Notes, abstracts, papers, exams and problems of Arts and Humanities

Classical Antiquity

The Classical era encompasses centuries BC. In the early decades, philosophy arose in the Ionian Greek colonies. Key figures include Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. This period established many major philosophical concepts of Western thought. Beyond Greece and Rome, other influential ways of thinking developed. In India, the sacred Vedas, the foundation of Hindu philosophy, were compiled. Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, was a contemporary of Pythagoras. Confucius's doctrines influenced China, Korea, and Japan.

The Middle Ages and Renaissance

Medieval philosophy (4th-16th centuries) fostered dialogue between revealed faith and human reason. Scholasticism, marked by debates and encyclopedic syntheses, flourished.... Continue reading "Ancient & Modern Philosophy: From Socrates to Nietzsche" »

Argumentative Texts: Structure and Techniques

An argumentative text is one that presents certain ideas through reasoning.

Argumentar: To provide reasons to advocate for an opinion.

The ultimate objective of an argument is to convince others of our ideas about a given subject. What distinguishes an argumentative text from an explanation is, therefore, the intention of the person generating it.

Structure

Follow a logical order to ensure proper understanding of the expressed ideas:

• Introducción (Introduction): Introduces the topic and captures interest.
• Exposición de la tesis (Thesis Statement): Argumentative texts often contain an explanatory part setting out the fundamental idea.
• Argumentación (Argumentation): Justifies the thesis (main idea) with

Jorge Manrique's Coplas a la Muerte de su Padre

Jorge Manrique's fame stems from his verses on the death of his father, composed after Don Rodrigo's passing in 1476 and published in Seville in 1494. This elegy belongs to the medieval tradition of Christian asceticism: against the worldliness of life, it calls for the acceptance of death as a transition to eternal life. However, the underlying concept suggests a prelude to the Renaissance conception of the following century: besides earthly life and eternal life, it refers to the life of fame, the enduring presence in this world by virtue of an exemplary life that remains in living memory.

In terms of style, characterized by the avoidance of any rhetorical excess or scholarly display, Manrique... Continue reading "Analysis of Manrique's Coplas and Garcilaso's Poetry" »

Antonio Machado: Themes of Anxiety and Spain

Antonio Machado's poetry is characterized by a simple, anti-rhetorical style, primarily exploring themes of anxiety, melancholy, and the socio-political situation of Spain.

Education and Influences

Machado studied at the Free Institution of Teaching, a prominent educational movement in Spain inspired by Krausismo. This institution played a crucial role in educational reform by championing academic freedom and rejecting religious, political, or moral dogma in its teaching methods.

Three Phases of Work

Machado's work can be divided into three distinct phases:

• Solitudes (later extended to Galleries and Other Poems): This early phase exhibits Symbolist influences, employing poetic language and a subjective

Synchronization and Asynchronization in Audiovisual Media

The simultaneous presence of images and sounds can produce asynchronization, a poor combination. This involves contradictory relationships between expressive systems. Therefore, we seek an asynchronous or synchronous reinforcement and expressive interaction.

Audiovisual Editing

Editing integrates and provides coherence and unity to the various expressive components: visual, aural, and written, both simultaneously and in succession. It is what constructs the definitive account of the facts and produces the meaning, the semantic value.

Theory of Double Articulation

This refers to the linkages between images and words. Two quite opposite models of developing television information have emerged:... Continue reading "Synchronization in Audiovisual Media: Editing and Information" »