Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
Contemporary Thought
Teaching staff
Introduction
The history of the world and of contemporary thought is an exciting and dramatic story, marked by the permanent will to break old bonds and open new paths. This journey of abrupt ruptures and transgressive explorations has illuminated paths of freedom and spaces of greater humanization. At the same time, however, it has produced complex anthropological labyrinths and resounding collective failures. In this course we propose to go through the main currents of sociopolitical and anthropological thought of the last two centuries. In this way we will be able to understand the fundamental notes of the sensibility and experience of contemporary man.
The objective of this course is not to learn a long list of names and dates, but to understand in depth the keys to the schools of thought that have shaped the world today. Mastering the fundamental concepts and categories of the great ideological constellations of our recent history will allow the student - and future journalist - to better situate himself in the background of current political, social and cultural debates. We want to apprehend contemporary thought in a broad sense, analyzing the main political currents, but also the turns in the scientific universe, the philosophical backgrounds or the main currents of social transformation: from liberalism and Marxism to personalism, through feminism, environmentalism or the meaning of the main artistic avant-gardes.
Pre-course requirements
No pre-course requirements are needed to enrol in this subject.
Objectives
The main objectives of the course are:
- To know the main currents of thought in the contemporary world.
- To understand the key categories of each school of thought.
- To situate current debates in relation to the main ideological discussions that have characterized contemporary history.
- To understand the background of ideas behind the main events of the last two centuries.
- To understand the intertwining of philosophy, culture, politics and society in the contemporary world.
- To have the ability to critically analyze the main lines of thought, putting them in dialogue with each other and highlighting their strengths and weaknesses.
Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme
- 02 CG - The ability to learn and act an autonomously and responsibly
- 04 CG - The ability to organise time and workspace
- 08 CG - The ability to reflect and memorize.
- 10 CG - Knowledge and mastery of bibliographic repertoires
- 18 CE - Ability to detect newsworthy events
Learning outcomes of the subject
- Acquire the knowledge of basic terms and concepts to develop critical thinking.
- Write essays, make presentations or participate in debates that demonstrate one's ability to express ideas.
- Identify through the media the main latent political and ideological debates on major issues on the public agenda.
- Encourage respect for diversity of views.
Students:
- They will internalize a complex vision of contemporary societies.
- They will understand how to spot trends.
- They will be able to analyze society and forge a critical and independent spirit.
- They will develop abilities to perform better during teamwork and create positive synergies.
- They will get detailed knowledge about the origins of mankind and its organization, culture, religion and privacy.
Syllabus
1. The prelude: Ancien Régime and Enlightenment.
2. The foundations: Classical political liberalism.
3. The deployment of freedom: Economic and social liberalism.
4. Romantic passion: Keys to the romantic movement.
5. The meaning and transformation of history: From Hegel to Marx.
6. The conquest of equality: Social democracy and Eurocommunism.
7. The Triumph of Experimental Science: Evolution of Science and Positivism.
8. The philosophers of suspicion: Nietzsche, Freud and the transmutation of values.
9. The crisis of Modernity: War, artistic avant-garde and totalitarian temptation.
10. The existentialist turn: anguish and meaning of human life.
11. The personalist proposal: the notion of the person as a way out of contemporary labyrinths.
12. Contemporary religious thought: twentieth-century Catholic theology and the Second Vatican Council.
13. The City and Utopia: Urbanism, Architecture and Political-Social Models.
14. The feminine revolution: the multiple faces of feminism.
15. Social criticism and postmodern earthquake: the Frankfurt School, the end of grand narratives, decolonization and the woke movement.
