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Political Studies

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Political Studies

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    • Political Studies B.A.
    • Trent/Swansea Dual Degree (LL.B. & B.A./B.B.A.)
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TRENTU.CA / Political Studies / Programs / Course Listing

Course Listing

Please visit the Academic Timetable to see which courses are presently being offered and in which location(s). Not all courses listed below run every term or in all locations. For specific details about program requirements and degree regulations, please refer to the Academic Calendar.

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100 level courses (2)
Course Code Description
POST-1001H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
  • Durham GTA
Politics and Power in the Global Age Introduction

An introduction to the basic ideas in politics focusing on power and why consent to be governed is forthcoming in historical and contemporary contexts. Topics may include consumerism, inequality, the environment, and gender. Topics are discussed within the context of consent in an era of intensifying twenty-first-century globalization. Excludes POST 1000Y.

POST-1002H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
  • Durham GTA
Participation, Power, and Justice Issues

Explores pressing issues and challenges students to think about how to address them. Using the Canadian experience as a point of departure, examines questions such as how to improve participation, how have social media affected politics, should taxes be lower/higher, and can oil sands development be balanced with environmental protection.

200 level courses (16)
Course Code Description
POST-2001H

Offered:

  • Online
Indigenous Peoples &state Relationships (ICR)

Examines the nature of Indigenous relationships with Canada and the impact those relationships have had upon Indigenous peoples and communities. The course engages with different understandings of self-government and sovereignty. Prerequisite: 0.5 INDG, CAST, or POST credit. Excludes INDG-POST 2000Y.

Cross-listed: INDG-2001H, CAST-2001H

This course meets the Indigenous Course Requirement.

POST-2002H

Offered:

  • Online
Indigenous Peoples and Resurgence (ICR)

Examines the nature of Indigenous resurgence and contemporary struggles within the state. By understanding the different ways in which Indigenous peoples are reclaiming and revisioning their current relationships, students become aware of the impact Indigenous resurgence is having on Indigenous communities. Prerequisite: 0.5 INDG, CAST, or POST credit. Excludes INDG-POST 2000Y.

Cross-listed: INDG-2002H, CAST-2002H

This course meets the Indigenous Course Requirement.

POST-2003H

Offered:

  • Durham GTA
Black Experience in Canada

Explores the Black Canadian experience from the first recorded moment that a Black body arrived in Canada to the present. Discussion moves the conversation from victimhood to the vitality inherent in the Black experience particularly as represented by activities and contributions made by Black communities to cultural diversity. Prerequisite: 3.0 university credits.

Cross-listed: CAST-2003H, SOCI-2003H

POST-2011H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
  • Durham GTA
Governing Canada: Issues and Challenges

Provides a systematic introduction to the core institutions and processes of Canadian government such as the Canadian constitution, Parliament, the civil service, the electoral system, policy-making, political parties, interest groups, and social movements. Examines how well these institutions and processes function to promote democratic governance. Prerequisite: 4.0 university credits or permission of instructor. Excludes POST-CAST 2010Y.

Cross-listed: CAST-2011H

POST-2012H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Democratizing Canada Contemporary Issues

Provides a systematic introduction to Canadian democracy, examining political relationships between citizens and state, and in turn, relating these to broader patterns and politics for democratic change in Canadian society. Examines the demands for democratic change made by key groups and the politics of those demands. Prerequisite: 4.0 university credits or permission of instructor. Excludes POST-CAST 2010Y.

Cross-listed: CAST-2012H

POST-2100H

Offered:

  • Online
  • Peterborough
Environmental Science & Politics

The roles of science in current environmental controversies. Topics examine science and environmental ethics, the application of science to natural resource management, the contribution of science to action on international environmental problems such as climate change, and the role of science in making decisions about environmental risks. Prerequisite: 1.0 ERSC or POST credit at the 1000 level.

Cross-listed: ERST-2100H

POST-2150H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
  • Durham GTA
Philosophy of Law

A study of philosophical theories concerning the nature of law, legal systems, and legal reasoning. Prerequisite: 4.0 university credits or permission of department chair. Excludes PHIL-POST 2032Y.

Cross-listed: PHIL-2150H

POST-2215H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Ontario Before 1945

A study of Ontario as a political, economic, and cultural region. Topics may include provincial political culture and state formation; writers and artists; farms, factories, and cities; education policy; First Nations; the provincial north; Ontario in the Great Depression; Ontario and Canada. Prerequisite: 3.0 university credits.

