Department of Political Science

Wagner, Rachel

Dissertation:

Mere Flesh? The Psychic Consequences of the Human Body and the Politics of Pursuit and Preservation

Biography

Rachel is a Ph.D. candidate studying the psychic consequences of the human body in the thought of Thucydides, Thomas Hobbes, and Sigmund Freud. Over the past four years, she has been a teaching assistant across UofT’s three campuses, helped to organize the Political Theory Research Workshop, and served as the Political Theory Subfield Student Representative. In the summer of 2024, she will co-teach POL402: ‘What’s Love Got To Do With It? Eros and Citizenship.’

Originally from Delaware, Rachel completed her undergraduate education at Christopher Newport University, where she majored in American Studies and Interdisciplinary Studies, with minors in Greek Studies and Leadership Studies. She was also a participant in the President’s Leadership Program and a junior fellow at CNU’s Center for American Studies.

Publications

“Private Bodies, Public Lives: Learning from and Leading Through the Outbreak Narrative.” In Exploring Personhood in Contemporary Times: From Leadership to Philosophy. Edited by Lemuel W. Watson. Charlotte, North Carolina: Information Age Publishing, 2023.

Research Interests

history of political thought, leadership studies, psychoanalysis

Previous Degrees

MA in Political Science, University of Toronto
BA in American Studies and Interdisciplinary Studies, Christopher Newport University

Teaching Experience

Course Instructor:
POL402: What’s Love Got To Do With It? Eros and Citizenship, Summer 2024, University of Toronto

Teaching Assistantships:
Political Theory: Visions of the Just/Good Society, 2023-2024, University of Toronto
Might and Right: Power and Justice in International Relations, 2023, University of Toronto
Introduction to Political Theory, 2022-2023, University of Toronto – Mississauga
Introduction to Political Theory, Summer 2022, University of Toronto – Mississauga
Law, Justice, and Rights, Summer 2022, University of Toronto – Scarborough
Senior Major Research Paper, 2021-2022, University of Toronto – Mississauga
Political Theory: Visions of the Just/Good Society, 2021-2022, University of Toronto
Political Theory: Visions of the Just/Good Society, 2020-2021, University of Toronto