SOSM5001 Sosiologian erityiskysymyksiä 1 (5 op)

This course develops a conceptually nuanced narrative interpretation of contemporary history by focusing on a) music records’ cover art that involves visual representations of planet Earth as indicators of global imagination and non-normatively understood global consciousness, and how they have evolved since the mid-20th century, and b) a selected set of mainly social scientific theories of (late) modernity and globalization. Overall, this course builds on the understanding that various forms of visual culture and communication, including music album artworks as cultural artifacts, provide relevant and fruitful access to studying and understanding the social world. Thus, the course is loosely based on visual sociology while also drawing on, for example, semiotics, popular music, globalization, and environmental studies, research on (post)colonialism and racial injustices, and the Anthropocene as a contested geological epoch.

The course is for Master's students and Ph.D. students at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. The max. number of students is 20.