Scandinavian Course Descriptions Fall 2018

Scand St 101 First Semester Norwegian, 4 credits

Section 001                 MTWRF         9:55-10:45 AM           Instructor TBD

Section 002                 MTWRF         1:20-2:10 PM             Peggy Hager

Prerequisites: Open to freshmen

Language of Instruction: Norwegian

Norwegian 101 is a first semester language course that presumes no knowledge of the Norwegian language. It is open to freshman. The course develops basic skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing Norwegian. We offer a thematic, communicative approach to language teaching that strives to put language in the context of culture. Classroom time focuses on communication and listening, as well as introducing basic grammatical concepts. Homework centers on reinforcing vocabulary, reading, grammar exercises and writing. Thematic units covered in Norwegian 101 include social introductions, education, food, daily-life, leisure activities, weather and seasons. We are currently using a curriculum package published by Nancy Aarsvold and Kari Lie called Sett i gang Edition II. First semester Norwegian covers chapters 1-13 in this text.

Required Texts:

Sett i gang I Edition II (chapters 1-13) (authors: Kari Lie Dorer and Nancy Aarsvold)

Audio and on-line exercises: free and on-line

The final grade is determined as follows: 15% attendance and participations; 15% homework; 5% essays; 15% in-class quizzes, 45% exams, 5% oral exam

Please contact pehager@wisc.edu with any questions.

 

SCAND ST 111 – FIRST SEMESTER SWEDISH

Section 001, MTWRF   11:00 – 11:50, instructor: TBD

Prerequisites: Open to Freshmen
Language of Instruction:  Swedish

This course is an introduction to the Swedish language. Students will learn the foundations for reading, speaking, and writing Swedish and will learn about the culture of Sweden.

SCAND ST 121 – FIRST SEMESTER DANISH

Section 001, MTWRF   3:30-4:20, instructor:

Prerequisites: Open to Freshmen
Language of Instruction: Danish

This is an introductory course in basic Danish, so we will be working with the important basic skills of language acquisition, i.e., speaking, listening reading and writing. The most important aspect of learning a new language is using it, and we will base our strategy on the communicative language teaching approach. Class time is crucial for practicing communication skills, so attendance is essential, and participation will be part of your grade. The course will also contain presentations and information about Denmark and the Danes, and you will be encouraged to make comparisons between the Danish and the American culture in order to gain a deeper understanding of differences and similarities. We will use technology regularly to work interactively with the language and to enhance our understanding of the Danish society. We will watch movies and listen to music to gain a historical and current perspective on Danish culture.

For more information see the instructors website.

 

Scand St 201 Second Year Norwegian, 4 credits

Peggy Hager, MTWR 2:25-3:15 PM

Prerequisites: Scand St 102 or equivalent. Open to undergraduates

Language of Instruction: Norwegian

Norwegian 201 is an intermediate third semester language course that requires the completion of Norwegian 102 or equivalent. The course builds on the vocabulary introduced in first year Norwegian and strives to examine various aspects of Norwegian culture through texts, video, internet and classroom discussion. The class is taught entirely in Norwegian. In the first few weeks we finish our Sett I Gang II textbook (main units are body, health, travel) and then read the popular contemporary Norwegian writer Erlend Loe’s short story Fisken. Students dialog with other classmates throughout the semester in the form of topical journals. The class makes extensive use of technologies including internet activities, video clips and podcasts.

Required Texts:

Sett i gang II (chapters 24-30) (authors: Kari Lie Dorer and Nancy Aarsvold)

Erlend Loe, Fisken

compendium of materials

Please contact pehager@wisc.edu with any questions.

 

SCAND ST 211 – SECOND YEAR SWEDISH

Section 001, MTWR   9:55 – 10:45, instructor: TBD

Prerequisites: SCAND ST 112

Language of Instruction: Swedish

This course continues the study of the Swedish language from the first year sequence.

SCAND ST 221 – SECOND YEAR DANISH

Section 001, MTWR   9:55 – 10:45, instructor TBD

Prerequisites: SCAND ST 122
Language of Instruction: Danish

The purpose of this class is to continue building on the Danish skills gained in 121 and 122. Our motto will be: The more Danish, the better! We will be talking, listening, reading and writing. We will include some more grammar and grammatical exercises, and we will expand your vocabulary, working towards a higher degree of proficiency in Danish. Apart from continuing with the textbooks, we will also be reading more authentic texts that cover aspects of contemporary Danish culture. We will watch movies and listen to music representing Danish popular culture. We will use technology to improve our interactive communication and to enhance our understanding of Denmark and the Danes.

