English

This course develops the skills required to analyze and contextualize literary prose. The texts to be studied are predominantly Nordic (in English translation), selected from the long and rich tradition of Nordic folk, fairy, and fantastic tales, from Medieval ballads to Gothic tales and postmodern short stories, animated and fantasy film. More generally, the course investigates a variety of narrative components (e.g. narrator, character, genre, theme), and explores why storytelling has been and continues to be a central human activity, how it has changed over time, and how stories reflect changing conceptions of Nordic societies, cultures, and identities. The course introduces students to a broad range of theories and methods in literary studies including narratology, gender studies, print culture, and monster studies.

A course for beginners with no previous knowledge of Japanese, designed to introduce the Japanese Language and culture. The course is not suitable for students with previous knowledge of Japanese. Students develop basic reading, writing, listening and speaking skills. They acquire knowledge of basic grammatical structures and a vocabulary of approximately 400 high-frequency words and phrases and the two basic character sets.