Questions and comments about the Graduate Programme in Social & Political Thought may
be addressed to: Judith Hawley, Programme Assistant jhawley@Yorku.ca, and to Brian Singer, Programme
Director bsinger@Yorku.ca.
To the 1998 Recruitment
Brochure.
To the 1998-99 Programme
Handbook.
Welcome to (or back to) the Graduate Programme in Social & Political
Thought. The Director will be meeting all of you formally or informally in September. In the
meantime, here is some information relating to the programme for 1997-98.
1. The Supplementary Calendar consists of regulations and information which are
supplementary to the Faculty of Graduate Studies Calendar for 1997-99 (hereafter
designated as the Main Calendar ). Please read carefully the "Faculty Regulations" and
the "Programme Regulations" to be found in the Main Calendar.
2. The Programme Offices are located in the South Tower of the Ross Building.
Correspondence, messages, appointments, and general enquires should normally be routed
through the Programme Assistant, room S714A Ross, phone 736-5320. The Director's office is
S717 Ross. The students' lounge is S716 Ross. Two offices for students' use, S722A and S722B,
contain two computers, a photocopier and study carrels. These offices, and the students' lounge,
are accessed by codes which will be disclosed to students when they register. In the interest of
security please do not circulate these combinations.
3. Committees:
(i) The programme is administered by the Director in conjunction with the Executive Committee.
That Committee is comprised of six faculty members representing, in equal proportions, the three
areas of study (History of Social and Political Thought, Society and Economy, and
Consciousness and Society), the Director and three representatives of the student body.
(ii) A Programme Curriculum Committee is responsible for curriculum review and the vetting of
new course proposals.
(iii) A Programme Advisory Committee is responsible for vetting dissertation proposals.
4. Competence in a language other than English is required when the nature of the
thesis demands it. In general the greater the importance placed on the interpretation of texts, the
greater the linguistic competence required. A special course designed to help students gain
reading facility in German is offered through the Faculty of Arts, usually in the fall and winter
terms.
5. Students are advised to adhere to the guidelines set out in the Main Calendar under Faculty
Regulations 13 and 14, governing full-time and part-time studies. As well, students
doing coursework are required to take no less than one-and-a-half courses in a given year to
maintain full-time status. Failure to maintain the norms for full-time status may jeopardize
eligibility for graduate and teaching assistantships.
Queries in this regard should be addressed to the Director or Programme Assistant.
6. Students are advised to be on campus early in September to meet faculty members, fellow
students, and the Director.
7. Students are advised to observe the programme's registration dates of which they will
be advised in August. The deadline for registration is 15 September. Students who register after
that date will have to pay a late registration fee of $60.00. The annual opening-of-term
reception will take place 18 September in the Vanier Senior Common Room, room 010
Vanier College, between 4:00 and 7:00 p.m. This is a chance to meet faculty members and other
students. Refreshments will be provided. THE OFFICE WILL CLOSE AT 2:00 p.m. ON 18
SEPTEMBER TO ENABLE THE OFFICE STAFF TO PREPARE FOR THE PARTY.
8. University courses begin on Monday, 8 September, but students are responsible for
ascertaining the precise date of the first class meeting of courses in which they enrol. (This is
especially important for courses given in programmes other than Social & Political
Thought.)
9. Faculty members may not hold classes off campus in any but very unusual
circumstances (and require decanal approval in any case). Students have repeatedly complained
about the trouble and possible danger of getting to downtown locations and back to the campus
late at night.
10. Each new student should arrange to meet the Director as early in September as
possible.
11. The attention of all students is drawn to the regulations concerning completion of
course work.
12. The deadlines for the Ontario Graduate Scholarships and the Social Sciences and
Humanities Research Council of Canada Doctoral Fellowships are, respectively, the last
week of October and the third week of November. Students will receive more detailed
information concerning application deadlines when they register in September.
Since the Director must give a comparative assessment of all applicants (except for part-time
students who choose to apply to SSHRC directly), it is essential that students not wait until the
last possible moment before submitting their applications.
13. The Graduate Development Fund helps subsidize students' travel costs to a
recognized academic event where they are presenting their scholarly or creative work. The fund
will not support travel to a commercial or remunerated event. (It does not cover taxis, conference
fees, hotels, associated research costs, etc.).
There are two competitions each year. The spring competition covers events taking place from 1
May to 31 December; the fall competition, from 1 December to 30 April. A call for applications
occurs approximately one month in advance. Notices announcing the competition and giving the
deadline date for applications are posted on the doors of the Programme Assistant's office and the
students' lounge.
Application forms are available in the Programme office.
14. The Research Costs Fund helps subsidize students' own research expenses that are
above and beyond those costs that are typically associated with graduate work, such as travel to
sources of research, payment of subjects, supplies, services, photocopying, etc..
All full-time registered graduate students who are members (past and present) of CUPE 3903
(the Teaching Assistants' and part-time faculty members' union) are eligible for a grant. Master's
students should note that Doctoral students take priority.
There are two competitions each year, in the fall and spring. A call for applications occurs
approximately one month in advance. Notices announcing the competition and giving the
deadline date for applications are posted on the doors of the Programme Assistant's office and the
students' lounge.
Application forms are available in the Programme office.
15. Students who have been awarded a Graduate Assistantship for 1997-98 should
consult the Director about their general responsibilities and their prospective supervisors. The
Programme makes every effort to match Graduate Assistants with supervisors whose academic
interests are similar, but students should be aware that a perfect match' is not always possible and
that they cannot define their research competence too narrowly. It is the policy of the Programme
that only one Graduate Assistant should work for any given member of faculty. Although the
nature of Graduate Assistant work may vary widely, in all cases it is expected that students will
remain in close contact with the G.A. supervisor during the academic year, that is, from
September to April.
16. Many students in the Programme have obtained Teaching Assistantships
particularly (but not exclusively) in the undergraduate Divisions of Humanities and Social
Sciences. Teaching Assistantships are an important and valuable experience for anyone who
intends to teach in a university. They are also a critical source of funding, for in the current
situation the Programme can only use its Graduate Assistantships for incoming students.
