Note: This is the 2023–2024 eCalendar. Update the year in your browser's URL bar for the most recent version of this page, or .
Program Requirements
The Cultural Studies option concentrates on analysis of forms of cultural expression and symbolic interaction, and of the various media through which these may be disseminated and transformed. Such study concerns symbolic form, aesthetically based forms of analysis, and the various modes of criticism and theory relevant to media which contain both verbal and non-verbal elements. The aim is above all to hone students' analytical and interpretive skills while introducing them to specific critical approaches to cultural studies. This is not a major in journalism or communications; and while many of our graduates go on to do creative work in a variety of media, instruction in film and video production is not part of the curriculum.
For the most up-to-date information on Department requirements and detailed course descriptions, please see the English Department Handbook at .
Required Courses (9 credits)
These courses should be taken in the first two terms of the program.
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ENGL 275 Introduction to Cultural Studies (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : A survey of cultural studies, its history and subject matter, presenting key interpretive and analytic concepts, the aesthetic and political issues involved in the construction of sign systems, definitions of culture and cultural values conceptualized both as a way of life and as a set of actual practices and products.
Terms: Fall 2023
Instructors: So, Richard; Marceau, Cath; Ningthoujam, Sainico (Fall)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
Required of all U1 Cultural Studies students
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ENGL 277 Introduction to Film Studies (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : An introduction to key concepts in film studies. Exemplary works from the history of film will be studied to introduce students to such topics as the aesthetics of film; sound's production of meaning; film as narrative; film and genre; period and national cinemas; film's role in culture.
Terms: Fall 2023
Instructors: Nystrom, Derek; Pintiuta, Iris; Pickett, Ariel (Fall)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
Restriction: Cultural Studies Major and Honours program students.
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ENGL 359 The Poetics of the Image (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : This course examines contemporary debates about the aesthetic dimensions as well as social roles of pictorial, theatrical, cinematic, and other representations, the meanings, effects, and aesthetic significance of which depend on their having visually recognizable features.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: Osterweil, Ara; Switzer, Megan (Winter)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Winter
Restriction: Limited to students in the English Major Concentration, Cultural Studies Option
Complementary Courses (27 credits)
27 credits selected as described below.
Note on Topics Courses: The Department of English offers courses which change topic from academic year to academic year. Depending on the topic in a specific year, these courses may count toward different program requirements. At the time they register for a topics course, students should confirm with their program adviser the program requirement it fulfils for that academic year.
Major Figures
3 credits from a list of courses on Major Figures in Cultural Studies:
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ENGL 315 Shakespeare (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : A study of the major works of Shakespeare.
Terms: Fall 2023
Instructors: Folkerth, Wes; Trotter, Marie (Fall)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
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ENGL 381 A Film-Maker 1 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Studies in the history of film: the works of a major director. Topic varies each year.
Terms: Fall 2023
Instructors: Stenbaek, Marianne A (Fall)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Winter
Restriction: Limited to students in English Major programs
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ENGL 418 A Major Modernist Writer (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Intensive study of a writer important for Modernism, such as James Joyce, T.S. Eliot, Ezra Pound, Gertrude Stein.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: Hepburn, Allan (Winter)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
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ENGL 444 Studies in Women Authors (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Study of a particular topic related to literary, dramatic, or cultural productions by female-identified authors.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date topics of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Topics vary year to year.
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ENGL 481 A Film-Maker 2 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Studies in the history of film.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: Nystrom, Derek (Winter)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
Restriction: Permission of instructor required
Canadian Component
3 credits from a list of courses in Cultural Studies with a Canadian component:
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ENGL 393 Canadian Cinema (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : A study of Canadian cinema.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: Van Schaik, Kasia (Winter)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
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ENGL 440 First Nations and Inuit Literature and Media (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : An introduction to Inuit and First Nations literature and media in Canada, including oral literature and the development of aboriginal television and film.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: Stenbaek, Marianne A (Winter)
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ENGL 441 Special Topics in Canadian Cultural Studies (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Advanced study of a specific area of Canadian culture or Canadian cultural theory.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: Thain, Alanna Michael (Winter)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Theory or Criticism
3 credits from a list of courses on Theory or Criticism:
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ENGL 317 Theory of English Studies 1 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Philosophical approaches.
Terms: Fall 2023
Instructors: Yachnin, Paul (Fall)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
Restriction: Limited to students in English Major and Honours Programs
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ENGL 318 Theory of English Studies 2 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Socio-Historical approaches.
Terms: Fall 2023
Instructors: Hensley, David C (Fall)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
Restriction: Limited to students in English Major and Honours Programs
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ENGL 319 Theory of English Studies 3 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Cultural theory now.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: So, Richard (Winter)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Winter
Restriction: Limited to students in English Major and Honours Programs
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ENGL 322 Theories of the Text (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : A course focusing on textuality (as opposed to, say, intentionality and interpretation) and on how specific effects are made - how texts work and produce meaning, including rhetoric and form.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: Hickman, Miranda Brun (Winter)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
Restriction: Limited to students in English Major and Honours Programs.
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ENGL 346 Materiality and Sociology of Text (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Writing, printing, distribution, marketing, and placement within canon-making institutions; the influence of material forms of production and transmission on the creation and reception of literature, film, and theatre.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: Greenwood, Steven (Winter)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Winter
Restriction: Limited to students in English Major and Honours Programs.