16. The New Conservatism: Conservative Thought in the Twentieth Century.
17. The ecological perspective: The currents of environmentalism.
18. Thinking about the digital revolution: from Bauman to Byung-Chul Han.
19. A new humanity?: The dilemmas of transhumanism.
20. The paradigm of care: a social and political alternative.
Teaching and learning activities
In person
| TRAINING ACTIVITY | ECTS CREDITS |
| Lectures. In lectures, lecturers/professors not only transmit content or knowledge, but also, and above all else, attitudes, motivation, skills and values, etc. They also ensure that participants can express their opinions and arguments to the other students. | 3 |
| Focused Praxis. Handing in occasional exercises to learn theory through practice. | 1.2 |
| Seminar. This activity will consist of taking an in-depth look at specific up-to-date topics in a monographic manner-in some cases these topics will have been debated socially-, via active work in small groups. | 0,6 |
| Practical workshop. A highly practical working activity, where students can acquire skills that are practical or also theoretical (intellectual skills, logical skills, critical skills, intellectual learning skills, study skills, quoting skills, etc). | 0,6 |
| Coaching. Monitoring how students learn the content of the subject, either individually or in groups. In the coaching sessions, mistakes will be corrected, queries answered, and exercises and activities to achieve the established objectives will be suggested. | 0,6 |
Evaluation systems and criteria
In person
First call
First partial exam: 30%.
Second partial exam: 30%.
Reading journal: 15%.
Class work (press notes + three short text commentaries): 25%.
In order to pass the first call, in any case, an average grade of 4.5 in the midterm exams must be obtained.
Second call
The criteria are the same as in the first call. In this call, the exams can be recovered as well as the "reading diary" and the "class work".
Third call
The student may choose whether to take the exams only (in this case they will be worth 100% of the grade) or follow the ordinary evaluation procedure.
Bibliography and resources
Libros sobre los que hacer el “diario de lectura”
Novelas que contienen la historia intelectual contemporánea
Duncan Shiels: Los hermanos Rajk. Un drama familiar europeo. Ed. Acantilado, Barcelona, 2009.
Jean D’Ormesson: Por capricho de Dios. Diagonal, Barcelona, 2003.
Joachim Fest: Yo no. El rechazo al nazismo como actitud moral. Taurus, Barcelona, 2007.
Ensayos desde el mundo liberal
Daron Acemoglu y James A. Robinson: Por qué fracasan los países: Los orígenes del poder, la prosperidad y la pobreza. Booket, Madrid, 2014.
Hans Rosling: Factfulness. El món va millor del que et penses. Edicions La Campana, Barcelona, 2018.
José Ortega y Gasset: La rebelión de las masas. Madrid, 1929.
Juan Ramón Rallo: Liberalismo. Los diez principios básicos del orden político liberal. Planeta, Barcelona, 2019.
María Zambrano: Horizonte del liberalismo. Madrid, 1930.
Marta C. Nussbaum: La tradición cosmopolita. Un noble e imperfecto ideal. Planeta, Barcelona, 2020.
Martin Schlag: Cómo poner a dieta al caníbal: Ética para salir de la crisis económica. Ediciones Rialp, Madrid, 2015.
Mauricio Rojas: Reinventar el Estado del Bienestar. Gota a Gota, Madrid, 2010.
Steven Levitsky y Daniel Ziblatt: Cómo mueren las democracias. Ariel, Barcelona, 2021.
Análisis desde la socialdemocracia y la nueva izquierda
Naomi Klein: No logo. El poder de las marcas. Ed. Paidós, Barcelona, 2001.
Carlos Fernández Liria: En defensa del populismo. Libros de la Catarata, Madrid, 2016.
Noam Chomsky: Malestar global. Conversaciones con David Barsamian sobre las crecientes amenazas a la democracia. Madrid, 2018.
Evgeny Morozov: El desengaño de Internet. Los mitos de la libertad en la red. Destino, Barcelona, 2012.
Mark Lilla: El regreso liberal. ¿Cómo puede la izquierda recuperar sus valores y ofrecer un proyecto de futuro? Debate, Barcelona, 2018.
Yanis Varoufakis: Economía sin corbata. Conversaciones con mi hija. Destino, Barcelona, 2015.
Amartya Sen: Un hogar en el mundo. Memorias. Taurus, 2021.
Christian Felber: La economía del bien común. Editorial Deusto.