Continuing students, therefore, should explore the possibilities of obtaining a Teaching
Assistantship for 1997-98 early in the academic year and file the appropriate applications. The
Programme can offer advice about possible openings but it is not responsible for placing
students.
17. Students should check their mailboxes in the Student Lounge for notices about colloquia,
guest speakers and information concerning the Programme. Except in the case of part-time
students, mail received in the Programme office will not be forwarded.
18. Notices for colloquia or visiting lecturers must be given to the student representative at least
two weeks in advance.
19. Students wishing to use the mainframe computer should contact the Help Services at
Computing and Communications Services, T128 Steacie Science Building, (416) 736-5800.
20. The Social & Political Thought Programme strives to avoid being an impersonal
bureaucracy, but the Programme is a large one and the workload in the office is often
overwhelming. There are a number of relatively easy ways in which members of the Programme
can reduce the administrative burden. The most obvious one is to inform the Programme
regularly of changes in plans, courses, G.A.s, etc.. A brief note to the Programme
Assistant informing her of some new development can often save endless bureaucratic hassles at
a later stage. Moreover, students ought to make a point of discussing with the Director their
academic plans: course selection, comprehensive fields, thesis topics, potential supervisors and
committees, leaves of absence, etc..
Finally, the most effective way of avoiding misunderstandings and confusion is to put things
in writing.
Back to Table of
Contents.
Anthropology
K. Little, 2054E Vari Hall, 736-5261, extension 77787
Economics
H. Drost*, 426 Atkinson College, 736-5218, extension 66695
R. Grinspun, 1026 Vari Hall, 736-5237, extension 77049
L. Lefeber, 326 Founders College, 736-5148, extension 33192
Education
D. Britzman, S850 Ross Building, 736-5002, extension 88793
English
I. Balfour, 206 Winters College, 736-5142, extension 77466
B. Godard, 350 Stong College, 736-5166, extension 22147
M.C. Leps, 352 Stong College, 736-5166, extension 22145
Film and Video
Peter Morris, 230 Centre for Film ∧ Theatre, 736-5149, extension 22169
History
B. Lightman, S922 Ross Building, 736-5260, extension 33375
P. Lovejoy, 309 York Lanes, 736-5663, extension 20560
N. Rogers, 2182 Vari Hall, 736-5123, extension 30414
Humanities
J. Berland, 714 Atkinson College, 736-5208, extension 66639
B. Polka, 211 Vanier College, 736-5158, extension 66979
P. Taylor, 219 Founders College, 736-5148, extension 40481
B. Wilson, 736 Atkinson College, 736-5208, extension 66631
Law & Administrative Studies
L. Green, 230 Osgoode Hall Law School, extension 736-5580
D. Hay, 325 Osgoode Hall Law School, extension 736-5563
H.T. Wilson, 206 Schulich School of Business, 736-5088, extension 77896/234 McLaughlin,
736-5128
Philosophy
H. Adelman, 349 York Lanes, 736-5663
L. Code, S425 Ross Building, 736-5113, extension 77585
W. Cragg, S444 Ross Building, 736-5113, extension 44722
L. Jacobs, S423 Ross Building, 736-5113, extension 77556
I.C. Jarvie, S4399 Ross Building, 736-5113, extension 22582
S. Mallin, 630 Atkinson College, 736-5233, extension 66449
M. Schabas*, S440 Ross Building, 736-5113, extension 44721
Political Science
R. Albritton, S663 Ross Building, 736-5265, extension 88842
D.V.J. Bell, 355 Lumbers Building, 736-5252
G. Comninel, S634 Ross Building, 736-5265, extension 22552
D. Drache, 227 York Lanes, 736-5415
S. Hellman, S662 Ross Building, 736-5265, extension 88815
A. Horowitz, S651 Ross Building, 736-5265, extension 88833
D. McNally*, 340 York Hall, 487-6735, extension 88324
S. Newman, S669 Ross Building, 736-5265, extension 33197
L. North, 240D York Lanes, 736-5237, extension 66936
L. Panitch, S660 Ross Building, 736-5265, extension 33891
D. Shugarman, 224 McLaughlin College, 736-5128, extension 77082
Social Science
P. Antze, 121 McLaughlin College, 736-5128, extension 77099
H. Flakierski, S735 Ross Building, 736-5054, extension 33430
J. Hellman, 133 Founders College, 736-5148, extension 44087
S. Levine, S771 Ross Building, 736-5054, extension 77386
C. Lipsig-Mumme, 201 York Lanes, extension 736-5612
M. Luxton, 302 Atkinson College, 736-5235, extension 33138
I. Rajagopal, S758 Ross Building, 736-5054, extension 77809
H. Rosenberg, 214 York Lanes, 736-5054, extension 77821
A. Sekyi-Otu, 123 McLaughlin College, 736-5128, extension 30437
P. Stamp, 316 Founders College, 736-5148, extension 22037
E. Winslow, S776 Ross Building, 736-5054, extension 77819
Sociology
K. Anderson, 2110 Vari Hall, 736-5015, extension 60304
H. Bannerji, 2104 Vari Hall, 736-5015, extension 77993
A. Blum, 2078 Vari Hall, 736-5015, extension 66405
D. Carveth, C133 York Hall, 487-6741, extension 88378
G. Darroch, 2090 Vari Hall, 736-5015, extension 77994
I. Davies, 326 Founders College, 736-5148, extension 33192
B. Green, 2098 Vari Hall, 736-5015, extension 77995
G. Nielsen*, C115 York Hall, 487-6741, extension 88179
J. O'Neill, 225 Founders College, 736-5148, extension 66915
B. Singer, C116 York Hall, 487-6741, extension 88377
* On Leave
Back to Table of
Contents.
The following SPT offerings are listed consecutively according to course number, rather than
according to areas of concentration. Students are reminded that the Programme divides its
curriculum into three thematic streams or areas: history of social and political thought, society
and economy, and consciousness and society. There are no hard and fast' dividing lines
separating these areas, but students are advised to take courses in at least two areas, possibly in
all three, to gain breadth in interdisciplinary study, and should consult with their advisor and the
Director about courses in the different areas.
