BUSI 2101 and BUSI 3103) or WGST 1808 [1.0] with a grade of C- or higher in each.
Lectures three hours a week.
Summer session: some of the courses listed in this Calendar are offered during the summer. Hours and scheduling for summer session courses will differ significantly from those reported in the fall/winter Calendar. To determine the scheduling and hours for summer session classes, consult the class schedule at central.carleton.ca
Not all courses listed are offered in a given year. For an up-to-date statement of course offerings for the current session and to determine the term of offering, consult the class schedule at central.carleton.ca