Biopoetics: An Evolutionary Approach to Art, Literature and Music and Religion
Full course description
Students will familiarize themselves with the basic concepts of evolutionary theory in order to be able to evaluate the controversies and debates within the framework of a Darwinist perspective on practices in art, literature, music, and religion. Several themes will be discussed, such as: the mating mind; artistic universals; human nature: blank or pre-wired; the sound and rhythm of poetry; the science of art; the origins of music; grooming, gossip, and the novel; art as adaptation vs. art as ‘cheesecake’ for the mind; rituals in religion, etc.
Course objectives
- To be able to evaluate and apply Darwinist approaches to practices in art, literature, music and religion.
Prerequisites
At least two 2000-level courses in the Humanities or at least two 2000-level courses in the Sciences.
Recommended reading
- Charlesworh, B., & Charlesworh, D. (2003). Evolution: A very short introduction. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
- Carroll, J. (2004). Literary Darwinism: Evolution, Human Nature, and Literature. London: Routledge.
- Gotschall, J., & Wilson, D.S. (2005). The Literary Animal: Evolution and the Nature of Narrative. Northwestern University Press.
- Turner, M. (2006). The Artful Mind: Cognitive Science and the Riddle of Human Creativity. Oxford University Press.
HUM3042
Period 5
31 Mar 2025
23 May 2025
ECTS credits:
5.0Instruction language:
EnglishCoordinator:
Teaching methods:
PBL, Presentation(s), Lecture(s), Assignment(s), Paper(s)Assessment methods:
Final paper, Attendance, Participation, Written exam, Oral exam, Take home exam