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ENGL 352 Theories of Difference (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Introduction to a selection of theories that have influenced thinking about difference across the humanities and social sciences, including gender, sexuality, race, class and hierarchical structures, language, religion, ethnicity, and personal identity.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
Restriction: Limited to students in English Major and Honours Programs.
400-Level Theory
3 credits from a list of 400-level courses in Cultural Studies with a theoretical component.
Historical Dimension
6 credits from a list of courses in Cultural Studies with an historical dimension:
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ENGL 350 Studies in the History of Film 1 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Developments in proto-cinema and early cinema through the silent era.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
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ENGL 351 Studies in the History of Film 2 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Developments in the Hollywood Studio Era, including rivals, imitators, and alternatives.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Winter
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ENGL 363 Studies in the History of Film 3 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Developments in post-1958 cinema, from the European New Waves to contemporary global and independent cinemas.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
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ENGL 374 Film Movement or Period (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Study of a significant movement or period in film history.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
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ENGL 451 A Period in Cinema (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : In-depth examination of a significant historical period in cinema's development, early silent era to present.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
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ENGL 480 Studies in History of Film 1 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Studies in the history of film.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
Additional Cultural Studies
9 additional credits from the option's offerings which includes all the courses specifically listed in the Cultural Studies categories above and the courses listed below. Any ENGL course not on these Cultural Studies lists, such as courses in Literature, may not count toward the Major Concentration English - Cultural Studies.
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ENGL 280 Introduction to Film as Mass Medium (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : An introduction to film's social, historical, and technological contexts, including its relationships to other mass media.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Students will be required to pay a screening fee.
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ENGL 354 Sexuality and Representation (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Topics on representations of sexuality with reference to its cultural contexts.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
Priority will be given to English Major/Honours students in second year of program
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ENGL 366 Film Genre (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : A discussion of an individual genre of cinema; concept of genre.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: Nystrom, Derek; Pickett, Ariel (Winter)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Winter
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ENGL 378 Media and Culture (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : An introduction to the study of television and its distinctive aesthetic, generic, and discursive features.
Terms: Fall 2023
Instructors: Stenbaek, Marianne A (Fall)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
Prerequisite: ENGL 275
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ENGL 379 Film Theory (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Topics in film studies. Topic varies by year.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
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ENGL 380 Non-Fiction Media: Cinema, Television, Radio (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Historical, formal, and thematic analysis of non-fictional and documentary works within cinema, television, and radio.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: Ponech, Trevor (Winter)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
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ENGL 382 International Cinema 1 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Studies in the history of film by period or nation. Topic varies by year.
Terms: Summer 2024
Instructors: Nystrom, Derek (Summer)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Amount: $ 3,443.00
Description: The fee for this field course is $3,443.00. The fee for this activity covers ground transportation, academic materials, accommodation, and other field related expenses. The Summer Studies in Italy courses will be taught at La Sapienza by McGill professors. Local faculty will be invited to give guest lectures, and weekly interactive workshop/activities will take place, allowing students to engage with local communities and institutions.
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ENGL 383 Studies in Communications 1 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Studies in the relationships between the media and culture.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Winter
Restriction: Permission of instructor required
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ENGL 385 Topics in Literature and Film (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : A topic in literature and film. Topics vary by year.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: Kopley, Emily (Winter)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Winter
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ENGL 388 Studies in Popular Culture (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : History and development of important forms of popular culture. Topics may include traditional ballads; fairs; carnivals and popular festivity; material culture; popular fiction; mainstream television.
Terms: Winter 2024
Instructors: Plamadeala, Cristina (Winter)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Winter
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ENGL 389 Studies in Popular Culture (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : History and development of important forms of popular culture.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Winter
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ENGL 390 Political and Cultural Theory (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : The intersection between theories of culture and theories of society.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
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ENGL 391 Special Topics: Cultural Studies 1 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Current issues in cultural studies. Topics will include contemporary debates on high culture and the literary canon, and the question of aesthetic value and aesthetic judgment.
Terms: Winter 2024, Summer 2024
Instructors: Cooke, Nathalie M (Winter) Greenwood, Steven (Summer)
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
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ENGL 395 Cultural and Theatre Studies (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : The relationships between theatre and forms of popular culture, including but not limited to cinematic and televisual adaptations of theatrical works.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Prerequisite: ENGL 275
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ENGL 476 Alternative Approaches to Media 1 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Study of alternative uses of contemporary media with particular emphasis on the forms of independent video and community television and their relationship to mainstream television and film.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Fall
Workshop course. Departmental permission required
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ENGL 482 International Cinema 2 (3 credits)
Overview
English (Arts) : Intensive study of a particular tradition or movement in international cinema.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2023-2024 academic year.
For the most detailed and up-to-date descriptions of course and seminar offerings please see the Department of English website at .
Other Departments
Students are normally permitted to count 6 credits from other departments toward their English programs. In exceptional circumstances, an adviser who is approached by a student with strong academic grounds for including a third such course may grant permission (to a maximum of 9 extra-departmental credits) and must so indicate in advance by signing the departmental program audit sheet.
Bachelor of Arts & Science—2023-2024 (last updated Sep. 12, 2023) (disclaimer)
