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
Brian Brennan
Brian Brennan hold a Master’s degree with honours in Classical Studies and a Ph.D in Ancient History. He has specialised in the religious and cultural history of the Later Roman World,...
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...
Featured Articles
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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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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. 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.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. “Two things awe me most, the starry sky above and the moral law within.” – Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant is a towering figure in philosophical history, who has had a profound influence on developments in metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, political theory and aesthetics. Kant synthesised early modern rationalism and empiricism. During this ten-week course, we will review his three major works and explore... View Philosophy Course: Introduction to Kant.
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Music. Learn, enjoy, appreciate. In the first part of this new series on music in Europe in the late Nineteenth Century, we weave together the various nationalist strands of orchestral and operatic music composed in this period, which is referred to as the Fin de Siècle. We note how the rising young Czech composer Dvorak is influenced by the music of his German mentor Brahms, and how Tchaikovsky also chooses to embrace the familiar forms of contemporary European music. By... View Music of the Fin de Siècle Course: 1877-1883.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. Join us for this ten-week philosophy of drama course, as we explore the role that dramatic theatre has played in human story. We will cover historical periods including: the Ancient Greek playwrights, particularly Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides; the early to late 20th century, discussing Ibsen, Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller; and Contemporary film with Terrence Malick as the focus... View Philosophy of Drama Course: Ancient Greek Tragedy to Modern Film.
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Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. Join us as we explore philosophical ideas on five contemporary issues including: human nature and hope vs pessimism; conspiracy theories; understanding right/left ethics; animal minds; and affectivity in environmental philosophy. The five issues we will address have attracted new philosophical research over the last decade. Rutger Bregman’s attempts to redress the growing pessimism about ‘human nature’... View Philosophy Course: Philosophical Ideas on Five Contemporary Issues.
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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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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.