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Understanding experiences of sleep from ancient Mesopotamian dream interpretations to the modern world with its fascination with insomnia, sleep disorders and the neuroscience of sleep.
Sleeping and Dreaming
This course is designed to explore the different ways sleeping and dreaming have been understood in the past, both distant and recent. We discuss historical understandings of the physiology of sleep, the interpretations of dreams, the material culture of resting, the drugs that produce artificial sleep, and the ways sleeping and dreaming have been used in art, literature and film.
Course Objectives:
By the end of this module students should be able to think critically and historically about the material presented in this course (and, hopefully, materials outside the course). Students should be able to locate, analyse and create an argument around an historical topic of their choosing, to be approved by the instructor. The student should be familiar with the main themes in the history of sleep and dreams, including their ethical, historical and philosophical implications.
Course Syllabus:
- HPSC0068 Sleep and Dreaming Syllabus
