Art, Aesthetics, and Social Philosophy
UndergraduateMAQ-PHIX30522025
Course information for 2025 intake View information for 2024 course intake
Enrolments for this course are closed, but you may have other options to start studying now. Book a consultation to learn more.
- Study method
- 100% online
- Assessments
- 100% online
- Entry requirements
- Prior study needed
- Duration
- 13 weeks
- Loan available
- HECS-HELP and FEE-HELP available
Art, Aesthetics, and Social Philosophy
About this subject
On successful completion of this subject, you will be able to:
- explain the history and meaning of key concepts in aesthetics and social philosophy.
- analyse arguments in the relevant critical literature.
- apply approaches from aesthetics and social philosophy to broader social, cultural, and political debates.
- investigate and theorise ideas clearly, cogently, and convincingly through critical analysis and philosophical discussion.
- A week-by-week guide to the topics you will explore in this subject will be provided in your study materials.
This subject was previously known as Social and Existential Questions.
This unit introduces students to philosophical aesthetics and social philosophy by focusing on influential approaches to the relationship between art, subjectivity, and contemporary social and political challenges. In the first part, we explore theories focused on experiences of beauty and the sublime in relation to nature, artworks, and cultural artefacts, as well as approaches reflecting on the social, cultural, and ethical significance of art. How art might enable us to deal with the impacts of technology on cultural and social experience provide a further focus. In Part II we examine how contemporary social philosophy can help us think critically about issues such as the way power functions in modern society, how the ‘attention economy’ of social media creates new problems, crises in conceptions of democracy, the rise of authoritarian politics, and ways of reckoning with the historical legacies of colonialism and exploitation. Contemporary visual artworks, including cinema and television, will be used as philosophical resources throughout this unit.
- Online participation (25%)
- Philosophical Essay (40%)
- Reflective task (35%)
For textbook details check your university's handbook, website or learning management system (LMS).
This research-intensive university in north-western Sydney offers a range of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. With over 44,000 current students, Macquarie has a strong reputation for welcoming international students and embracing flexible and convenient study options, including its partnership with Open Universities Australia.
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- QS Ranking 2024:
- 10
- Times Higher Education Ranking 2024:
- 10
Entry requirements
Prior study
You must have successfully completed the following subject(s) before starting this subject:
one of
- MAQ-PHIX1031-The Philosophy of Human Nature
- MAQ-PHIX1032-Happiness, Goodness and Justice
- MAQ-PHIX1037-Critical Thinking
Others
NCCW (pre-2020 units) PHIL352, PHL352
Pre-requisite
130cp at 1000 level or above
NCCW (2020 and onwards)
PHIL3052
The Philosophy of Race and Identity
Additional requirements
No additional requirements
Study load
- 0.125 EFTSL
- This is in the range of 10 to 12 hours of study each week.
Equivalent full time study load (EFTSL) is one way to calculate your study load. One (1.0) EFTSL is equivalent to a full-time study load for one year.
Find out more information on Commonwealth Loans to understand what this means to your eligibility for financial support.
What to study next?
Once you’ve completed this subject it can be credited towards one of the following courses
UndergraduateMAQ-ART-DEG
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