Cross-listed: CAST-2215H, HIST-2215H

POST-2225H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Ontario Since 1945 "the Common Good" to "common Sense"

Explores transformations in Ontario politics, culture, and social and economic life from the Second World War to the present. Themes may include immigration, human rights, Toronto's growth, the Ontario north, economic restructuring from the Autopact to NAFTA, health, education and social policy, and the impact of the common sense revolution. Prerequisite: 3.0 university credits.

Cross-listed: CAST-2225H, HIST-2225H

POST-2230Y

Offered:

  • Peterborough
World Politics

Examines the major frameworks used to make sense of the international order. This enables students to develop an understanding of how the international system is shaped by the great historical turning-points. Includes analyses of case studies such as climate change, pandemics, proliferation of WMD, and terrorism. Prerequisite: 4.0 university credits or permission of department chair. Excludes POST 2200Y.

POST-2231H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
World Politics

Explores diverse theoretical explanations of inter-state relations, including realism, neo-liberalism, neo-Marxism, and feminism. Also surveys the transition to American hegemony and the Cold War, and the Post-Cold War era. Topics include the functioning of international organizations, Western states' attempt to export democracy, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the rise of China. Prerequisite: 4.0 university credits or permission of department chair. Excludes POST 2200Y, 2230Y.

POST-2232H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Globalization: an Introduction

This course contextualizes globalization as an historical and multi-dimensional process. Global challenges such as human and indigenous rights, the climate emergency, financialization of everyday life, as well as prospects for peace and reconciliation are examined. Students are tasked with thinking about the prospects and creation of alternative global futures. Prerequisite: 4.0 university credits or permission of department chair. Excludes POST 2200Y, 2230Y.

POST-2280H

Offered:

  • Online
Introduction to International Security

An introduction to the various forms of security in the international system-past, present, and those that are emerging to address new and future threats to the increased digitalization and interconnectedness of the global order.

POST-2285H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Canada in the 1960'S- Irony and Identity

Explores the 1960s, a decade of shifting meanings of "Canadian." The accent is on the ironies of Canadian identity. Topics may include fiscal policy, youth cultures, the women's movement, racial identity and the Chuvalo-Ali fight, sex scandals and politics, working-class revolt, upheavals in Quebec, and the challenge of Aboriginal rights. Prerequisite: 3.0 university credits.

Cross-listed: CAST-2285H, HIST-2285H

POST-2351H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
  • Durham GTA
Political Imagination: Ancient & Modern

Drawing on texts in political theory and other media (e.g. literature, film, theatre), explores core themes in the political imagination of the ancient and modern worlds. Through an exploration of different perspectives on politics and its possibilities, the course opens a particular route of access to political thought. Prerequisite: 4.0 university credits or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: PHIL-2351H

POST-2352H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Contemporary Political Imagination

Drawing on texts in political theory and other media (e.g. literature, film, theatre), explores core themes in the political imagination of the contemporary world. Through an exploration of different perspectives on politics and its possibilities, the course opens a particular route of access to political thought. Prerequisite: 4.0 university credits or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: PHIL-2352H

300 level courses (29)
Course Code Description
POST-3030H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Green Politics

Changes and tensions in green politics from the environmentalism of the 1960s to the advent of "many environmentalisms." What does it mean to be "green," what kind of political stance do green concerns call for, and indeed, what does green politics say about the very meaning of "politics"? Prerequisite: 1.0 POST or ERST credit or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: ERST-3030H

POST-3091H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Law and Constitutional Issues

Examines the way the Canadian constitution both constrains and opens up possibilities for political change. Includes consideration of formal constitutional interpretation and the politics of the judicial process. Looks at important issues such as the federal-provincial division of powers, secession, Senate reform, and Indigenous self-determination. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits including one of POST 1001H, 1002H, POST-CAST 2011H, 2012H, or POST-PHIL 2150H, or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: CAST-3091H

POST-3092H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Law and the Charter of Rights

Examines key Supreme Court decisions on the Charter of Rights and Freedoms pertaining to fundamental freedoms, democratic rights, legal rights, and equality rights. Assesses the role of the Charter in advancing the struggles of groups such as women, racialized communities, LGBTQ persons, and people with disabilities. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits including one of POST 1001H, 1002H, POST-CAST 2011H, 2012H, or POST-PHIL 2150H, or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: CAST-3092H

