Culture and Society from Ancient Times until 1600

Aim

On completion of the course, the student should have acquired - knowledge of the development of western culture and its interactive relation to the surrounding world during the period up to the year 1600, - ability to analyse cultural and social phenomena and processes during the period up to the year 1600, - ability to analyse, interpret and evaluate fictional texts, images, objects of art and buildings in their historical and aesthetic context, - understanding of what a critical and analytical approach means, and be able to apply this on interpretations and explanations relevant to the period up to the year 1600, - understanding of how choices of perspective based on class, gender and diversity, influence our understanding of an era.

Content

Philosophy, 3.5 HE credits: This module provides an overview of the history of philosophy from the Classical Antiquity until the renaissance. The Greek period is studied more extensively than the later periods. The studies do not focus only on moral-philosophical problems but also their background in conception of the world. History, 6 HE credits: This module contains a general study of events and social progress in a global perspective from prehistoric times until the 16th century. The fundamental features of the history of the Nordic countries from their earliest period are covered with an emphasis on the development in Sweden. Art History and Visual Communication, 6 HE credits: This module covers aspects of the earliest cultural manifestations in the West. Images, objects of art and buildings from the antique state formation around the Mediterranean and in the Europe of the Middle Ages and the renaissance are studied and analysed more extensively. Literature, 4.5 HE credits: This module examines the concepts of history of literature and the literary canon, and provides an overview of the most important periods, movements, theories and genres in the western history of literature from its earliest times until 1600.