Gender, Sexualities and Women’s Studies

Code Course Description
GSWS 1100

Introduction to Feminisms: Silences, Voices and Experiences

An introduction to the interdisciplinary field of Gender, Sexualities and Women’s Studies, this course surveys the historical marginalization of women, the development of feminist thought and the rise of feminist resistance and liberation movements. Students will be introduced to gender and feminist theory in order to explore the nature of patriarchal societies and the common and diverse ways feminists have sought to challenge and redefine gendered experiences in Western society and the world.

GSWS 1101

Contemporary Issues in Gender, Sexualities, and Women's Studies

This course provides an interdisciplinary introduction to the field of Women’s Studies, emphasizing the gendered social processes and structures that shape our lives. Beginning with an intersectional introductory review of feminist and queer theories and movements, the course will survey a range of contemporary social issues in Canada. It will also explore changes in gendered experiences and perspectives within a dynamic and increasingly global context.
GSWS 1102

Introduction to Contemporary Issues in Sexuality Studies

GSWS 1102 introduces students to major contemporary issues in sexuality studies. Students will explore sexualities in relation to current political, social, and philosophical debates. Students will examine sexualities via interdisciplinary texts and current media. Topics will include an overview of sexuality theories, health and sex, media representations, and intersectional approaches to gender and identity.
GSWS 2101

Gender Today: Exploring Gender in Contemporary Contexts

Building upon the foundational concepts introduced in GSWS 1100 and/or 1101, this course will involve an in-depth and interdisciplinary exploration of contemporary gender experiences, theories and issues. This exploration will focus on one or more themes, such as gender representations in popular culture, bodies and reproduction and/or gendered violence.
GSWS 3101

Reproductive Justice

Reproductive Justice is a human right to maintain bodily autonomy while choosing to reproduce, choosing not to reproduce, and parenting with dignity. This course introduces these concepts and explores ongoing efforts to define, medicalize, technologize, and/or constrain reproductive bodies. It examines representations of reproductive bodies in North American and global political, social, and cultural contexts, and takes an interdisciplinary and intersectional approach to narratives, issues, practices, and arguments regarding reproductive justice. Topics may include contraception, abortion, fertility, normative kinship, childbirth, child rearing, loss, age, familial environment, forced/coerced sterilization, and access. Multi-media representations and portrayals of reproduction are researched and investigated with an intersectional approach to the social determinants of health, paying close attention to age, gender identity, gender expression, race, Indigeneity, colonization, class, and immigration status.