| Russian and East European Studies Course Atlas: Spring 2008 |
REES 375: East Central Europe 1960-1990: Film. Literature, and the Strategies of Freedom
Section 000 Kodolanyi TT 4:00-5:15 Limit 5
Same as FILM 395/595 Limit 10
Despite many differences in their national traditions and modern histories, in countries of East Central Europe the period was defined by post-Stalinist thaw, a softening of totalitarianism, and civil society's persistent attempts to push further the boundaries of freedom. The ensuing civil strategies engaged immense creative talent in the arts. Thus a New Cinema was born, in conjunction with a new surge of creativity in literature. A number of major masters emerged, such as Forman, Havel, Kundera and Menzel in Czechoslovakia, Jancsó, Juhász, Mészáros and Pilinszky in Hungary, Herbert, Mrozek, Skolimowski and Wajda in Poland, and many others. They achieved international fame and places the region back on the map of international art after the harsh isolation of Stalinist years. The course will analyze the paths of freedom they invented in their repressed societies, as embodied in films and writing, in subject matter, form and technique. These efforts contributed significantly to the success of the revolutions of 1989.
A combined lecture and seminar course. A mid-term and an end-of-term exam essay will be the required writing assignments, and students will make presentations as well as discuss screening and reading notes will be discussed in class.
Text: TBA
Last updated
September 26, 2007