Complutense University of Madrid

This course explores the history of medieval Europe from the 5th to 15th centuries. Topics include: the Middle Ages in European history; from disintegration of the ancient world to Germanic invasions; barbarian Europe; the Byzantine Empire and origins of Islamic civilization; the Carolingian Empire; second invasions and the Holy Roman Empire; feudal society and expansions from the 11th to 13th centuries; universalist aspirations-- papacy and empire; from feudal monarchies to sovereign states; from the crisis of medieval society to the origins of the modern world.

This course studies and analyzes the tradition of autobiographical writing in English. Through a diachronic study, it explores the evolution of the genre from its origins to the present. Through a synchronic study, it discusses the different manifestations and subgenres of life writing such as memoirs, diaries, lyric essays, autofiction, etc. 

This course offers an introduction to the problems, concepts, and methods of logic. Topics include: the object of logic; truth and demonstration; basic concepts of set theory; syntax; semantics; interpretation; truth; formalization; logical truth; equivalence; consequence.

This course explores the opportunities and threats presented through cyberculture in our information society. It discusses the possibilities and limitations of improving living conditions inherent to scientific-technological development. This course analyzes the links between technology, law, philosophy, and social interests of the groups that promote and develop it. Topics include: the new information economy; human rights on the internet; expansion of beliefs, fundamentalism, and political phenomena such as populism via social networks; the new digital economy.

This course focuses on basic teaching skills to design, implement, and evaluate educational projects in art education. Topics include: safety, hygiene, and good practices; mechanisms for learning, understanding, and transmission of artistic and cultural values and criteria; teaching of visual arts in different education settings; curricular design; application of different teaching methods; curriculum of artistic education.

This course offers a study the literature of the United States to 1850, taking into consideration the history of the country and the evolution of literary forms, notably prose and poetry. It examines the context of socio-political and cultural relations that have shaped the literary history and traditions of the US. This course discusses literary works from the following historical periods: Pre-colonial and Puritan traditions (1492-1776), literature of the New Republic (1776-1836), and Romanticism and the so-called American Renaissance (1836-1850). 

This course offers a study of the origins of theater in Greece as well as its literary aspects-- tragedy, comedy, and satirical drama-- from the archaic and classical periods. It explores the cultural, social, and religious functions of theater in Greece as well as the role of classical literature in the birth and configuration of European vernacular literature.

This course examines popular musical culture with an emphasis on musicological, sociological, and anthropological aspects. Other topics include: comparative folklore; how and why popular music should be studied; the songbooks and folklore missions in Spain; methods and procedures in ethnomusicological research; anthropology of music-- music in culture; reformulation of folklore; processes of transit and cultural contact. Pre-requisites: Musicology students with prior musical knowledge

This course analyzes the cultural construction of reality through different symbolic manifestations. It discusses contributions of symbolic anthropology to the understanding of cultural manifestations and processes, as well as the relationship between their material and symbolic dimensions. This course reflects on symbols, rituals, representation, expressiveness, worldview, mythology, magic, and the imaginary to understand the cultural and social processes of human groups.

This course provides a study of the history and evolution of the English language. It examines the major phases and commonly recognized periods of English, the main changes and characteristics of each phase, and the historical and cultural context in which they developed. Topics covered include: fundamentals of historical-comparative linguistics; English among the Germanic languages; migration of Germanic groups to England; Old English; Middle English; Modern English; late Modern English; Contemporary English and new perspectives on change.