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- Old Barny, the Czar´s Madman and Estonian Survival
- CEUS-R 309
- Piibi-Kai Kivik
This course carries COLL A & H distribution credit
The course will explore the unique culture of Estonia by asking: what has made it possible for a small nation to survive centuries under foreign rule and oppression to become one of the most dynamic modern states of the European Union? What are the stories and who are the heroes of this Finno-Ugric-speaking people on the Baltic Sea?
We will see that the sword-wielding giant Kalevipoeg of the national epic is not your typical warrior hero. Moreover, he might not be the best survivor hero at all. He is offered strong competition by the following cast of unlikely heroes and heroines:
- smart peasants and trickster barn-keepers, who know how to handle goblins, speak to the snakes and deal with the devil
- a Baltic German nobleman who is clearly crazy, married to an Estonian woman, tells the Czar how to run the country
- a booze-loving village bell-ringer who insists on telling the truth against all odds
- a brave woman who uses her faulty hearing-aid to speak up against Stalin´s regime
- a wandering medieval knight and his fair lady who travel the silver screen in 1960s hairdos, seeking freedom and justice for themselves and their people, oblivious to the Soviet censorship of the time of filming
- and a young Estonian in Paris in the 1990s, crossing multiple borders in search for identity, belonging, and love.
We will explore the history of Estonia and connect ancient themes to the development of the modern nation, the old peasant folk culture to contemporary urban life. The Estonian example will serve to highlight the issues that a small nation faces in trying to preserve its cultural identity.
Readings include folk-stories, poetry, rock lyrics, short stories, a short modern novel and writings on ethnography, history and literature. We will watch feature films and animation.
Grades
An in-class midterm and a take-home final exam. You can also earn part of the course grade by participating in the Estonian Independence Day celebration at IU!
