Universität Wien
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134132 PS Narrating History. The Dutch 20th Century as Family Saga (2024S)

5.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 13 - Europäische und Vergleichende Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaft
Continuous assessment of course work
Moodle

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 30 participants
Language: German, English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

  • Monday 04.03. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 11.03. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 18.03. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 08.04. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 15.04. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 22.04. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 29.04. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 06.05. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 13.05. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 27.05. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 03.06. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 10.06. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 17.06. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5
  • Monday 24.06. 09:45 - 11:15 Seminarraum 6 Hauptgebäude, Tiefparterre Stiege 9 Hof 5

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

“The family saga is a genre of literature which chronicles the lives and doings of a family or a number of related or interconnected families over a period of time. […] this is often a thematic device used to portray particular historical events, changes of social circumstances, or the ebb and flow of fortunes from a multitude of perspectives.” (Wikipedia) In his bestselling “Das Jahrhundert meines Vaters”, Geert Mak introduces the reader to the lives and doings of his own family against the background of major themes and events in the Dutch 20th Century. Or the other way around: Geert Mak introduces the reader to major events and themes of the Dutch 20th Century through the lives and doings of the members of the Mak family. Is this primarily a family saga or a historiographic account? The book has also been characterised as “a biography of the Netherlands through the lives of an average Dutch family”. Is this a biographic portrayal of a family, or of an entire nation? In this proseminar, we will read the book and consider this intersection of multiple genres. We will discuss the use of so-called egodocuments in writing history and analyse the narrative strategies of the author of representing the past to a present reader. Finally, we will evaluate our reading experiences.

Aims:
Students can identify narrative strategies in writing history.
Students are able to reflect on fact and fiction in representing the past in the present.
Students are familiar with the concept ‘egodocuments’ and their place in historiography.

Assessment and permitted materials

This proseminar is ‘prüfungsimmanent‘, in other words: subject to continuous assessment. Attendance is compulsory, active participation expected. We will read the book by Geert Mak in the German translation by Gregor Seferens and Andreas Ecke (see also below); make sure to have a personal copy available at the beginning of the semester. Additional readings will make up for rather substantial reading. Weekly reading assignments will be the starting point of class discussion. Although the first language of communication in class is English, contributions can also be made in German.

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

During the semester, small assignments will have to be submitted. To complete the proseminar, every participant will write a well-considered book review.

Examination topics

see above

Reading list

Geert Mak, Das Jahrhundert meines Vaters. Aus dem Niederländischen von Gregor Seferens und Andreas Ecke. Berlin: Wolf Siedler Verlag, 2003

Association in the course directory

EC Niederl. im globalen Kontext; BA Vergl.Lit.: Modul 5 PS

Last modified: We 03.07.2024 15:05