POST-3120H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Canadian Environmental Policy

An interdisciplinary inquiry into how environmental policies in Canada are developed, implemented, and improved, applying political, economic, legal, scientific, Indigenous, and moral perspectives. Focus is on federal, provincial, and municipal contexts, recognizing that the environment does not respect jurisdictions. Topics include energy and materials use, biodiversity, toxic substances, waste management, and land use. Prerequisite: 1.0 ERST, CAST, POST, or ADMN credit at the 2000 level or beyond. Excludes ERST-CAST-POST 3100Y.

Cross-listed: ERST-3120H, CAST-3120H

POST-3123H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
The Politics of Global Finance

The features of global finance-why it exists, how it impacts our lives economically, politically, and socially-are investigated. Attention is paid to linkages between finance and state power. Topics include rising (personal) debt, the 2008 financial crisis, the Eurozone crisis, and the rise of China and its growing financial influence. Prerequisite: 5.0 university credits.

Cross-listed: ADMN-3123H, ECON-3123H

POST-3140H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Justice & Rights

A study of the nature and value of rights in relation to competing theories of justice. Attention is given to the nature of power and oppression in relation to social change; topics may include class, ability, age, gender, and race. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits or permission of department chair. Excludes PHIL-POST 2032Y.

Cross-listed: PHIL-3140H

POST-3161H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Populism, Power, and Governance

Examines the phenomenon of populism in North America, Europe, and Latin America. Major questions include the causes of populism and whether it is democratic or authoritarian. Much of the course focuses on actual populist movements and governments, and what their successes and failures tell us about the future of democratic politics. Prerequisite: 4.0 university credits.

POST-3170H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
U S Politics

A critical introduction to US government and politics, situating political behaviour within the larger context of political, economic, and social power. Covers the workings of the main political institutions (the presidency, Congress, and the courts), elections, political parties, social movements, and the media. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits or permission of instructor. Recommended: POST 2230Y.

POST-3180H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
  • Durham GTA
Social & Political Philosophy

An examination of philosophical theories related to political institutions and practices. Topics may include the foundations of the state, justified use of force, and limits to freedom. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits or permission of department chair. Excludes PHIL 3390Y.

Cross-listed: PHIL-3180H

POST-3220H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Global Political Economy

An examination of the historical development of the global political economy and of key debates in the field. Focuses on the ideas that underpin different political-economic systems, the relationship between domestic and international political economy, finance and trade, and the political economy of warfare. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits including 1.0 IDST or POST credit or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: IDST-3220H

POST-3230Y

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Nationalism & Political Order Global Pe

Why nationalism has survived and revived under globalization; how ethnicity is politicized and national identities constructed; nationalism's positive and negative forms and its relationship with democratic values. Incorporates philosophical, historical, sociological, anthropological, and economic approaches to explain and assess varieties of nationalism. Prerequisite: 2.0 POST credits at the 2000 level or permission of instructor. Recommended: POST 2200Y.

Cross-listed: SOCI-3230Y

POST-3240H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
European Integration

Examines the most ambitious and far-reaching transnational project of political integration-the European Union-with particular emphasis on its current crisis. Prerequisite: 2.0 POST credits at the 2000 level or permission of instructor. Recommended: POST 2230Y.

POST-3252H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Transnationalism, Resettlement of Immig.

This course provides an overview of theories and policies within the area of transnationalism focusing on care, work, and immigration. Students develop a global and local awareness of the social, political, and economic effects of transnationalism on the resettlement of migrants and their families. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits including 1.0 POST credit at the 2000 level or permission of instructor. Recommended: CAST 2245H.

POST-3280H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Critical Security Studies

POST 3280H: Critical Security Studies Explores concepts of security, focusing on the contested meaning of security in relation to states, nations, identities, individuals, markets, the environment, and technology. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits or permission of instructor. Recommended: POST 2230Y. Excludes POST 3973H.

POST-3281H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Government and Politics in Middle East

Examines the main issues and state and non-state actors of the contemporary Middle East, with a focus on political, social, economic, and ideological factors. Prerequisite: 10.0 university credits including 1.0 IDST or POST credit at the 2000 level, or permission of the instructor. Excludes IDST-POST 4280Y, 4281H.