Social & Political Thought 6011.03F: Post Fordism: Order and Disorder in the Global
Economy. This course employs the concept of fordism and postfordism to examine the
emerging configuration of the new international order. The seminar will examine the problems
posed by globalization, the internationalization of production and finance, trading blocs, state
strategies and the drive for competitiveness and security. Special attention will be paid to the
contribution of the Paris-based Regulation school of political economy and how international
political economy conceives of the link between national systems of production and the
organization of markets globally.
D. Drache, Thursdays, 2:30-5:30 p.m., 119 Founders College, Half Course (fall)
(Same as Political Science 6810.03)
Social & Political Thought 6012.03W: Comparative Trade Blocs: An Institutional
Analysis. The formation of regional trading blocs in North America and Europe has far
reaching implications for governments. This course will examine the complex set of aims,
objectives and institutional structures of the European Community and the North American Free
Trade Agreement. Special attention will be paid to the limits and dynamics of economic
integration, the challenges of adjustment and the problem of asymmetry. The course will focus
on a range of issues including new regulatory norms, trade liberalization measures vs the benefits
of a strategic trade policy, trade dispute mechanisms and industrial and corporate strategy.
D. Drache, Thursdays, 2:30-5:30 p.m., S177A Ross Building, Half Course (winter)
(Same as Political Science 6815.03)
Social & Political Thought 6019.06: Social History and Class. This course takes
up major theoretical issues and research in social history in which the questions of class
experiences and class formation figure centrally. The question of class analysis serves as an
entree to a variety of theoretical, methodological and historical issues. The last 20 years has
witnessed a resurgence of both large-scale, comparative historical sociology and of the social
history of everyday life and local communities. This course focuses on the latter with an aim to
relating local experience to larger structural changes.
The course begins by considering recent perspectives on the analysis of agency and structure,
especially in the work of Abrams and Giddens. A number of specific examples of this analysis
are taken up, such as the Genovese's analysis of slave culture, Davis' microhistory' of a
sixteenth-century French community and Willis' analysis of contemporary British School and
working-class culture.
The body of the course is organized around critically examining selected studies that examplify a
number of approaches to the social history of class, gender and ethnicity. They are chosen
partially to foster discussion of varieties of method, evidence and interpretation. Some of the
main topics will be E.P. Thompson's class analysis and its legacy, including Canadian influences,
the development of historical studies of social mobility, immigration and family, recent studies
of middle-class formations in Great Britain and North America and topics in narrative,
interpretive and quantitative social science' history.
G.Darroch, Mondays, 2:30-5:30 p.m., 1152 Vari Hall, Full Course
(Same as Sociology 6670.06)
Social & Political Thought 6020.06: Phenomenology, Psychoanalysis and Political
Economy. This course explores the implications of phenomenology, organicism and
psychoanalysis for political economy by means of an examination of the work of writers
influenced by such ideas. The writings examined are drawn from Marx, Alfred Marshall and
John Maynard Keynes.
T. Winslow, Mondays, 11:30-2:30, 118 Founders College, Full Course
Social & Political Thought 6021.03F: Foundations of Contemporary Politics and
Culture. This course originates in a certain disquiet. As disciplinary boundaries become
increasingly porous and certain topics come to be shared by the different disciplines, students
often find themselves drawn to areas for which they have received little preparation. This course
seeks to respond to this situation by examining both classic' and contemporary texts in politics
and culture. The hope is that, in relating past and present discussions, the student will gain a
deepened understanding of the debates, the theoretical positions involved, their stakes and
evolution.'
In the coming year the focus is on democracy, understood as a regime that bears a series of
seemingly opposed claims. For it seeks, at one and the same time, to establish a legitimate basis
for government and its extension, while limiting the latter in the face of an autonomous civil
society.
More, it would institute a privileged relation to communication, justice and truth, while
simultaneously stimulating the development of actions and interests. Or again, it would provide a
foundation for collective identity, while opening itself to the play of social alterity and division.
With its apparently impossible and contradictory demands, democracy, its controversies and their
evolution, will be related to the constitutive debates of the modern and post-modern imaginaries.
B. Singer, Fridays, 11:30-2:30 p.m., 3003 Vari Hall, Half Course (Fall)
(Same as Sociology 6170.03)
Social & Political Thought 6024.06: Studies in Contemporary Literary Theory:
Twentieth Century Literary Criticism. This course is designed to introduce graduate
students to a broad range of theoretical and methodological approaches to textual analysis as
developed in the twentieth-century, while providing them with the opportunity of working with
several faculty members and encountering their diverse areas of expertise. The actual content of
the course will vary from year to year, depending on the principal instructor, who will be
responsible for at least 13 consecutive seminars, in which they will present their areas of concern
and engage in seminar discussion with the students. In 1997-98, Marie-Christine Leps will be the
principal instructor, and will cover the following: Saussurian linguistics, Russian Formalism,
Structuralism, Marxism, the Bakhtin Circle, and discursive criticism.
Other faculty members will contribute the following:
Class and cultural studies: Peter Sinnema
Psychoanalysis and the dynamics of learning: Deborah Britzman
The language of ethics and alterity: Levinas and Derrida: Thomas Loebel
French feminism: Barbara Godard
Gender studies: Lesley Higgins
African-American critical theory: Rinaldo Walcott
Postcolonial critical theory: Terry Goldie
M.C.Leps, Fridays, 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., 327 Bethune College, Full Course
(Same as English 6992.06)
Social & Political Thought 6025.03F: Advanced Studies in the Politics of the Third
World: The Politics of Economic Development. The course is divided into four sections.
The first three weeks will be dedicated to examining third world development in historical
perspective, focusing on the variations and phases in the development of the historical structures
of dependency and on the ideological/cultural legacy of colonialism in Africa, Asia, and Latin
America.
Section two (weeks 4-8) will concentrate on class relations and the models' of industrialization
adopted by third world societies. It will include a discussion of: the western capitalist model and
the different ways in which it has been imitated; the developmental outcomes arising from
variations in the social relations among landlords, capitalists, and peasants; several case studies
focused on those variations in social relations.
