The add/drop deadline is coming up soon for the 2024/25 Winter Session! From fashion, food and culture in Italy, to explorations of queer Asian texts, medical imaging, conspiracy theories, and writing about disability, here are some of the exciting new courses being offered for the first time ever in the Faculty of Arts.
Term 1
Italian Fashion Cultures: Introduction to Romance Cultures (RMST_V 100)
Unravel the story of Italian fashion’s post-WWII global influence and explore how it shapes identities, from the streets of Milan, Florence, and Rome to the world stage, while examining themes like cultural appropriation, decoloniality, and sustainability.
Taught by Gaoheng Zhang
Learning Yiddish: Foundations I (YDSH_V 101)
Dive into Yiddish at UBC with flexible, 3-credit courses that blends language basics with music, film, and literature.
Taught by TBD
Writing and Communication Foundations (WRDS_V 200)
Explore how memes, TikToks, and podcasts shape knowledge, identities, and power—no heavy writing required, just discussion and collaboration!
Taught by Louis Maraj
Capital and Commentary: Contexts (CENS_V 201)
Dive into Marx’s Capital—a book everyone knows but few have read. Discover Marx’s bold ideas on class, colonialism, and crises, all while rethinking and connecting his ideas to the modern world.
Taught by Thomas Kemple
Buddhist Narrative in South Asia (ASIX_V 300-E)
Travel back to sixth-century India to learn about the Buddha’s life and teachings through the rich lens of South Asian narrative literature and art.
Taught by Janet Um
Sufi and Bhakti Devotional Literatures (ASIA_V 336)
Explore gender and sexuality through pre-modern queer Asian texts and modern creative works, bridging past insights with future possibilities.
Taught by Sunil Kumar Bhatt
Korean History Through Film (ASIA_V 366-E)
Discover Korean history by analyzing cultural influences, focusing on how gender, class, and nationhood interact with and shape historical narratives.
Taught by Ji-yoon An
Writing Disability (WRDS_V 390)
Discover how writing is being used by disabled folks to challenge ableist practices of knowledge making both inside and outside of academic communities.
Pre-requisites: Third year standing and 3 credits from one of WRDS 150, WRDS 350, ENGL 100, SCIE 113, SCIE 300, CHEM 300, APSC 176, LFS 150, FRST 150, COMM 196, Arts One, ASTU 100, ASTU 101.
Taught by Laila Ferreira
Exploring Imaging in the Twenty-First Century (RADS_V 301)
Uncover the world of medical imaging in Exploring Imaging in the Twenty-First Century, the first Canadian course for non-medical students to examine medical imaging’s fields, technology, and impact.
Taught by Jonathon Leipsic and Savvakis Nicolaou
Term 2
Gender & Sexuality in Central, Eastern, and Northern European Literature and Culture (CENS_V 202-201)
Explore how literature and culture from the 19th and early 20th centuries shaped and were shaped by discourses on gender and sexuality, with a focus on European texts and political movements.
Taught by Elizabeth Nijdam
In the Shadows of War: Slavic Cultural Landscapes (SLAV_V 307-A)
Examine how modern Slavic conflicts mix war and peace through engaging prose, poetry, film, and song in English translation.
Taught by Olena Morozova
Italian Food Culture (RMST_V 350-B)
Savour Italy’s rich food culture and explore how Italian cuisine reflects social issues like regionalism and immigration through films and literature. No Italian needed—just a love for food and culture!
Taught by Gaoheng Zhang
Research Writing and Marginalization (WRDS_V 370)
Examine how research writing reflects biases related to race, sexuality, and ability, focusing on Indigenous and trans/gender-diverse perspectives. Discover how these perspectives challenge traditional research norms and contribute to more inclusive practices.
Prerequisite: Third year standing and 3 credits from one of WRDS 150, WRDS 350, ENGL 100, SCIE 113, SCIE 300, CHEM 300, APSC 176, LFS 150, FRST 150, COMM 196, Arts One, ASTU 100, ASTU 101.
Taught by Mary Ann Saunders
Capital and Commentary: Critiques (GMST_V 420-A)
Challenge conventional views on Marxism and socialism by exploring how Marx’s Capital has been critiqued and reinterpreted across disciplines since the late 19th century.
Taught by Thomas Kemple
Drugs, Dams and Aliens: Engineering Dreams and Cosmic Conspiracies (GMST_V 424)
Investigate the outlandish conspiracy theories and ambitious projects of the early 20th century, and see how they connect to broader totalitarian ideologies.
Taught by Geoffrey Winthrop-Young