Cross-listed: IDST-3281H

POST-3290H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Causes of War

Explores hegemonic war, which is characterized with major shifts in the international distribution of power. Focusing on select cases from antiquity to the present, the aim is to garner insight on whether a hegemonic war between China and the US will occur and, if so, what the consequences might be. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: IDST-3290H

POST-3335H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
The Meaning of Politics Today

Explores political theory in the context of contemporary political events and issues. In doing so, it examines the uses and limitations of political theory in relation to themes such as democracy, justice, equality, diversity, and reconciliation. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits or permission of instructor. Not open to students with credit for POST 3330Y.

POST-3431H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
  • Durham GTA
Growing Gap:gender (in)justice in Canada

An intersectional feminist analysis of social welfare issues and policies in Canada. Focusing on topics including poverty, homelessness, childcare, and employment, we examine historical roots and contemporary contexts shaping the lives of women and marginalized groups bearing the brunt of the growing income gap and neoliberal threats to equality. Prerequisite: 6.0 university credits including 1.0 GESO or WMST credit at the 2000 level or beyond, or permission of instructor. Excludes GESO-CAST-POST 4431H, WMST 3431H, WMST-CAST-POST 4430Y.

Cross-listed: GESO-3431H, CAST-3431H

POST-3465H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Politics and Film

What makes a film "political"? We will consider the various ways in which political life and action are portrayed in and through film, addressing-in relation to a variety of film genres-such topics as publics and publicity, visual politics, political senses, media manipulation, film bodies, and political bodies. Prerequisite: POST 2351H and 2352H (or 2350Y); or CUST 2081Y; or permission of the instructor.

Cross-listed: CUST-3465H, MDST-3465H

POST-3475H

Offered:

  • Online
The Media of Politics

Examines the decline of the traditional model of journalism and the explosive growth of internet and social media as citizens' main source of news. The ethical, political, and social implications of the nexus between the media and political accountability in a democratic society are the focus of the course. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits including 1.0 POST or CUST credit at the 2000 level, or permission of instructor. Recommended: POST 2351H and 2352H or CUST-MDST 2581H or 2582H.

Cross-listed: CUST-3475H, MDST-3475H

POST-3600H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Designing and Doing Qualitative Research in Political Studies

Introduces students to qualitative research methods in political studies. Designed to engage students in questions about how we collect and analyze data to explain political phenomena and to give students hands-on experience using qualitative research methods. Prerequisite: 1.0 POST credits at the 2000 level or permission of instructor.

POST-3602H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Environment and Development

Examines environmental issues and conflicts in developing countries, applying a critical political ecology perspective to a range of current topics, including oil production, biodiversity conservation, and resource conflicts. There is also a special focus on agriculture and food systems. Prerequisite: IDST 2000Y or ERST-POST 2100H or ERST-CAST 2520H or POST 2200Y. Excludes ERST-IDST-POST 3601Y.

Cross-listed: ERST-3602H, IDST-3602H, SAFS-3602H

POST-3605H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Developing & Communicating Public Policy

Introduces students to the practice of developing public policy. Examines key aspects of the policy process: defining problems, choosing policy instruments, weighing alternatives, consulting the public, communicating policy, and evaluating performance. Emphasis throughout is on constructing persuasive and practical responses to important policy problems. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits.

POST-3661H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
  • Durham GTA
Ethnicities, Racism, Multiculturalism

Explores ethnicities with a focus on contemporary Canada. Topics include settler colonialism, immigration, multicultural policies and practices, and contemporary political conflicts involving ethnicities. The course also covers theories and concepts of "race" and ethnicity as social categories, the social basis of racism, and the critique of multiculturalism. Prerequisite: 5.0 university credits including at least 1.0 credit in SOCI, CAST, or POST at the 2000 level. Excludes SOCI 3660Y.

Cross-listed: SOCI-3661H, CAST-3661H

POST-3665H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Canada State Society Power

Interrogates the political economy tradition in Canada from its roots to more contemporary approaches, examining the dynamics of Canadian economic, political, and social development. Addresses issues associated with the development of a resource-based and branch-plant economy, globalization and continental integration, and inequality, discrimination, and social justice. Prerequisite: 6.0 university credits.

