The course presents an overview of the literature, visual arts, and social thought produced in Ukraine and its transnational diaspora since regaining independence in 1991. It starts with looking at literary, filmic, and scholarly representations of two milestones of contemporary Ukrainian history, which shaped the socio-political life in Ukraine today: the Orange Revolution of 2004 and the Euromaidan of 2013-2014. Looking deep at these major events and their formative role in shaping Ukrainian identity and pro-Western orientation, we will also consider ethnic, social, and cultural diversity in Ukraine, its political geography, and different conceptions of its history. The course considers the ways literature and the arts have dealt with and debated social and political issues in various periods, including such questions as: How do fictional representations open up new ways of thinking about catastrophic events (genocide, war, relocation, exile, environmental crisis) and social problems (corruption, poverty, gender, inequality, and discrimination)? How does language shape the way we think about society? What role do the arts and education play in political and social justice causes? Our readings and viewings will also lead us to look back on earlier historical periods as they relate to the present. In the case of geopolitical issues raised in post-1991 Ukraine, the state-making experience of the Ukrainian Cossacks, the Russian Empire, the Ukrainian National Republic, and the Soviet legacy looms large. This nuanced historical perspective will enable us to analyze the Russia-Ukraine war in terms of clashing identities and global geopolitical.
In addition to covering a generically diverse range of texts (fiction, poetry, film, photography, philosophical essays, and academic articles), the course will teach students to: - refine their skills in reading and interpreting texts that are rhetorically, historically, or culturally unfamiliar and challenging - think critically about what they are seeing, reading, and hearing - construct convincing arguments using multimodal analysis and the conventions of academic writing - be inclusive and sensitiv to the immense diversity of cultures and social orders in the world today - apply their intellectual and creative interests to Ukrainian culture and history
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