Section three (weeks 9-11), will consider the ways in which the major ideological traditions of
the nineteenthth century (conservative, liberal, and marxist) appear in theories of development
and how they have influenced perceptions of feasible policies and policy choices.
The fourth section (weeks 12-13) will examine some new ways of conceptualizing development.
L. North, Fridays, 9:30 to11:30 a.m., S156 Ross Building, Half Course
(Same as Political Science 6560.03F)
Social & Political Thought 6026.03F: International Trade Policy and Economic
Integration. The course approaches current policy issues in international trade and economic
integration from an interdisciplinary perspective, presenting both relevant mainstream economic
analysis as well as alternative theoretical approaches. We focus on main trading arrangements
such as the North American Free Trade Agreement, the European Union, and the World Trade
Organization, placing particular emphasis on topical areas such as impacts on human
development, labour, environment, and trade and development. Specific objectives within this
area of inquiry are a) to identify key policy issues, b) understand main approaches that have been
proposed to deal with these issues, c) become acquainted with important policy debates, and
finally, d) to encourage the student to pursue independently a line of inquiry in policy analysis.
R.Grinspun, Tuesdays, 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., 109 Farquarhson Life Sciences Building, Half
Course (fall)
(Same as Economics 5910.03)
Social & Political Thought 6029.03F: Eighteenth Century Intellectual Texts: The Idea
of the Sublime. This course will address the principal texts in the theory of the sublime,
particularly those of the middle and late eighteenth century. The sublime will be engaged
especially as the locus of passage between knowledge and action, epistemology and
ethics/politics. The primary mode of analysis will be rhetorical, understood broadly and
technically. We will simultaneously attempt to read those texts as texts and track the agendas
into which the sublime is enlisted. Among the issues to be explored are the status of the
examples of the sublime, the relation between the empirical and the theoretical, the force of
aesthetic determinations of gender and nationality, and especially the dynamics of language as
the object and medium of the theory of the sublime.
Though we will not focus on any extended literary examples in class discussion, students are
encouraged to do so in their papers, as well as to explore theorists of the sublime other than those
read in class.
I. Balfour, Mondays, 11:30-2:30, 304 Stong College, Half Course (fall)
(Same as English 6310.03)
Social & Political Thought 6031.06: The Subject of Art: Identity and Aesthetics in
Post-Modern Perspective. In post-modern thinking, the status of the subject is in question,
as is that of the work of art. What does it mean to be or become a subject? Is there an aesthetic
dimension to subjectivity? Does the de-centering of the subject imply a disintegration of the
art-work and vice versa?
This course will look at these and similar questions through an examination of some major texts
in philosophical aesthetics, tracing the tradition of discourse from Nietzsche through Heidegger
to Derrida and other contemporary thinkers in order to reflect on the ways in which we can
understand the subject of art. Particular works of visual art, dance, theatre and literature will also
be examined in the light of these questions.
S. Levine, Tuesdays, 4:00-7:00, 101A Central Square, Full Course
Social & Political Thought 6032.06: Social Theory and Communicative Processes.
The expansion of global communications in the last two decades calls into question issues of
space, time, technology, meaning and identity (collective and individual) which draw on, yet
expand, the work of some of the classic writers on communication and cultural interfaces
(e.g.., Nietzsche, Simmel, Benjamin, Innis, Bakhtin, Schutz, Husserl, Heidegger,
Habermas, Eric Wolf, Debord, Deleuze and Guattari). This is perhaps the time to try to establish
which of these help us to create an interpretive basis for understanding the present condition. The
proposal is not to take the theorists genealogically (as if that were possible), nor to place other
theorists in juxtaposition to a central figure, but rather to situate the theories in relation to certain
ongoing processes. For this purpose, commencing with the work of Benjamin, I want to explore
the communicative culture of several cities, located specifically because of their different
communicative positions within a sense of a global zone of engagement. The cities would
certainly include Paris, Berlin, London, Amsterdam, Toronto, Montreal, Dublin, Barcelona,
Milan and Accra, but beyond that I cannot see. There will be a small number of guest speakers to
the course.
I. Davies, Wednesdays, 5:30-8:30, Vari Hall 1152, Full Course
(Same as Sociology 6560.06)
Social & Political Thought 6033.03W: The Politics of Identity. This course studies
the division of identity and difference, self and other, at the core of our western moral economy.
The aim is to problematize both sides of the divide, examining the ways in which identity is
consolidated through the constitution of difference and how difference as a category and practice
in late modernity has been politicized as a site of resistance.
The course will examine how the politics of identity has simultaneously politicized and
depoliticized the public facilitating a potential for both radical democracy and conservatism. Key
concepts include power, resentment, cruelty, pluralism, citizenship and the public. Four sites of
identity politics will be investigated: gender, sexuality, race\ethnicity, and class (as an absence).
Two questions structure the course: what is left of the concept of citizenship after identity
politics and how can the public be redefined and reclaimed as a site of action.
S. Bell, Wednesdays, 2:30-5:30, 318 Calumet College, Half Course (winter)
(Same as Political Science 6085.03)
Social & Political Thought 6034.03W: Pedagogy as Psychoanalytic Inquiry. This
seminar engages dynamics of teaching and learning as complex psychical events and brings to
bear on questions of education the psychoanalytic concepts of Freud's topology of psychic
structure, and the analytic concepts of trauma, transference, identification, and repression. Within
these concepts, questions of love, hatred, aggressivity, and ambivalance will be mapped. These
analytic concepts question the time of learning, its fault lines, and the relations individuals make
with the self through the other. The seminar considers foundational methodological writings in
the interdisciplinary field of education and psychoanalysis and some contemporary debates posed
by more recent pedagogies on education as symptomatic of crisis.
D. Britzman, Wednesdays, 6:00-9:00 p.m., S101A Ross Building, Half Course (winter)
(Same as Education 5697.03 and Women's Studies 6901M.03)
Social & Political Thought 6035.03W: Jurisprudence II. This course will examine
some contemporary authors: H.L.A. Hart and his critics; American and Scandinavian Realism.
