Västerlandets kultur- och idéhistoria

History of Western Civilization in a Christian Perspective

Förkunskapskrav

Innehåll

The course has three parts:

Part 1. The cultural history of Ancient Near East and European Middle Ages
This part of the course provides a foundational survey of the cultures and ideas of the Ancient Near East and the Early and High Middles in Europe until AD 1300. The Classical Greek and Roman Civilizations and the Medieval Christian civilization of Europe are the major emphasis of this survey. The survey holds a discussion about the relationship between these cultures and other cultures of the world in their day. There is also an introduction to the analysis of historical sources.

Part 2. The cultural history of Early Modern Europe: the Renaissance, Mannerism, the Baroque, and the Enlightenment.
This part of the course provides a basic orientation in the history of culture and ideas of Early Modern Europe, its cultural epochs and their theological and philosophical background, from the 15th century until the later part of the 18th century. The different styles of art, architecture, music and literature and their background in philosophy, politics, social and economic conditions are discussed and analyzed. Center of this part of the course is European thought but there is also a discussion about the relationship to cultures in other parts of the world. Source texts exemplifying different cultural trends are read and analyzed.

Part 3. The cultural history of the Late Modern Europe until present.
The third part of the course holds a survey of the history of culture and ídeas of the Western world in a global context in the 19^th and 20^th centuries. The following cultural epochs are covered: Romanticism, Realism, Modernism and Postmodernism. Currents and trends in art, architecture, music, literature, theology and philosophy are discussed and analyzed in relation to their social, economic and political contexts. The ongoing interaction between ideas, cultural trends and social, economic and political factors is emphasized. Source texts exemplifying different cultural and philosophical trends are read and analyzed.

Utbildningsmål

As a result of successfully completing this course, the student should be able to:

Knowledge and Understanding
-demonstrate a thorough and accurate knowledge of basic facts concerning the history of culture and ideas in the Western world
-critically analyze and discuss major themes, issues, and trends in the history of Western civilization, from the cultures of Ancient Near East to the different cultural epochs of the Modern and the Postmodern Era
-show an acquaintance with the Classical texts of Western culture
-critically analyze and discuss the history of Western civilization from theological and philosophical perspectives
-demonstrate an accurate understanding of important concepts of historical research on culture and ideas, for example civilization, idea, epoch, style, genre and context
-apply a relevant historical perspective on ideas, being able to contextualize ideas and thought structures in the history of Western civilization and our contemporary situation.

Skills and Abilities
-distinguish styles, genres, motifs and ideas in written sources and cultural artefacts and show how they are related to their historical context
-demonstrate an ability to skillfully present his/her knowledge and understanding in writing and orally
-synthesize the materials covered in this course in written form and in a chronological and comprehensive fashion.

Assessment and Approach
-assess the validity of different theories concerning the impact of the Reformation on Western culture in the Early Modern period
-assess the validity of different theories concerning the expansion and influence of Christianity in the Post-Modern period
-assess the validity of different models concerning the relationship between Christian faith and culture.