Unit name | From Nation-Building to Rat-Catching: Czech Literature 1817-1913 |
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Unit code | RUSS20046 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | I/5 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
Unit director | Dr. Chitnis |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
None |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | Department of Russian |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
This unit covers the period between the 1817 'discovery' of the Queen's Court Manuscript, which marked a new stage in the Czech 'National Revival', and the 1913 publication of Almanach na rok 1914, which marked a new stage in the development of Czech Modernism. In the period, Czech writers belatedly respond to trends in recent European literature, including Romanticism and the modern novel, and develop their own modern literature in prose, drama and verse. In this unit we shall study about five major works of Czech literature from the period, including key examples of Czech Romanticism, Symbolism and Decadence, the development of Czech Realism and the beginnings of literary Modernism. A key focus of the unit is developing students' ability to read literature in Czech, with poetry read and analysed in class. The assessment will test both students' ability to provide close readings of short passages and to compare specific features across two works studied.
Aims:
Successful students will:
2 x 1hr slots weekly.
One 2000-word essay plus 2-hour exam (50% / 50%)
Karel Hynek Mácha (1810-36) - Máj (1836), Božena Němcová (1820?-62) - Babička (1855), Jan Neruda (1834-91) - Povídky malostranské (1877)