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. With the introduction of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the increasing use of new technologies in many workplaces, the idea of ‘work’ is receiving new attention in philosophy. This course will look at the contribution of many philosophers past and present to the issues such as: Is work important to human flourishing and our sense of a meaningful life? How is ‘work’ different to ‘leisure’? What are the... View Philosophy Course: Work in the Age of AI.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. Thomas Hobbes is regarded as one of a handful of genuinely great political philosophers – his masterwork Leviathan (1651) changed history. The idea of a ‘social contract’ as the basis of political power is his most powerful contribution, eventually becoming the theoretical foundation of most contemporary societies. Hobbes is however a controversial philosopher in many ways. His understanding of humans as... View Philosophy Course: Introduction to Hobbes.
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History. See the future. It’s in the past. The class commencing November 20, 2023 is generously extended to the community by CCE as a complimentary offering. This archaeology course will explore the history of human activity on the island of Cyprus, from the Neolithic to the modern world. The Mediterranean island of Cyprus lies at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa and is the third largest Mediterranean island. During the ten millennia of human occupation, it has developed a... View Archaeology Course: Ancient Cyprus.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. Since the publication of the 2010 new, unabridged English translation of The Second Sex, there has been a growing interest in the extent and complexity of de Beauvoir’s philosophical ideas. Some of these ideas are: The nature and limits of human freedom (She Came to Stay, Pyrrhus and Cineas); The role of imagination in the authentic construction of self (The Ethics of Ambiguity); The phenomenology of sex... View Philosophy Course: Simone de Beauvoir.
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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. What is the ‘nature and substance of love’ (Shakespeare)? Is erotic love only polite sexual instinct and romantic poetry sublimated lust, or are they very different emotions? How much of an impact do cultural practices make on, not only attitudes, but the experience of romantic attachments? Both the historical and the contemporary literature on love encompass a broad diversity of philosophical theories,... View Philosophy of Love Course.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. Plato’s (429–347 B.C.E.) contributions to Western philosophy covers areas in ethics, politics, metaphysics, epistemology, art, music and ancient science. This course employs recent scholarship on this influential thinker to understand his essential ideas and their relevance to today’s issues and problems. Plato's profound questions, and his richly suggestive and provocative strategies for tackling them,... View Philosophy Course: Introduction to Plato.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. The philosophical essay, in its modern form, originates from the late-sixteenth-century France with Michel de Montaigne, who “retired from political life, shut himself in his library, and tried something new”. In 1580, he published the first version of the Essays. In this course we will look at the ideas of some of the most significant philosophers and public thinkers through their essays. The essay form... View Great Philosophical Essays Course.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. What is consciousness and how is it produced by the brain? This course provides an introduction to the philosophical issue of consciousness. We will discuss topics including: the current state of knowledge on what consciousness is; how it functions to produce the ‘reality’ of ourselves; and how it mediates our understanding of the world around us. We will also discuss the impact of quantum theory on... View Philosophy Course: Philosophy of Consciousness.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. Epicureanism (or Hedonism) and Stoicism are ‘philosophies of life’, meaning that they are not only academic but are to be lived as a way of life. In their own ways, both philosophies explore with the challenges of ordinary life: how to manage suffering; what to do with wealth or poverty; power and slavery. Both aim to provide a psychological fortress against bad times. The contemporary form of Hedonism is... View Philosophy Course: An Introduction to Epicurean and Stoic Philosophy.