POST-3672H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Gender, Diversity, Intersectionalities

Examines issues of diverse intersectional gender identities and gender experiences, including Indigeneity, (dis)ability, race, class, LBTQ, and fat, and provides socio-political perspectives to understand activism, community building, and possibilities for socio-political and policy change. Prerequisite: 7.0 university credits including 1.0 POST, CAST, or GESO credit at the 2000 level, or permission of instructor. Recommended: POST-CAST 2011H and/or 2012H. Excludes POST-CAST-WMST 3670Y.

Cross-listed: CAST-3672H, GESO-3672H

POST-3881H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Gender Globalization & Resistance

Focuses on how globalization is transforming intersectional gender dynamics that underpin relationships between and within states, markets, civil society, and households. Introduces students to feminist perspectives on the global political economy, focusing on specific issues such as international trade agreements, labour, security, migration, health, environment, and human rights. Prerequisite: 1.0 IDST, POST, GESO or WMST credit at the 2000 level or beyond, or permission of instructor. Excludes WMST-POST 3880Y, 4881H.

Cross-listed: IDST-3881H, GESO-3881H

POST-3900Y

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Reading Course

Designed to provide an opportunity for more intensive examination of material studied in other Political Studies courses. Prerequisite: Open only to Political Studies majors with a minimum 80% average over all POST courses completed or permission of the chair.

POST-3962H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
  • Durham GTA
Gender, Sexualities & the Law

Explores key issues, theories, and debates concerning gender, feminism, and the law, primarily in Canada. Approaching law as a site of regulation and constraint and drawing upon restorative justice pedagogies and decolonial methodologies, the course examines issues such as family, sexuality, violence, pornography, prostitution, poverty, employment, and immigration. Prerequisite: 1.0 GESO, WMST, CAST, or POST credit, or permission of instructor. Excludes WMST 3962H.

Cross-listed: GESO-3962H, CAST-3962H, SOCI-3962H

400 level courses (27)
Course Code Description
POST-4020D

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Honours Thesis

A double credit. A scholarly project on a specific topic to be developed and carried out under the supervision of a member of the department. Prerequisite: 15.0 university credits, including 5.0 POST credits that include either both POST-PHIL 2351H and 2352H (or 2350Y) or POST 3330Y and a minimum 80% average on all POST courses completed; or permission of the chair.

POST-4081H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Canadian Politics and Public Policy

Explores Canadian process of developing public policy. Examines key institutions and actors in Canadian politics, including the public policy roles of the prime minister, cabinet, the opposition, political parties, the bureaucracy, business, the mass media, social movements, and the public. Prerequisite: 12.0 university credits including 1.0 POST credit that includes at least one of POST-CAST 2011H or 2012H; or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: CAST-4081H

POST-4200H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Politics of Globalization

"Thinking globally" has become a watchword of living in an era of globalization. Drawing on current theories of world politics, as well as insights afforded by social and political theory, this course explores the issue of how to think critically in global terms. Prerequisite: 15.0 university credits, including 5.0 POST credits that include POST 2200Y and one of POST-PHIL 2350Y or POST 3330Y, or permission of instructor.

POST-4210Y

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Emphasis Global Power & Politics

A special course reviewing major approaches to the study of global power and politics designed for senior students in the social sciences interested in acquiring tools for exploring multidisciplinary literature in the globalization field. Prerequisite: 2.0 POST (GP) credits; or 10.0 university credits including either SOCI 2110H or 2100Y and 2150Y, and 2.0 credits at the 3000 level; or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: SOCI-4210Y

POST-4230H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Global Social Movements

An examination of global social movements and their impact on the process of globalization, such as Occupy Wall Street, the Anti-Globalization movement, the Zapatista Uprising, and Via Campesina, among others. Prerequisite: 14.0 university credits including 1.0 IDST or POST or SOCI credit at the 2000 level or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: IDST-4230H, SOCI-4230H

POST-4240Y

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Canada Globalization & Int Development

Canada's place within twentieth- and twenty-first-century globalization, along with its North-South policies and practices, are examined. Topics include Fordism and post-Fordism, global production and social reproduction, environment, inequality, dissent, development assistance, and the roles of Canadian business and civil society in international development. Prerequisite: 14.0 university credits including 1.0 IDST or CAST or POST credit at the 2000 level or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: CAST-4240Y, IDST-4240Y

POST-4252H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Refugees, Forced Migration Cdn Context

This course focuses on the ethical and moral complexities raised by displacement and forced migration. Students examine the social, economic, and political factors associated with Canada's refugee sponsorship programs. Attention is given to media representations of refugees. Topics include resilience, parenting in a war context, and refugee education. Prerequisite: 9.0 university credits including 1.0 POST credit at the 2000 level, or permission of instructor. Recommended: CAST 2245H and/or POST 3250H.