For more information see the instructors website.

 

Scand St 251 Readings in Norwegian Literature, 3 credits

Dean Krouk, TR 11:00 AM-12:15 PM

Prerequisites: Completion of second year Norwegian or cons inst

Language of Instruction: Norwegian

This course includes a selection of Norwegian prose, poetry, and drama from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries to be read and discussed in Norwegian, with attention to social criticism and historical contexts. Authors include Henrik Ibsen, Amalie Skram, Cora Sandel, Knut Hamsun, Gunvor Hofmo, Torborg Nedreaas, Paal Brekke, Rolf Jacobsen, and others.

All texts will be available on course Canvas website.

Please contact krouk@wisc.edu with any questions.

 

Scand St 261 Readings in Swedish Literature, 3 credits

Susan Brantly, MWF 12:05-12:55 PM

Prerequisites: Two years of Swedish language

Language of Instruction: Swedish

“Readings in Swedish Literature” is both a language course and a literature course. Students should have the equivalent of two years of Swedish language and the course counts as a fifth-semester language course. We will be reading and discussing short literary texts from the 19th and 20th Centuries. All instruction is conducted in Swedish and students will improve their speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills. Required assignments include papers, translations, and presentations. Course readings will be provided.

 

SCAND ST 271 – READINGS IN DANISH LIT

Section 001, TR   1:00 – 2:15, instructor: Andersen, Claus

Prerequisites: SCAND ST 222

Language of Instruction: Danish

I dette semester skal vi nå til læsning af næsten-autentiske danske tekster. Vi skal starte med en avanceret tekstbog og dernæst læse modificerede, nutidige danske bøger, samtidig med at vi læser artikler fra aviser og blade.

  • Udtale og læsning skal styrkes gennem oplæsning og samtale.
  • Den kommunikative kompetence skal styrkes gennem præsentationer, samtaler og diskussioner.
  • Den skriftlige kommunikation skal styrkes gennem essays og analyser.
  • Grammatikken skal styrkes gennem øvelser og essays.
  • Vi skal bruge teknologi til at få et mere autentisk billede af Danmark og dansk kultur

SCAND ST 276 – SCANDINAVIAN LIFE AND CIVILIZATION

Section 001, TR   11:00 – 12:15, instructor: Schmidt, Nete

Prerequisites: Open to Freshman
Language of Instruction: English

Meets with SCAND ST 476

Scandinavian Life and Civilization is an introductory course on Scandinavian culture from the Viking times to the present.  The class is divided into three sections: history, culture, and literature/film.  For each section, a general lecture on the theme will be given over two class periods.  In addition to this, guest lecturers come and deliver lectures on the theme, presenting on an area of research to help the students in developing a general understanding of contemporary society.  In addition to the lectures, students will have an opportunity to discuss the lectures and weave them into more general themes and concepts on a biweekly basis.

Required Texts:
Texts will be handed out as needed.

Course Requirements and Assignments:
One eight- to ten-page paper; one five-minute presentation; three quizzes; five short papers; 10 very brief article discussions.

SCAND ST 373 – MASTERPIECES OF SCANDINAVIAN LITERATURE: FROM THE MIDDLE AGES TO 1900

Section 002, TR   11:00 – 11:50, instructor: Mellor,Scott
Section 301, F   11:00-11:50, instructor: TBD
Section 302, W   12:05 – 12:55, instructor: TBD

Prerequisites: 2 yrs of a Scand language or consent of instructor.
Language of Instruction: English

Meets with LITTRANS 271. Student wishing to take the course for Comm-B credit must enroll in section 301 or 302 for 4 credits and attend lecture and the corresponding discussion section. Otherwise, students should enroll in section 001 for 3 credits and attend only lecture meetings.

During the late Middle Ages, Scandinavian literature reached its first high point: the Old Norse, or Vikings, sagas and poems. These works supply the starting point for the course, which gives an overview of Scandinavian literature from the sagas to the prose and drama of the golden age of the late 19th century. All genres receive proper attention, and all texts analyzed are firmly located in their historical context, so that the student is able to trace the ways in which literature reflects the sociological changes from a feudal society to the modern industrial world. Among the authors discussed are Kingo, Holberg, Bellman, Blicher, Ibsen, Lie, Strindberg, Lagerlöf, and Hamsun.

