Cultural Geography

This subject is conceived as an introduction to Cultural Geography. The aim of the course it to provide a wide overview of the history and recent transformations within the field as to further an examination of contemporary theories and practices in Cultural Geography. The course is aimed at gaining understanding and critiquing the social and political processes giving raise to cultural practices as the manifested themselves in space and spatial contexts.

The course is divided into four major sections. In the first one, the main objects and theoretical-methodological approaches of this sub-discipline will be analyzed, with special emphasis on comparing the classical outlook to the recent conceptual evolution and trends, as well as on the close link of this trends with Cultural Studies. The three remaining sections shall focus on some of the core topics and issues of Cultural Geography, namely the study of nature and landscape; the interactions between culture, territory and identity in the context of globalization; and the spatial production of differences along the lines of class, race and gender.