Course Overview and Rationale
In this course, students will explore a broad variety of cultural themes found concurrently in both western and non-western cultures from antiquity through the Renaissance. This course consists of four parts that are divided both chronologically and thematically, and focuses on different disciplines within the humanities.
Course Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the student will demonstrate knowledge in the following areas:
- Poetry and Music in Ancient Cultures;
- Heroes in Ancient Greece and Rome;
- Religious Architecture in the Middle Ages;
- Religious Art and Architecture of the Islamic World;
- Painting and Commerce in the Italian Renaissance; and
- Painting and Commerce in Northern European Renaissance Painting.
Specific topics addressed include
- Definitions and historical origins of poetry and music;
- Historical link between poetry and music;
- The way in which cultures use poetry and music to communicate their social and religious values;
- The impact of poetry and music on our lives today;
- Definition of the term, “ hero;”
- Examination of cultural differences in the concept, “hero;”
- Examination of how heroes typify the moral values of a given culture;
- Basic architectural concepts and terminology;
- Analogy of religious architecture as “framework” for social values; and
- Comparisons between Christianity and Islam.
