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Not offered in 2021
Unit description
Introduces students to the cultural paradigms of the 21st century and cultural evolution theory. The relationship between law, literature and culture in a post modern world is examined. Students analyse literary works using cultural evolution theory.
Unit content
Topic 1: What happened after Postmodernism?
Topic 2: Cultural Evolution and the Darwinian Renaissance
Topic 3: Law and Literature as Cultural Products
Topic 4: Man, or the storytelling animal
Topic 5: Meme 1 – Truth
Topic 6: Meme 2 – Guilt
Topic 7: Meme 3 – Language
Topic 8: Meme 4 – The Other
Learning outcomes
Unit Learning Outcomes express learning achievement in terms of what a student should know, understand and be able to do on completion of a unit. These outcomes are aligned with the graduate attributes. The unit learning outcomes and graduate attributes are also the basis of evaluating prior learning.
| On completion of this unit, students should be able to: | |
|---|---|
| 1 | explain the complexities at the basis of the current debate on the end of postmodernism |
| 2 | identify, compare and criticise the alternative paradigms theorised as a follow-up to postmodernism |
| 3 | understand the basic concepts of memetic theory and apply them to a variety of cultural phenomena |
| 4 | explain the relationship between law, literature and culture through the lenses of cultural evolution theories |
| 5 | understand the cultural, legal and literary memetic implications in the novels used as case studies. |
On completion of this unit, students should be able to:
- explain the complexities at the basis of the current debate on the end of postmodernism
- identify, compare and criticise the alternative paradigms theorised as a follow-up to postmodernism
- understand the basic concepts of memetic theory and apply them to a variety of cultural phenomena
- explain the relationship between law, literature and culture through the lenses of cultural evolution theories
- understand the cultural, legal and literary memetic implications in the novels used as case studies.
Teaching and assessment
Fee information
Domestic
Commonwealth Supported courses
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