SCAND ST 404 – LANGUAGES OF NORTHERN EUROPE: MODERN ICELANDIC

Section 001, MTWRF   1:20-2:10, instructor: TBD

Prerequisites: Open to all students; no prior knowledge of Icelandic or other Nordic languages is required.
Language of Instruction: Icelandic

This course is an introduction to the Modern Icelandic language.

 

Scand St 407 Old Norse I, 3 credits

Kirsten Wolf, TR 9:30-10:45 AM

The course has a linguistic purpose and is designed to give students a reading knowledge of Old Norse through the study of Old Icelandic grammar and selections of Old Icelandic text. This is an introductory course open to both undergraduates and graduates.

 

Scand St 409 Survey of Old Norse-Icelandic Literature, 3 credits

Kirsten Wolf, TR 11:00 AM-12:15 PM

Prerequisites: Scand St 407 Old Norse I (and preferably Scand St 408 Old Norse II)

The course is intended to give students an overview of Old Norse-Icelandic literature from the earliest times until the Reformation.

 

SCAND ST 411 – AREAS IN SCANDINAVIAN LIT: THE CULTURES OF SCANDINAVIA

Section 001, T   4:00 – 5:15, instructor: Mellor,Scott

Prerequisites: 5 semesters or equiv in a Scand language

This course will offer an introduction to the cultures and societies of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden by looking at the so-called Viking period through the Reformation. This semester we will be looking at Scandinavian culture from 750-1640 or the Viking period through the Thirty-Years’ War through texts, exploration and warfare. The course is open to all ILC residents. We will meet on non-dinner weeks and the course will be conducted in English. We will meet on dinner weeks with the Norden students and conduct those lectures in the Nordic languages. Please contact instructor if you are interested in Nordic language part of the course.

 

Scand St 424 Nineteenth-Century Scandinavian Fiction, 3 credits

Susan Brantly, online

The 19th-Century generated some of Scandinavia’s best-known writers. The course begins with Romanticism and looks at Norwegian folktales, Esaias Tegnér’s popular Viking tale (Frithiof’s Saga), and Hans Christian Andersen’s world-famous stories, to name but a few highlights. From there, we move to the Modern Breakthrough, perhaps the most important period in Scandinavian literary history, during which writers were urged to take up current issues for public debate. Internationally famous Nordic writers did just that in classics such as Ibsen’s A Doll’s Houseand Strindberg’s The Father. We will trace how these influential social debates about class and gender took literary form. As the century comes to a close, some writers, such as Nobel laureates Knut Hamsun and Selma Lagerlöf, react against the rationality of the Modern Breakthrough by turning to literary Decadence and Neo-Romanticism. This course on 19th-Century Scandinavian Literature is being taught entirely online. Lecture content is streamed illustrated audio. Students will complete assigned readings, take quizzes and exams, and post to a discussion board. Students taking the class for a 4th credit will write a paper. Students taking the course as Scand 424 must have some knowledge of a Nordic language. Students taking the course as Lit Trans 337 have no language requirement. Students in their first or second years need only ask permission to register.

SCAND ST 433 – TALE AND BALLAD

Scott Mellor, Section 001, TR 1:00-2:15

The genres of ballad and tale, which originate in the distant past, have often been scorned by the literary establishment, but the fact that they survived through centuries of oral transmission until they were finally recorded in the fairly recent past testifies to their lasting existential appeal. The stories these texts tell are dashingly entertaining and often deeply disturbing: they may offer a profoundly fatalistic view of existence, but they may also voice an angry and, at the same time, humorous protest against oppression. When this narrative type was discovered by scholars and the societal elite about 1800, it inspired many first-rank Nordic authors, e.g., Hans Christian Andersen, Henrik Ibsen, Selma Lagerlöf; and in the 20th century it has cast its spell over Isak Dinesen, Villy Sörensen, and Pr Lagerkvist and its influence has moved from literary to other media today. The course examines both the original literature and its modern “imitations” as well as gives an introduction to the critical methodologies that have recently been developed to deal with this seemingly simple, but in reality highly sophisticated, narrative.

 

SCAND ST 475 – WRITING OF HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN FOR MAJORS

Section 001, MWF   12:05 – 12:55, instructor: Schmidt,Nete

Prerequisites: 2nd year of a Scand lang

Meets with LITTRANS 275. Students enrolled in SCAND ST 475 are required to meet with the instructor outside of lecture.