L. Green, Thursdays, 8:30-11:30 a.m., S416 Ross Building, Half Course
(Same as Philosophy 6510.03)
Social & Political Thought 6101.06: The Theory and Practice of the State in Historical
Perspective. This course is about the history and transformation of the Western state in its
changing social and economic contexts from antiquity to modern capitalism. The course will also
deal with paradigmatic ideas of the state as they appear in the classics of Western political
thought and with contemporary debates surrounding the theory and history of the state.
A central theme of the course is the historical specificity of capitalism and its distinctive political
forms. One of our main objectives will be to define that specificity in relation to other social
forms, as well as to identify the specific historical processes that gave rise to capitalism. This
means challenging some influential theories of the state and its development, conventional
conceptions of the relation between the economic' and the political' and theories of history, both
Marxist and non-Marxist, which tend to mask the specificity of capitalism and the very particular
conditions of its development. With special emphasis on the problem of transitions,' from
antiquity to feudalism, from feudalism to capitalism, and from early capitalism to its industrial
form--we shall focus on the differences among various European states, notably England, France
and Italy, and the divergences of their historical paths.
G. Comninel, Wednesdays, 2:30-5:30, 1152 Vari Hall, Full Course
(Same as Political Science 6030.06)
Social & Political Thought Thought 6105.06: Classical Sociological Theory. The
course will involve a close reading of selected classical texts with a view to: a. Grasping thematic
coherences within and between them, and b. Raising questions of what constitutes a classic text
and choosing between options for reading them.
B. Green, Thursdays, 11:30-2:30 a.m., S416 Ross Building, Full Course
(Same as Sociology 6100.06)
Social & Political Thought 6312.03W: Distribution and Growth in an Evolving
Economy. Balanced growth concept and problem of effective demand in socialist and
capitalist economies; acceleration of growth and maximization of consumption in the short and
long run. Kalecki's concept of technical progress: the choice of techniques in order to maximize
production and consumption; problems of inflation in socialism and capitalism.
H. Flakierski, Mondays, 2:30-5:30 p.m., 122 Chemistry & Computer Science Buidling, Half
Course (winter)
(Same as Economics 5380.03)
Social & Political Thought 6314.06: Gender Relations in the Third World. This
course seeks to illuminate the nature of gender relations and the position of women in the Third
World. The aim is to engender useful comparisons between regions while avoiding an
essentializing homogeneous treatment of Third World Women.' Africa provides the primary
empirical focus; Latin America, the Caribbean and South Asia provide comparative perspectives.
(Students are free to write their papers on other Third World regions.) The course relies on
several fertile and controversial realms of theory, research and debate that bear upon Third World
gender relations. First, political theories of precapitalist, colonial and neocolonial states provide a
necessary framework for understanding the transformation of Third World societies in the
contemporary era.
Second, there is a recent tradition of feminist political science, anthropology and history that
provides a rich analysis of the concrete and specific circumstances of gender relations in different
countries and regions. This research amends gender-blind political economy and furnishes the
tools for mainstreaming gender analysis in the study of Third World societies.
Third, the understanding of gender relations and women's position in the Third World is
currently framed by a debate about the existence and nature of intellectual colonialism' within the
global feminist movement.
Oppositional feminisms that have recently arisen in the Third World face hegemonic ideas across
a spectrum of theory and practice, from the sometimes problematic stances of postmodernist
feminist theory, to the culturally specific positions of identity politics, to the prescriptions and
descriptions of Gender and Development' analysis.
P. Stamp, Wednesdays, 2:30-5:30 p.m., 113 Founders College, Full Course
(Same as Women's Studies 6502.06)
Social & Political Thought 6316.03W: Comparative Social and Political Movements:
Latin America, Western Europe, North America. This course provides the basis for a
comparative approach to the study of popular resistance and new social movements. While
roughly half of the readings and discussions will centre on new forms of popular struggle in
Latin America, theoretical and case study materials on protest movements in Western Europe and
North America are included for comparative purposes.
In Latin America, our survey will encompass urban movements and religious base communities
as well as women's movements. Student, green, feminist, and civil rights movements and new
identity' politics are the expressions of popular discontent that we will examine in Western
Europe and North America. While the variety of movements under study is great, all of these
forms share some defining characteristics; they represent non-institutional responses to
oppression. They are not organized by political parties, unions, or the state, although some of
these movements, as we shall see, may be captured' by more institutionalized social and political
forces. Our central objective in this course is to explore the circumstances under which such
collective responses to oppression occur, and the variables that determine their outcomes.
J. Hellman, Thursdays, 4:30-6:30 p.m., 118 Founders College, Half Course (winter)
(Same as Political Science 6561.03)
Social & Political Thought 6600.06: The Critical Theory of The Frankfurt School and
Habermas. This seminar will study the origins, development and present status of the
Frankfurt School of critical theory. Emphasis will be placed on the intrinsic theoretical content of
the major works of critical theorists, although attention will also be paid to the historical
conditions to which these thinkers responded.
A. Horowitz, Thursdays, 9:30-11:30 a.m., 1152 Vari Hall, Full Course
(Same as Philosophy 6430.06 and Political Science 6070.06)
Social & Political Thought 6605.03W: The Philosophy of G.W.F. Hegel: Hegel's
Phenomenology of Spirit. The course provides an intensive reading of Hegel's
Phenomenology of Spirit. The first half of the course will examine the Preface, Introduction, and
the sections on consciousness and Self-Consciousness of Hegel's phenomenological analysis of
the subject's various perspectives on the objective world and then of the self. It wimll then
explicate why neither an objective nor an introspective view of the world is adequate in dealing
with truth, goodness and beauty. Beginning with the question about how one begins philosophy
in the first place without presuming the answer in the very way one begins, the course examines
epistemological and philosophy of science perspectives and then considers an approach to truth,
ethics and aesthetics which starts with the passions rather than scientific understanding. In the
first half of the course, the course director will lecture on each of the sections in turn in a seminar
setting.