POST-4255H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Globalization Politics of Work

Work is a central feature of everyday lives, structuring not only who we are but also our life chances. But what do we mean by work (e.g., paid, unpaid, care, part-time, gigs)? How does globalization and technological change work? Topics include work generation theories, power, production, and social reproduction. Prerequisite: 12.0 university credits including 1.0 POST, IDST and/or ADMN credit at the 2000 level; or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: IDST-4255H, ADMN-4255H, SOCI-4255H

POST-4260H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Global Governance Social Justice

Provides an in-depth discussion of the relationship between global governance and social justice. Particular attention is paid to global institutions such as the UN and the World Bank to highlight issues of social justice on a global scale. Prerequisite: 14.0 university credits including 1.0 IDST or POST credit at the 2000 level or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: IDST-4260H

POST-4272H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Challenges for Democracy & Global Order

Examines the question of whether the international order can be democratized and be accountable to the people impacted by them. It begins with an analysis of how inter-state hierarchies operate. Global governance institutions are examined focusing on whether they exacerbate or attenuate domination and submission. Prerequisite: 12.0 university credits including 1.0 POST credit, or permission of instructor. Excludes POST-IDST 4270Y.

Cross-listed: IDST-4272H

POST-4331H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Power, Resistance, and Hope

Drawing on political theory, the course explores the relationship between power, forms of resistance, and the hope for and potential practices of alternative forms of politics. In doing so, it focuses on concepts such as oppression and domination, subjectivity, democracy, utopia, and prefigurative politics. Prerequisite: 12.0 university credits including 1.0 credit from POST-PHIL 2351H and 2352H or POST 3335H; or permission of instructor.

POST-4340H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Colonial & Postcolonial Theory

Analyzes the relationship between Western political thought and the project of imperialism. Engages the work of key figures in post-colonial theory (e.g., Said, Spivak) as well as precursors (e.g., Fanon, Gramsci) as a way of understanding forms of domination in the contemporary global order. Prerequisite: 2.0 POST (GP) credits. Strongly recommended: POST 4200H.

POST-4341H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Politics of Race in Global Perspective

Extends the discussion of race theory, introduced in POST 4340H, with a focus on contemporary race-focused social movements (e.g., Black Lives Matter; Idle No More) and recent treatments of those movements and the issues they raise by select scholars and commentators, in global perspective. Prerequisite: POST 4340H.

POST-4431H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
  • Durham GTA
Growing Gap:gender (in)justice in Canada

An intersectional feminist analysis of social welfare issues and policies in Canada. Focusing on topics including poverty, homelessness, childcare, and employment, we examine historical roots and contemporary contexts shaping the lives of women and marginalized groups bearing the brunt of the growing income gap and neoliberal threats to equality. Prerequisite: 6.0 university credits including 1.0 GESO or WMST credit at the 2000 level or beyond, or permission of instructor. Excludes GESO-CAST-POST 3431H, WMST-CAST-POST 4430Y, WMST 4431H.

Cross-listed: GESO-4431H, CAST-4431H

POST-4460H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Security, Surveillance & Cdn State

"Peace, order and good government" is a cornerstone of Canadian Confederation and legislative practice. In times of emergency, governments can transgress the rights of citizens in the effort to protect them-from themselves. The central concern for this course is to examine what is at stake for citizens when a State exerts its power to maintain the "peace." Prerequisite: 14.0 university credits.

Cross-listed: CAST-4460H

POST-4505H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Futurities: Centring Difference

This course explores the interdisciplinary practice and knowledges of political theory, an intellectual project that grasps the age or contemporary context and desires alternative more democratic futurities for human flourishing. Contemporary critical thinkers and theoretical trajectories will be selected, providing insight into crises of our time and (re)imagined possibilities. Prerequisite: 12.0 university credits including POST 2351H and 2352H or permission of instructor.

