Time Schedule:
Marianne T Stecher Hansen
EURO 445
Seattle Campus
The study of literary representations (fiction, memoirs, and personal narratives) dealing with World War II and the occupation of the Nordic and Baltic countries. Offered: jointly with SCAND 445.
Class description
This course focuses on literary representations, personal narratives and scholarship dealing with World War II in the Nordic and Baltic countries. During World War II the Nordic region was clenched between two mighty belligerent powers: the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. As Finland resisted Soviet aggression from the East, Denmark and Norway suffered military occupation by Nazi Germany. Neutral Sweden avoided war and occupation by making considerable concessions to the Axis. Juxtaposing the "Eastern" pressure on Finland and the Baltic stattes with the "Western" pressure on Norway and Denmark, this course explores the wartime fates of Nordic nations by means of testimonies and literature produced by ordinary citizens, resistance fighters, war victims, and fiction writers. Students will read historical scholarship alongside literary texts and memoirs in order to identify the ideological, national, and personal perspectives in the narratives. In particular, the course focuses on the political implications and literary representations of "collaboration" and "resistance" during the war.
Student learning goals
A knowledge and understanding of the history and politics of the Nordic region during World War II.
An ability to exercise a precise vocabulary in study and discussion of war and occupation in general (particularly the following terms: Alliance, Collaboration, Neutrality, Occupation, and Resistance).
Opportunities to apply analytical concepts to discussions of wartime literature, films, and memoir, ie ability to apply key concepts such as Agency, Audience, Censorship, Propaganda, Reception, and Rhetoric, to the analysis of textual and cinema materials.
Development of the skills of INQUIRY-DRIVEN research and scholarship.
General method of instruction
The instruction and organization of the course is driven by inquiry in areas such as the following: � the validity of the personal narrative or memoir as a �historical account� � the interpretation of encoded (allegorical) messages in literature, written under political censorship � the revisionist tendencies of postwar scholarship dealing with the Nordic countries during WWII
Students will contribute their own lines of inquiry to the course by drawing from the larger questions posed by the instructor.
Course Format: This 5-credit course consists of lectures, small group discussions, guest-lectures (personal testimonies), and documentary film clips.
Recommended preparation
Background in European or International Studies, History, Scandinavian Studies or Comparative Literature is recommended. Strong writing and research skills. Substantial reading list for class; contact instructor for syllabus.
Class assignments and grading
Participation in inquiry-driven group discussions, midterm and final exams (essay and objective questions). In addition, students are required to develop research papers based on original research and assigned reading. Methods of scholarship are emphasized in preparation for the research paper; a term paper abstract and bibliography are due in advance of the final paper.
10% Participation in group assignments and concluding "class conference" 10% Midterm exam 10% Research paper abstract and bibliography 20% Response papers or "letters" (Integrated Writing) 50% Term Research paper
