The purpose of this core course is the study of metacultural discourse. By metacultural discourse we mean that in which culture, however defined, speaks of itself. More precisely, it is discourse in which culture addresses its own generality and conditions of existence. It is, therefore, a historically formed set of topics and procedures that both drives and regulates the utterance of the individuals who inhabit it, and assigns them definite positions in the field of meaning it delimits.

Students are expected to develop an increased awareness about the complexity of the contemporary world, and to develop adequate tools to adopt critical and intervenient positions as cultural agents. Through the consistent study of cultural discourses students will be equipped to understand the specificities of epistemic formations in different cultures at different points in time, particularly since the early 19th century up to the present day. A metacultural approach to the study of culture will also expose the students to a variety of critical positions inviting dialogue, tolerance and mutual understanding.