Arts and humanities courses
Arts and humanities courses. We don’t just teach, we inspire.
Exploring the depths of culture, philosophy and history has never been so accessible. Learn from experts in the field and create an everlasting bond with some of the world’s most impactful reading material. Our comprehensive arts and humanities courses offered at the University of Sydney provide students with unending knowledge that touches our roots while building towards the future.
Don’t be intimidated by our knowledgeable faculty – they know their stuff but they also understand that everyone starts somewhere, which is why we welcome inquiring minds without prejudice. Step up to unleash your inner scholar and get energised by mind-stimulating discourse amongst like-minded peers. Meet friends, form opinions and come out of it with a cultural experience you won’t soon forget!
Sign up now for your very own inspiring experience. We offer groundbreaking opportunities to unlock your intellectual potential, turning everyday people into more thoughtful citizens able to appreciate their pasts and consider their futures more deeply. So say farewell to mundane education and open your world through art and humanities today! Learn arts and humanities in Sydney with arts and humanities courses from the University of Sydney – your premier provider of short courses in Sydney and online.
Featured courses
Meet your facilitators
Robert Gay
After gaining a BA, Dip. Ed. from the University of Sydney, Robert trained as a lyric baritone in London and Munich before turning to the field of music education. He has taught music history...
Kerry Sanders
Dr Kerry Sanders gained her PhD in Philosophy at the University of Sydney. She has taught topics including the philosophy of mind; ethics; critical thinking; political philosophy; contemporary...
Mark Tredinnick
Mark Tredinnick, winner of the Montreal Poetry Prize (2011) and the Cardiff Poetry Prize (2012), is the author of The Blue Plateau, Fire Diary, and nine other acclaimed works of poetry and prose....
Featured Articles
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. "That which is done out of love always takes place beyond Good and Evil." - Friedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil (1886). Nietzsche is famous for his theories of Nihilism; the eternal return; will to power; master/slave morality; God is dead; and free spirits. We will read selections from Nietzsche’s early, middle, and late works, and discuss the development of his ideas and his complex,... View Philosophy Course: Introduction to Nietzsche.
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Psychology. Explore the human mind. Explore Jung’s conception of the collective unconscious, the archetypes which comprise it and their relationship to dreams and myths. Specific attention will be paid to the archetypes of the Self, Shadow, Anima/Animus, Great Mother, Father, puer aeternus, Divine Child, Hero, Wise Old Woman/Man and the coniunctio. Through awareness of these constellated figures, one is brought into contact with essential human experiences which can offer practical... View Jung and Archetypes Course.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. Machiavelli’s influence on modern political theory cannot be overstated. The Prince, his most famous work, provides an interesting lens for examining modern politics and is perhaps more relevant than ever. The term ‘Machiavellian intelligence’ refers to the principles of his political philosophy and the idea that success in politics can be secured by manging behaviours and manipulating social groups. In... View Philosophy Course: Machiavelli and Political Philosophy.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. Improve your understanding of the philosophy of time and learn to discuss key concepts relating to time with confidence. In this course we consider many approaches to understanding the issue of time and what it means for us in our everyday existence. We use philosophy, chronobiology, psychology, neurobiology and the arts in our investigations. During the course, we will discuss: objective and subjective... View Philosophy Course: Philosophy of Time.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. This course on the philosophy of religion examines religious experience while borrowing from different schools of thought, including psychology, anthropology, sociology, phenomenology and political theory. Religion is central to the personal lives of many people. It is integrated in the cultural heritage of every people, and understanding it is crucial to understanding the human condition. We will delve... View Philosophy Course: Philosophy of Religion.
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Music. Learn, enjoy, appreciate. In this continuation of an ongoing course on German Music in the nineteenth century, we arrive at the formation of the Second German Empire under Bismarck and Kaiser Wilhelm I. Remarkably, Richard Wagner appears to anticipate these historical events in the patriotic finale to his music drama The Mastersingers of Nuremberg, and Johannes Brahms confidently celebrates them with his choral Song of Triumph. Nevertheless, Brahms and Wagner continue to... View Music in the German Lands Course: 1866-1876.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. Astra Taylor (2019) quipped that 'Democracy may not exist but we will miss it when it’s gone': a timely remark as the discussion grows concerning the ‘crisis of democracy’ in the current world situation. During this course, we will study the philosophical and historical roots of democratic systems; why they emerge and why they falter. We will discuss the core elements that make a democracy ‘democratic’... View Philosophy Course: Democracy.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. Spinoza was one of the towering philosophers of the 17th century, described by Bertrand Russell as "the noblest and most lovable of all the great philosophers". His work investigates some of the deepest questions of philosophy. He made significant contributions to understanding the human mind, the emotions, moral philosophy and politics. In this introductory course, we will focus on Spinoza’s ideas and... View Philosophy Course: Spinoza.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. In this course we look at the life and philosophy of Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797), one of the most important philosophers of her time. She critiqued the ideals of liberty, equality, fraternity as being flawed in their proclaimed universality and highlighted the gaping inconsistencies in the liberal ideas of John Locke and others. In doing so, Wollstonecraft set the agenda for liberation movements to... View Philosophy Course: Mary Wollstonecraft.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. The enigmatic Ancient Greek philosopher, Socrates, is considered to be the founder of Western philosophy. His ideas have had a profound influence on philosophical history, yet he left no written record of them. Throughout this course, we will review material from sources attempting to reconstruct Socrates. Our earliest extant source—and the only one who can claim to have known Socrates in his early... View Philosophy Course: Socrates and the Foundation of Western Philosophy.