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Spring 2006

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Last update 10/25/2009

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LITERATURE CS 15, Section 1 EC # 27342
20th CENTURY CZECH WRITING: PRAGUE , POETS, DISSIDENTS, THE IRON CURTAIN, AND THE EU

STUDENT COLLOQUIUM

The Czech Republic is a tiny country that if cut out and placed on a map of the United States, would not even cover the state of South Carolina. Bohemian lands have been occupied for hundred of years by outside (Hapsburg, Nazi, Soviet, etc.) forces that sought to eliminate Czech ways of life and the Czech language. What does a small, very often occupied country have to say for itself? What is so special about Prague? Why has the West ignored the writing coming out of the Czech Republic since the eighties? As the Czech Republic becomes increasingly a part of the 'West' with its ascension into the EU, and its increasing capital, what are the writers up to? This class will try to answer these questions, ask a lot more, and understand the voices coming from Europe's 'heart'. We will also contextualize the dissident or 'samizdat' writing that occurred under Soviet occupation through short readings, as well as read a myriad of 'contemporary' Czech lit dealing with issues of nationalism, gender, race, and alternative culture. We will discuss the role of music in dissident culture, and view Czech films. This class aims to be as interactive as possible. You will write short papers, lead class discussions, and create a body of research or a creative project on a topic of your choosing.




Required Texts:

Karel Capek, RUR: Rossum's Universal Robot.
Bohumil Hrabal, Too Loud A Solitude
Milan Kundera, The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Timothy Garton Ash, The Magic Lantern: The Revolution of '89 witnessed in Warsaw , Budapest , Berlin , and Prague

Reader with work by Jachym Topol, Josef Skvorecky, Iva Pekarkova, Daniela Fischerova, Václav Havel, Vitezslav Nezval, Karel Macha, Arnost Lustig, Ivan Klima, Jaroslav Seifert, Miroslav Holub, Jan Neruda, Tereza Bouckova, etc.

Units earned in this course are lower-division UCSB units.
This course is offered for a maximum of 2.0 units.

NOTE: Units earned in Student Colloquia do not count for Core Course credit for CCS Literature Majors.



Instructor(s): Student Leader: Allie Wilding; Faculty Supervisor: Robyn Bell
Time(s): TBA
Place(s): TBA


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