Master of Arts Integrated Studies (MAIS) 662

Overview

Loss is an integral element of life itself. All of us have loved and lost, and have been required, in some fashion, to mourn those lost loves. Thus students will come to this course with an already existing existential background of loss upon which to draw. In this course we will critically examine that existential background of loss in relation to key debates in theory and culture on mourning and trauma.

There has been a vigorous debate within cultural studies literature over the status of mourning and trauma in contemporary society. The debate surrounds our understanding of loss. If loss is ontological, in the sense that absence and lack are fundamental to existence itself, then how do we make sense of this ontological loss in relation to the particular losses of individuals in their lives? And if loss is often experienced as trauma, how do we understand the subject’s relationship to traumatic loss? What is the connection between an ontological demand for mourning traumatic loss and a process of mourning tied to particular traumatic life events?

Course Objectives

This course provides students with the opportunity to

1. develop a critical understanding of concepts and debates in mourning and trauma theory
2. understand the relations between structural and historical approaches to mourning and trauma
3. recognize individual and collective experiences of loss and trauma as historically and contextually located

Student Evaluation

To receive credit for this course, students must participate in the online activities, successfully complete the assignments, and achieve a final mark of at least 60 per cent. Students should be familiar with the Master of Arts—Integrated Studies grading system. Please note that it is students' responsibility to maintain their program status. Any student who receives a grade of "F" in one course, or a grade of "C" in more than one course, may be required to withdraw from the program.

The following table summarizes the evaluation activities and the credit weights associated with them.