The second half of the course will analyze the sections of the Phenomenology dealing with
REASON and SPIRIT. Students will each be assigned a section to analyze in class and lead the
presentation. The analysis will form the basis of the second essay.
H.Adelman, Wednesdays, 6:00-9:00 p.m., S416 Ross Building
(Same as Philosophy 6380.03)
Social & Political Thought 6606.06: Problems in Social and Political Thought: Fanon
and Contemporary Social Thought. This course provides a close reading of the writings of
Frantz Fanon. Our principal aim is to assess Fanon's status as a major thinker of the twentieth
century. This requires, first, examining the formal characteristics and substantive ideas of
Fanon's texts; and, second, relating his work to major intellectual currents such as post-war
Hegelianism and Marxism, Existentialism and psychoanalysis, Negritude and African
philosophy.
Throughout the course attention will be paid to the significance of Fanon's texts for
contemporary debates in social thought regarding issues such as narrative and dialectic;
universalism and particularism; race, class, gender and sexuality; nationalism and the politics of
identity.
A. Sekyi-Otu, Thursdays, 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., S536 Ross Building, Full Course
Social & Political Thought 6610.06: Psychoanalysis and Culture. This course
seeks to provide students with the grounding in psychoanalysis needed for advanced work in
cultural studies. It does so mainly through a close reading of Freud's major works, especially
those which bear directly on the interpretation of culture. Lectures and seminar presentations will
also take up selected commentaries on these works by philosophers, semioticians, literary critics
and others. Emphasis varies from year to year depending on the background and interests of
students.
P.Antze, Tuesdays, 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., S447 Ross Building, Full Course
Social & Political Thought 6611.03F: The Philosophy of Film. This seminar will
centre around the questions: what is the nature of the philosophical interest in movies; what
philosophical problems do movies pose; what philosophical problems do or can movies address?
None of the works to be studied is a work of analytic philosophy, hence an attempt will be made
for the course to be analytic and critical in its approach. This will raise important questions of
method regarding the philosophical study of the arts.
I. Jarvie, Mondays, 11:30 a.m. 2:30 p.m., 003 McLaughlin College, Half Course (fall)
(Same as Philosophy 6030.03)
Social & Political Thought 6614.03: The Theory of Texts. The expansion in
interpretative theory around the notions of intertextuality, writing and reading practices raises
questions involving philosophical, literary and scientific texts. It is necessary to focus one's study
around a major text, Freud's Beyong the Pleasure Principle (1920), and the Marxist,
phenomenological and deconstructionist commentary it has sponsored.
J. O'Neill, TBA, Half Course (summer 1998)
(Same as Philosophy 6610.03 and Sociology 6140.03)
Social & Political Thought 6615.03W: Problems in Contemporary Feminist
Theory. This year the course examines feminism and political economy in the context of
post-modernity, focusing specifically on the theories of globalization and restructuring. It
considers theories of social reproduction, sexual politics and the current neo-liberal economic
agenda. Students interested in taking this course are invited to discuss their interests with the
course director in the early Fall so that specific course readings can reflect student interests.
M. Luxton, Mondays, 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., S177A Ross Building, Half Course (fall)
(Same as Women's Studies 6501.03)
Social & Political Thought 6619.03W: French Feminist Theory. Inscribed on the
margins of contemporary French discourse and its project to interweave Freudian, Marxist and
structuralist discourses, French feminist theory has engaged in border play to interrogate the
phallogocentrism of these discourses, grounded in a logical system in which difference is a
hierarchical relation, in an effort to articulate alternate economies of relational differences. In the
last decade, French feminist theory has transformed North American feminist inquiry, directing it
away from images of women criticism toward the investigation of the practices which construct
women as woman' in discourse and the deontologization of gender. This impact continues to be
felt as more texts are translated each year.
This course will examine some of the major French feminist theorists, situating them within the
context of contemporary French intellectual debates, especially feminist debates. The focus of
our inquiry will be issues of representation and subjectivity in relation both to their philosophical
and psychoanalytical theorizations and to their implication in feminist poetics. This entails an
engagement with (de)construction of the (female) subject and will circle around the rewriting of
Freud and Lacan. According to student interest, discussion may extend to a consideration of the
impact of French feminism in Quebec.
B. Godard, Wednesdays, 11:30 a.m. 2:30 p.m., 221 Stong College, Half Course (winter)
(Same as English 6970B.03 and Women's Studies 6100.03)
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Contents.
Under normal circumstances students in full-time study should be able to complete all
requirements for the M.A. within one year of entering the Programme. In any case all M.A.
work must be completed within two years.
The sequence for the satisfactory completion of M.A. requirements is as follows:
1. The equivalent of three full graduate courses, of which: (a) at least one must be a
formal SPT course; and (b) only one course may be a reading course (Social & Political
Thought 6001.06 or 6001.03)
2. SPT 5000.00: The Major Research Paper (see section VII); and,
3. An oral examination.
The M.A. Oral
After completing the course requirements the Candidate is examined on three major
works in social and political thought. The selected titles must be chosen in consultation with the
student's advisor or the Director. The M.A. oral examining committee consists of three members
of the Programme. The student's advisor will normally act as Chair of the exam. The remaining
two members of the committee are chosen by the student in consultation with his/her advisor and
the approval of the Director. Please note that:
1. Arrangements with respect to time, place, and date of the oral exam must be made through the
Programme Office at least three weeks prior to the exam.
2. M.A. oral exams will not be scheduled during the month of September.
The length of the exam will normally not exceed two hours.
The Transition to the Ph.D.
M.A. students who are continuing to the Ph.D. level must complete their three courses, their
Major Research Paper and the M.A. oral exam by the end of the academic year if they are to be
accorded Ph.D. status. Students who have not completed these requirements on time, that is by
registration in September, will have to register as M.A. students. (Exceptions can be made if all
course work and the Major Research Paper are completed and only the oral exam remains.)
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Contents.
The sequence for the satisfactory completion of Ph.D. requirements is as follows:
1. The equivalent of four full graduate courses, of which: (a) at least two must be formal SPT
courses; (b) only one per year may be a reading course (Social & Political Thought 6001.06
or 6001.03).
