Courses

This course explores questions such as: What is feminism? What are the main schools of feminist thought? What is patriarchy? What is gender and does it differ from sex? Are there only two sexes? Are there only two genders? What is homosexuality? What are the different views on how same-sex attraction arises? Do feminism and Christianity have convergent trajectories? Is there a place in the church for those from the LGBTQ community? What are the cultural forces that format the thinking about these questions?

A survey of the changing nature of and approaches to war and its effect on society from the Middle Ages to the present. Course topics include various visions and proposals for peace. The nature of nuclear war.

Exploration of the biological, psychological, and cultural influences on gender differences and the implications of gender differences and roles for women and men in our society. Emphasis is on research and theory exploring differences and/or similarities and the origins of differences.

Concepts and materials treating the meaning and significance of human sexuality. Due to the discussion-oriented format, preparation, attendance, and full participation are required.

Students are invited into using the discipline of sociology as a mode of inquiry. Through concepts like the sociological imagination, students experience the social world around them by interacting with the norms, values and beliefs of local and global cultures.

This course is a sociological examination of families in society. The emphasis is on the structural and cultural aspects of family life. Topics include: theories and methods for understanding families; formation of intimate relationships; mate selection processes, marriage, and parenting; families over the life course; gender issues; and transitions in families.

An examination of the ideas of a particular theorist, school of thought, or conflicting theories within the behavioural sciences; or an examination of particular sociological issues from a theoretical or empirical perspective.