Course Catalogue

Gender and Nationalism SOCIO4134

  • Academic Session: 2026-27
  • School: School of Social and Political Sciences
  • Credits: 20
  • Level: Level 4 (SCQF level 10)
  • Typically Offered: Either Semester 1 or Semester 2
  • Available to Visiting Students: Yes
  • Collaborative Online International Learning: No
  • Curriculum For Life: No

Short Description

The course tackles a highly topical issue - nationalism and its relationship to gender - enabling students to critically engage with current public debates on the global surge of right-wing populist forces and, more specifically, with recent gendered developments in anti-immigration politics in European societies. The course engages with feminist theories of nationalism, which have conceptualized the ways in which women are mobilized by nationalist movements as well as the relationship between feminisms and nationalisms across different contexts including Europe, the Americas and Asia.

Timetable

10 x 2-hour sessions

Requirements of Entry

In order to take this course, students need to have met the requirements for entry into the Sociology Honours Programme. This means achieving a grade of 'D' or better in Sociology 1A and 1B and a 'C' or better in Sociology 2A and 2B. Students also have to comply with the College of Social Science regulations for progression to Honours.

Excluded Courses

None

Co-requisites

None

Assessment

4,000-word essay as summative assessment (100%).

Course Aims

The specific aims of this course are to prepare the students for further study and research in the field of sociology, with particular reference to gender and sexuality, masculinities/femininities, nationalism and ethnicity. The course will engage with historical studies as well as with materials focusing on different contexts such as Latin America, Australia and Asia. The students will be encouraged to explore the relevance of sociological knowledge of gender, nationalism and ethnicity to social policy and to non-academic contexts.

Intended Learning Outcomes of Course

By the end of this course students will be able to:

 

■ Identify and evaluate key concepts and debates relating to the sociological analysis of gender and nationalism and its development since the 1990s;

■ Conceptualize the relationship between gender relations and nationalist mobilizations, by drawing on theoretical and empirical research;

■ Critically analyze how nationalist discourses and practices are gendered and sexualized across different geographical and historical contexts;

■ Demonstrate an awareness of methodological, ethical and political issues associated with sociological research in the field of gender and nationalism;

■ Assess arguments about the gendered nature of current public and political debates on nationalism, populism and multiculturalism.

Minimum Requirement for Award of Credits

No exceptions