Hans Christian Andersen lived in Denmark from 1805 – 1875. He is one of the best-known writers in the world, and his tales have been translated into numerous languages.

His writings span many genres and include much more than the “fairy” tales which made him famous. In this class, however, we will focus on the tales. They can be read by young and old alike, but it is quite certain that as an adult you will have a much stronger appreciation of the complexities and important messages in his tales. They are not mere “children’s tales” but contain, wit, humor, sharp observations, social criticism, and existential thoughts, among many others They are composed in a way that guarantees them well-deserved immortality.

We will read a variety of tales, discuss them, place them in a historical context, and also try to build a picture in our mind of Andersen, the writer. Maybe you will even be inspired to visit Denmark and his native city of Odense.

Scan 475, Scandinavian Majors and others. Scandinavian Majors, and other students interested in a more in-depth discussion of some of the works discussed in lecture, are encouraged to sign up for the4-credit 475 class. This class meets an additional hour once a week. The time and place will be determined by the students and instructor, so please meet with the instructor following the first lecture.

All the information is on the instructor’s website: neteschmidt.com

SCAND ST 476 – SCANDINAVIAN LIFE & CIVILIZATION II

Section 001, TR   11:00 – 12:15, instructor: Schmidt, Nete
Section 301, T   2:25 – 3:15, instructor: TBD

Prerequisites: 2nd year of a Scand lang

Language of Instruction: English

Meets with SCAND ST 276

Scandinavian Life and Civilization is an introductory course on Scandinavian culture from the Viking times to the present.  The class is divided into three sections: history, culture, and literature/film.  For each section, a general lecture on the theme will be given over two class periods.  In addition to this, guest lecturers come and deliver lectures on the theme, presenting on an area of research to help the students in developing a general understanding of contemporary society.  In addition to the lectures, students will have an opportunity to discuss the lectures and weave them into more general themes and concepts on a biweekly basis.

Required Texts:
Texts will be handed out as needed.

Course Requirements and Assignments:
One eight- to ten-page paper; one five-minute presentation; three quizzes; five short papers; 10 very brief article discussions.

 

Scand St 520 The Labor Movement in Nordic American Migration, 3 credits

Marcus Cederstrom, TR 9:30-10:45 AM

From the late 1800s to the early 1900s, millions of immigrants came to the United States from the Nordic countries. Families came together, men and women came alone; they worked as farmers, as laborers, as domestic servants. Many millions stayed in the United States. Still many millions returned home. We’ll be examining the lived experiences of many of those immigrants who came to the United States and worked. We’ll discuss how Nordic immigrants (and immigrants from a variety of ethnic groups!) took part in various social movements, especially the labor movement. By learning about how Nordic migrants engaged in the labor movement, we can better understand the history of the working class in the United States as well as their vernacular expressions.

This is a practical as well as theoretical course, so we will be conducting research and class projects will incorporate ways in which you can (and will) make your research available to the public.

We’ll take a look at a variety of topics by reading academic articles, laughing at old cartoons, listening to labor songs singers, and even watching a couple of documentaries. The class aims to contextualize immigration within social movements and to give you a good idea of the many, often changing, facets of the labor movement while exploring the role you, as a folklorist and student research, can play in documentation, preservation, and presentation.

 

Scand St 901 Seminar in Special Topics: Interwar Scandinavian Literature, 3 credits

Dean Krouk, T 2:25-5:25 PM

Prerequisites: Graduate or professional standing

Language of Instruction: English, with readings in Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish

This graduate seminar addresses the intersections of literature, culture, and politics in Scandinavia during the interwar period (1918-1939). The decades between the world wars, in Scandinavia as elsewhere in Europe, brought fascinating developments in cultural and intellectual life, which took place within a chaotic and troubling political and economic atmosphere. Many writers at the time explored the new possibilities of modernity opened up by the breakaway from past tradition that the “Great War” represented. This engagement with modernity often took the form of social and political commitments and reactions of various sorts: fascist and communist, radical and conservative, feminist and traditionalist. How did political and social ideologies inhabit literature in the interwar period? What are the connections between aesthetic forms and political visions at this time? How do we negotiate the legacies of figures who had problematic political attachments or worldviews? We will discuss Scandinavian and European topics such as cultural radicalism, modernism/modernity, feminism, communism, and fascism/Nazism.

Please contact krouk@wisc.edu with any questions.