History

This course provides basic knowledge of the culture of the Viking Age, such as it is presented in contemporary sources and in interpretations and applications from the past two centuries with a special focus on how this culture has gained considerable importance then and in modern times, in the Viking homelands, and the surrounding world. The course provides skills in interpreting, understanding and discussing certain contemporary sources both written (Old Norse literature, rune inscriptions, chronicles) and archaeological, and to analyze the nature of Viking culture's depiction in high and popular culture in fiction, film, media, monuments and cultural-political contexts with a certain emphasis on its relationship with the romantic tradition. The course highlights how the modern spread of Viking culture has been marked by academic and political disagreements.

This course explores banquet culture in the Mediterranean, investigating the traditions of the Greeks, Etruscans, and Romans. Our journey will take us to museums and archaeological sites in and around Rome, as well as Tuscany, Lazio, and Campania. In particular, we study the material remains from the Etruscan town of Tarquinia, the Villa of Tiberius at Sperlonga, the Greek city of Paestum, and the luxury villas of the Bay of Naples. As we explore these ancient aristocratic villas, we also explore the pastimes of the elite related to banquets, such as raising fish, birds, and flora, by studying their gardens, fisheries, and wine and olive presses, as well as the entertainment accompanying these feasts. Key ancient texts, such as the ancient Roman cookbook by Apicius, invite us into the Roman kitchen with original recipes and menus. Through the investigation of the ritual of feasting, this course assesses how the Roman banquet has shaped our ideas of culture, leisure, and status today.

The Napoleonic Empire was crucial in the formation of modern Europe. Much of Europe was covered by the Napoleonic Empire and its impact was felt across large parts of the non-European world. The influence of the emperor and his policies was most obvious in relation to the European international system, particularly through his military campaigns and his territorial reorganization of Europe in the wake of his successes. However, the Napoleonic era also saw major developments in the legal, constitutional, social, and economic order of many states, whether allied or opposed to the Napoleonic project. Likewise, in the aftermath of the French Revolution, much attention is paid to the impact of the Napoleonic era on the relationship between Church and State and the rise of national consciousness, whether in political or cultural terms. By studying how Napoleon's empire was created, challenged, and ultimately defeated, the course focuses on the nature of power and legitimacy in this era. An attempt is made to place the Napoleonic empire in a broader context, in part by comparing it to other contemporary, rival states, including Russia, Austria, and the United Kingdom. Finally, the course begins and ends with an assessment of the Napoleonic myth, both in terms of his contemporaries and for subsequent generations of historians.

The course consists of an integrated historical and a philosophical part. In the historical part, the period ca. 1900 until the present and concentrate on the development of biology as a separate scientific discipline, characterized by research programs that took shape over time is covered. In this section the following topics are reviewed Kant’s Critic of Judgment and the emergence of the teleological understanding of living beings; The Cuvier-Geoffroy debate and its influence in the development of Darwin’s theory of evolution; Darwin's theory of evolution; The rise of experimentalism in the nineteenth-century biology; The eclipse of Darwinism and discussion of neo-Lamarckism in early twentieth century; The emergence of the synthetic theory of evolution; The foundations of genetics and molecular biology; and The postgenomic turn in 21th century. The historical part ties in with several of the themes covered in the philosophical part. Some of the philosophical debates discussed in the class are Philosophy of biology and its relation to biology; The central concepts of Darwin’s theory of evolution; Adaptationist debate; Species, genes, race, classification, and taxonomies; Causality and explanation in biology; and Experimental biology and epistemic objects. The course includes lectures and tutorials. Participants are expected to have carefully read the required material and have completed the weekly assignment in advance of the meeting. The weekly assignment is a reading report or a critical question depending on the week. Entrance requirements included enrollment in a degree programme of the Faculty of Science.

This course examines cultural (textual and visual) productions about minority identities in Paris. The city has always attracted immigrants and refugees who, in turn, influence its cultural and political landscape. After a brief historical survey, the course focuses on the contemporary period with special emphasis on the legacy of World War II, colonialism, and postcolonial immigration. It explores tensions between marginalization and integration, French universalism and multiculturalism, and competing memories of traumatic histories. Through films, literature, art works, media, weekly site visits, and critical essays, students reflect on what it means to be “the other” in Paris. Through the class, students gain awareness of local and global perspectives, by enhancing their intercultural understanding of languages, cultures, and histories of local societies and the global issues to which these relate. Students also develop an aesthetic inquiry and creative expression by engaging with artistic or creative objects in different media and from different of cultural traditions. Finally, this class allows students to explore and engage with difference by thinking critically about cultural and social difference; students identify and understand power structures that determine hierarchies and inequalities that can relate to race, ethnicity, gender, nationhood, religion, or class.