2. SPT 6900.00: Ph.D. Major Research Paper (see section VII)
3. A Comprehensive Oral Examination (see section IX)
4. A Dissertation Proposal (see section X)
5. The Dissertation
A suitable interdisciplinary dissertation accepted by the Candidate's supervisory
committee and defended successfully before a dissertation examination committee.
Dissertations should adhere to the format set forth in the "Guidelines for the
Preparation and Examination of Theses and Dissertations" published by the Faculty of Graduate
Studies. Copies are available in the SPT office.
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Contents.
As agreed to in the CUPE 3903 contract: "Upon request by any full or part-time York
graduate student who is a member of the bargaining unit or who has been a member of the
bargaining unit and who submits her Master's thesis/Ph.D. dissertation for defence or, where
permitted by her graduate programme, submits a Major Research Paper instead of a Master's
thesis, the Employer shall grant such an individual up to $200 towards the cost of the final form
of her Major Research paper or up to $300 towards the cost of production of the final form of her
Master's Thesis, and, where applicable, up to $400 towards the cost of production of the final
form of her Doctoral dissertation, on receipt of an invoice substantiating costs incurred."
"The Employer also agrees, upon receipt of appropriate invoices, to reimburse the employee the
cost of the final form of Major Research Papers submitted in fulfilment of Graduate Programme
requirements for the Ph.D. degree, up to a total of $200 per individual. ( For exaample, the
Ph.D. I Major Research Paper in Social & Political Thought or its equivalent.)"
Application forms for Major Research Paper reimbursements are available in S714A Ross
Building.
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Contents.
1. The M.A. and Ph.D. Major Research Papers, although done in conjunction with courses,
are intended to represent a superior and more extensive level of work. Major Research Papers
should be a significantly more demanding exercise than ordinary term papers and will be
evaluated accordingly.
2. All M.A. and Ph.D. Major Research Papers must be designated as such by the student.
3. The M.A. Major Research Paper is designated as SPT 5000.00, the Ph.D. Major Research
Paper is designated as SPT 6900.00.
4. One (admittedly imperfect) indication of the distinction between Major Research Papers and
term papers is the decision of the Executive Committee (25 May 1976) that term papers would
normally be no longer than 25 pages whereas Major Research Papers could be as long as 50
pages.
5. Major Research Papers may, with the approval of the instructors concerned, be extensions
and adaptations of term papers . One long paper cannot be accepted as both a course paper
and a Major Research Paper.
6. The course work grade is to be determined independently of the evaluation of the Major
Research paper and vice versa.
7. Two readers are required for evaluating Major Research Papers: a course director and another
faculty member. The readers should submit written reports to the SPT office on the appropriate
forms. These will be sent to the readers once the MRP has been completed. The student is
responsible for informing the Programme office as to the title and which two faculty members
will be reading their MRP.
8. One copy of the Major Research Paper must be delivered to the SPT office, in a durable
binder. M.A. orals and Ph.D. comprehensives can be arranged only after the Director has
received this copy and the reports of both MRP readers. Students should note that exams may be
scheduled only after all course requirements have been completed.
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Contents.
1. Grades for fall term half courses must be reported to the Programme office no later than
15 January.
2. Grades for winter-term half courses or for full courses must be reported to the Programme
office no later than 15 May.
3. Grades for summer-term half courses or for full courses must be reported to the Programme
office no later than 15 September.
4. Students may carry at most two full incompletes or one full and two half course incompletes.
5. In order to obtain an incomplete a student must obtain written permission from the instructor
by 1 December for fall term half courses; 1 April for winter term half courses and full courses; 1
August for summer-term half courses and full courses.
6. The Dean's office treats Incompletes as extensions. Faculty of Graduate Studies' regulations
require that, in the event of an extension, a final grade be received within two months after the
deadline for half courses and four months after the deadline for full courses.
fall half courses 15 March
winter half courses 15 July
summer half courses 15 November
full courses (fall/winter) 15 September
full courses (summer) 15 January
After these dates, you will receive an "F" unless you can make a solid case, supported
by the Course Director, to the Associate Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies on medical or
similar grounds for what is in effect a second extension. These are no longer being given
liberally. We are reluctant to lose good students for administrative reasons, but it is important
that you organise your time and work to allow for all reasonable contingencies.
7. Any instructor has the right to establish an earlier deadline for final submission of work. This
deadline may not be before 15 December (for fall term half courses) or 1 May (for half winter
term courses or full fall/winter courses) or 1 September for half or full summer courses). An
instructor whose final deadline for submission of work is earlier than those set out in 1, 2, and 3,
must clearly communicate this fact to students at the beginning of the course.
8. No instructor may establish deadlines that are later than those adopted by the Faculty of
Graduate Studies.
9. You should also be prepared to find any course you enrol in and later drop listed on your
transcript showing a "W." You have until 1 November to withdraw from a newly
enrolled fall term half course or full course and until 15 February to withdraw from a winter half
course without the "W" appearing on your subsequent transcripts. Any course dropped after
those dates (but before the final deadlines for dropped courses) will show a "W" on your records.
Students may petition the Executive Committee, through the Director, to have their final
deadlines extended subject to the following strictures:
1. It must be understood that petitions to extend deadlines should come in response to
exceptional (and unpredictable) circumstances and ought not to be treated by students and faculty
members as normal operating procedure.
2. Petitions from students must be accompanied by the written support of the instructor in whose
course the extension is sought.
3. Petitions for extension must be submitted prior to the deadlines set out in VIII, item 6. No
petitions submitted after the deadlines will be considered.
4. The petition must contain both a plausible rationale for an extension and a precise indication
as to the work left to be done and the time necessary for its completion. Petitions for open-ended
extensions will not be granted. Petitions for extensions should be exceptional. Problems with
written work should be discussed with instructors and faculty advisors from the beginning in
order to assure that insurmountable problems do not emerge at the last minute.
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Contents.
1. The purpose of the comprehensive examination is two-fold:
a. to provide an adequate background and intelligible context for the writing of an
interdisciplinary dissertation;
b. to ensure sufficient breadth of scholarly knowledge to prepare the Candidate
for a career in university research and teaching.