Reflexiones sobre la condición humana en el mundo contemporáneo
Alexander Batthyány: La superación de la indiferencia. El sentido de la vida en tiempos de cambio. Herder, Barcelona, 2020.
Byung-Chul Han: La sociedad del cansancio. Herder, Barcelona, 2017.
Jaime Nubiola: Invitación a pensar. Ed. Rialp, Madrid, 2019.
Jordan B. Peterson: 12 reglas para vivir: Un antídoto al caos. Penguin, Barcelona, 2018.
Miguel Ángel Martí García: La alegría interior. Aproximación a una estética existencial. Ediciones Internacionales Universitarias, Madrid, 2015.
Roman Krznaric: El buen antepasado: Cómo pensar a largo plazo en un mundo cortoplacista. Capitan Swing, 2022.
Ulrich Schnabel: Ocio. La felicidad de no hacer nada. Plataforma Actual, Barcelona, 2010.
Viktor Frankl: El hombre en busca de sentido. Herder, Barcelona, 2021.
Propuestas desde la órbita conservadora
Arthur C. Brooks: The Conservative Heart. 2015.
Margareth Tath: Los años de Downing Street.
Roger Scruton: Cómo ser conservador. Homo Legens, Madrid, 2018.
Rusell Kirk: Un programa para conservadores. El Buey Mudo, Madrid, 2011.
Miradas desde el humanismo cristiano
Alejandro Llano: La vida lograda. Ed. Ariel, Madrid, 2017.
Florencio García Muñoz: Edith Stein: signo de contradicción. Editorial San Pablo, Madrid, 2007.
Jacques Maritain: Los derechos del hombre. Cristianismo y democracia. Palabra, Madrid, 2002.
Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer: Amar al mundo apasionadamente. Rialp, Madrid, 2007.
Papa Francisco: Fratelli Tutti. Sobre la fraternidad y la amistad civil. 2020.
Papa Juan Pablo II: Centessimus Annus. La problemática económica y social hoy. 1991.
Stefano Zamagni: Por una economía del bien común. Ciudad Nueva, 2012.
Propuestas desde el ecologismo
Roman Krznaric: El buen antepasado: Cómo pensar a largo plazo en un mundo cortoplacista. Capitan Swing, 2022.
Papa Francisco: Laudato Si. Sobre el cuidado de la casa común. Editorial San Pablo, 2015.
Roger Scruton: Filosofía verde: Cómo reflexionar seriamente sobre el planeta. Homo Legens, 2021.
Naomi Klein: Esto lo cambia todo. El capitalismo contra el clima. Paidós, Barcelona, 2014.
Henry Shue: The pivotal generation. Why we have a moral responsibility to slow climate change right now. Princeton University Press, 2021.
Transhumanismo y revolución tecnológica
John B. Haldane: Dédalo e Icaro: el futuro de la Ciencia. KRK Ediciones, 2005.
Antonio Diéguez: Transhumanismo. La búsqueda tecnológica del mejoramiento humano. Herder, Barcelona, 2019.
Ray Kurzweil: La singularidad está cerca. Cuando los humanos trasciendan la biología. Lola Books, 2021.
Eugeny Mozorov: La locura del solucionismo tecnológico. Clave Intelectual, 2015.
Tanguy Marie Pouliquen: Transhumanismo y fascinación por las nuevas tecnologías. Editorial Rialp, Madrid, 2018.
Ciudad y utopía
Richard Sennet: Construir y habitar. Ética para la ciudad. Anagrama, Barcelona, 2019.
Le Corbussier: Carta de Atenas, 1933.
Otto Wagner: La gran ciudad, 1911.
Tony Garnier: Una ciudad industrial, 1917.
Comunicación política y redes sociales
Donald Miller: Cómo construir una story-brand. Clarifica tu mensaje para que la gente escuche. Empresa Activa, Madrid, 2018.
Guy Kawasaki: El arte de cautivar. Cómo se cambian los corazones, las mentes y las acciones. Gestión2000, Barcelona, 2011.
Luis Arroyo: Frases como puños. El lenguaje y las ideas progresistas. Edhasa, Barcelona, 2013.