Shadia Drury - Education and Academic Interests

Education and Academic Interests

Drury was educated at Queen's University (BA Hons, MA), in Kingston, Ontario, and York University (Ph.D., Political Science, 1978) in Toronto, Ontario. Her doctoral thesis was entitled The Concept of Natural Law.

Drury has taught Political Science and Philosophy at two western Canadian universities: first at the University of Calgary and now at the University of Regina, where she holds the Canada Research Chair in Social Justice. Her objective in the position is to undertake an extensive publishing program, which includes books on St. Thomas Aquinas's theory of justice and its relation to the current Darwinian trends, a critique of the rise of populism in Canada, an analysis of the liberal and conservative approaches to tradition (Tradition and Taboo), and a book on the relationship between Western liberalism and the growth of radical feminism.

Drury has stated her aim as an interdisciplinary social scientist is to temper enthusiasm for social ideals and values that are taken too seriously and which thus threaten moderation and justice.Empty citation‎ (help) In her opinion, when society starts to believe that its ideals and values are "worthy of every sacrifice, every hardship and every abomination", moderation and justice are threatened.Empty citation‎ (help) Accordingly, much of her writing is aimed at a debunking of, or an attempt at critique of, extreme political views, as she sees them.