2. Candidates shall decide, in consultation with their examining committee, on two
fields on which they wish to be examined. One field will be designated the major field, the
other the minor field.
Determination of the fields should be guided by the following considerations:
a. fields must not be excessively narrow
b. one field must not subsume another
c. both fields may not be primarily in the same discipline
d. at least one field must not be limited primarily to the twentieth century.
Examples of acceptable fields would be:
Twentieth Century Marxism
Political Thought of the Enlightenment
Political Philosophy of the Middle Ages
Critical Theory
Theory and Practice of Counter-Revolution
Hegel and the Hegelians
Existentialism and Politics
Nineteenth Century Political Thought
Political Economy of Capitalism
etc..
3. No Candidate is expected to have total mastery of any field. What is expected is that
Candidate should demonstrate a broad familiarity with the major texts, issues and
critics in any given field.
4. Candidate will demonstrate competence in their chosen fields in a
colloquium with three members of the Programme who are familiar with the student's
work and/or who anticipate being on the student's dissertation supervisory committee, and a
representative nominated by the Director. The Chair of the examining committee will normally
be the student's dissertation supervisor.
5. Prior to the colloquium, Candidates will present a bibliography of the texts
relevant to the chosen fields. It is suggested that the student include a minimum of (and not much
more than) twenty-five significant entries in the major field and a minimum of (and not much
more than) fifteen entries dealing with the minor field. The examination will focus attention on
the material listed in the bibliography. The bibliography must be approved by the examining
committee well before the examination. Candidates are advised to consult with
their examining committee in the preparation of the bibliography.
6. Arrangements with respect to time, place, date and composition of the examining committee
must be made through the Programme office for the Director's approval at least one month prior
to the examination.
7. The examination normally should not go beyond two hours.
8. A report on the results of the examination is submitted to the Director by the Chair.
9. Failure to demonstrate competence will result in the scheduling of another examination.
Back to Table of
Contents.
a. Upon successful completion of Ph.D. II, and no later than by the end of Ph.D. III, the
student should have requested and obtained the agreement of a faculty member to be his/her
dissertation supervisor.
b. After the successful completion of the comprehensive requirement the student will consult
with his/her supervisor and prepare a dissertation proposal which must be written to the
supervisor's satisfaction. The student will then consult with his/her supervisor and the Director
concerning the choice of two additional members from SPT for his/her supervisory
committee. Once the full supervisory committee has been proposed, its members must
indicate in writing, on the appropriate forms, that they have read and that they approve the
proposal in its present form. The dissertation proposal may then be submitted to the Advisory
Committee.
c. The dissertation proposal must be submitted to the Advisory Committee at least six
months prior to the Ph.D. oral defense.
d. The Advisory Committee will review the dissertation proposal with particular attention to the
following matters: 1) intelligibility and general intellectual coherence of the proposed work; 2)
scope of the work or its appropriateness as a dissertation; 3) interdisciplinary nature of the work;
4) composition of the proposed supervisory committee in light of the topic. (see the appropriate
section.) The Advisory Committee meets twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall.
e. Guidelines for the Dissertation Proposal*
In no more than 2500 words the proposal should outline:
1. the topic of the proposed research and its interdisciplinary nature;
2. its relation to the traditions of social and political thought out of which it arises;
3. the languages other than English, if any, which are needed to complete the dissertation
satisfactorily;
4. the travel, if any, needed to pursue the research;
5. the approximate length of time required to complete the dissertation;
6. a basic bibliography set out formally;
7. a chapter outline indicating the themes and substantive issues to be studied. Generally a few
sentences or a paragraph will suffice for each chapter;
8. a set of up to five keywords identifying the topic for the Graduate Faculty dissertation
database.
Students should be reminded that a dissertation proposal is just that, a proposal. The finished
product, definitve argument, well-rounded conclusions,etc. are not expected in a proposal
(they are absolutely necessary in the dissertation!). What the proposal should indicate in a
general and concise manner are the claims, themes, controversies, hypotheses, arguments,
directions, etc., that the student plans to take up in the course of his/her research and
writing.
Due to time and costs, students will have to take responsibility for photocopying proposals of
more than 2500 words for members of the Advisory Committee.
f. The Candidate and the Candidate's supervisor are urged to attend the session at
which the Advisory Committee formally considers the dissertation proposal. However, their
attendance is not required.
g. The Director will inform the Candidate and supervisor of the Advisory Committee's
decision:
unqualified approval; qualified approval with proposed revisions; request for reformulation.
*Some examples of well-prepared dissertation proposals are available for viewing in the
Programme Office.
Note: To guarantee that approved proposals which involve research expenditures be carried to
completion students and their Committees should be aware that research and related funding is
limited.
Back to Table of
Contents.
a. The Advisory Committee will consider the composition of the dissertation committee in
relation to the dissertation proposal with a view to ensuring disciplinary diversity and critical
breadth. Its queries and comments, if any, will be directed first to the student and supervisor, but
in case of serious doubt or disagreement the committee shall make a report to the Executive
Committee.
b. Within six months of the beginning of the writing of the dissertation, the student and
supervisor will agree on the timing of a meeting of the dissertation committee. This
will serve the function of permitting the dissertation committee to assess the direction of the
dissertation in the course of writing.
c. The Director will consult with the supervisor concerning recommendations to the Dean for the
appointment of outside examiners for the dissertation committee.
Back to Table of
Contents.
Ph.D. students approaching completion of their dissertations should acquaint themselves
with the procedures outlined in the Faculty of Graduate Studies' Calendar under the
heading, "Conduct of the Oral Examination." In order to assist external examiners and Dean's
representatives to direct questions more appropriately, the Dean has asked that Ph.D.
Candidates provide examining committee members with a copy of their c.v. This
should be sent along with the copy of the dissertation prior to the oral. In addition,
Candidates must submit a separate copy of the dissertation abstract together with up to
five topic keywords to the Faculty of Graduate Studies for use in their dissertation database.
Back to Table of
Contents.
To this year's Recruitment Brochure.
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last updated: May 16, 1998