POST-4538H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Media Ecologies

Examines some theories and practices for the analysis of media ecologies. "Media ecologies" refers to the worlds, sensibilities, and perceptibilities that our interactions with media enable. Detailed attention is given to media objects, the role of the culture-maker, and the critical political analysis of human/non-human entanglement(s). Prerequisite: 10.0 university credits including 3.0 CUST credits; or CUST 1535H (1035Y), COIS 1010H, and either CUST 2035Y or 2535H; or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: CUST-4538H, MDST-4538H

POST-4610H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Global Environmental Policy

Focuses on perspectives, actors, institutions, and economic relationships as they relate to global environmental policy and instruments. The aim is to provide students with a solid understanding of linkages between the global political system and the natural environment. Prerequisite: 10.0 university credits. Recommended: One of ERST-IDST-POST 3602H or 3603H (or 3601Y) or POST 2200Y.

Cross-listed: ERST-4610H, SAFS-4610H, IDST-4610H

POST-4800Y

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Research Practicum

Open to Honours students in Political Studies. Under the direct supervision of a departmental faculty member, research activities are undertaken within the faculty member's ongoing research program. Prerequisite: 14.0 university credits, a minimum 80% average in POST courses, permission of instructor, and permission of department chair.

POST-4801H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Research Practicum

Open to Honours students in Political Studies. Under the direct supervision of a departmental faculty member, research activities are undertaken within the faculty member's ongoing research program. Prerequisite: 14.0 university credits, a minimum 80% average in POST courses, permission of instructor, and permission of department chair.

POST-4802H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Research Practicum

Open to Honours students in Political Studies. Under the direct supervision of a departmental faculty member, research activities are undertaken within the faculty member's ongoing research program. Prerequisite: 14.0 university credits, a minimum 80% average in POST courses, permission of instructor, and permission of department chair.

POST-4830H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Anthropology of Food Politics

Explores moral and ethical dimensions of food production and circulation. The politics of excess and want, national cuisines, reactions to industrial and fast food (the Slow Food movement, culinary connoisseurship). Food distribution, from home to restaurants and fast food joints, is examined in the context of changing demands of work. Prerequisite: ANTH 2001H (or 2000Y) or permission of instructor.

Cross-listed: ANTH-4830H, SAFS-4830H

POST-4850H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Public Policy Field Placement

Provides students an opportunity to apply policy analysis ideas and skills in a practical setting. Students will be placed in a non-profit organization or government office engaged in public policy. Enrolment in the course is limited to the number of available placements. Students interested in this course must notify the instructor by the end of September for placements starting in January. Prerequisite: 15.0 university credits, a minimum cumulative average of 77%, and permission of the instructor.

POST-4870Y

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Community Based Program

Students are placed in research projects with community organizations in the Peterborough area. Each placement is supervised jointly by a faculty member and a representative of a community organization. For details, see Community-Based Research program (p. 265). Prerequisite: At least 10.0 university credits, with an overall cumulative average of at least 75%. Students may take POST 4870Y or both 4871H and 4872H for credit.

POST-4900Y

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Reading Course

Open only to students in the fourth year of a Political Studies major program. Alternatively a student may do an internship, involving field and written work in an area related to politics. For further details, see the department website. Prerequisite: 80% average in all POST courses completed or permission of the chair.

POST-4906H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Reading Course

Allows students to pursue a specialized topic under the supervision of a Global Power & Politics faculty member. Students wishing to pursue this option must complete arrangements for the course by April 30 of the preceding academic year (October 31 for Winter term courses). Prerequisite: POST 2200Y or 2230Y, 2.0 POST (GP) credits at the 3000 level, and permission of instructor.

POST-4960H

Offered:

  • Peterborough
Politics of Globalization II

Draws on C. Wright Mills's notion of the "sociological imagination"-in particular, the link between "personal troubles of milieu" and "public issues of social structure"-to frame the question of globalization. Makes use not only of scholarly literature, but also fiction and film. Prerequisite: 15.0 university credits, including 5.0 POST credits that include POST 4200H and either both POST 2351H and 2352H (or 2350Y) or 3330Y, or permission of instructor.

Programs

  • Political Studies B.A.
    • Specialization in Public Policy
    • Joint Major in International Political Economy
  • Trent/Swansea Dual Degree (LL.B. & B.A./B.B.A.)
  • First-Year Courses
  • Course Listing
  • Public Policy Field Placement
  • Honours Thesis
  • Reading Courses
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