Slavic Studies

This course introduces the range of historical, political, and cultural frameworks that define the region of the Balkans. Guided by critical geopolitics and critical heritage studies, it maps the turning points and minor stories that make this region. The mapping exercise provides an opportunity to use multi-scalar and multi-temporal approaches and explore territories, practices, events, and communities from the mid-19th century to contemporary initiatives such as the Open Balkans. The course investigates the discrepancies between dynamics around the making of a region, and the spatial entanglements in the culturally and historically charged urban heritage sites. Through these places, it examines spatial categories, borders as part of everyday life, notions of politics of the past, heritage as a tool of geopolitics, and the democratic potential of heritage.

The course focuses on the construction of Czech national identity during the 19th and 20th century. Although the Czech national awakening started first with the beginning of the 19th century, it used the symbols and references through all the historical eras of Czech lands starting with the early medieval times. The course follows the roots of Czech national consciousness from the first ruling dynasty, through the gothic, renaissance, baroque times until the foundation of Czechoslovakia and its history in the 20th century. Special attention is dedicated to the symbols and symbolical places, which were used during the creation of Czech national revival as patterns of Czech national identity (e.g. Slavín cemetery, National Museum, National Theatre, Municipal house, the monument of Battle of White Mountain, National Memorial on the Vítkov Hill). By visiting these symbolical places the students are able to see, what kind of national symbols were used and in which way. The course is divided into two parts: the first part is theoretical, in the in order to outline the topic and background of the lecture. The second part includes field trips to one of the museums/memorials, where the different problematics are discussed more precisely.

This course introduces Soviet and post-Soviet politics and external policies, with a special emphasis on domestic developments in Russia and Ukraine, and the impact on Moscow's foreign behavior. The key paradigm is the close interaction between internal and external factors. The course addresses the building and unbuilding of an empire: from the Tsarist empire to the USSR; the fall of the USSR to the consolidation of new independent republics in Europe; Gorbachev and Yeltsin's reforms to Putin's authoritarianism; and partnership to confrontation with Western countries. Topics also include Russia's wars: Chechnya, Georgia, Syria, and Ukraine; the major issues of democracy versus autocracy; Russian post-Soviet identity; European security; economic challenges; Russia-West relations; and the future of Ukraine and Russia. 

This course takes an interdisciplinary approach to the phenomenon of humor, combining literary studies, culture studies, rhetoric, philosophy, ethics, psychology, and political theory. The course presents a historical introduction, comparing examples of humor and comedy from different parts of the world and different eras, focusing on the political power of laughter and comedy. Key concepts like satire, irony, parody, black humor, wit, resistance, subversion, absurd humor etc. are clarified and major philosophical theories of humor are discussed. The main focus of the course is Czech culture and the many ways humor is present in it. Was communism a “regime that was laughed out of existence”? Why did Czechoslovak citizens find absurd humour so relatable? Is there “nothing sacred” for Czechs? Apart from literary masterpieces by Hašek, Kafka, Havel, Kundera and others, the course takse a look at comedy in theater (Jára Cimrman Theatre), film (Czechoslovak New Wave) and other forms of art. The readings always include an excerpt from a humorous text and a short theoretical text pertaining to the type of humor or the problem presented. From the divine to the obscene, from the hyper-intellectual to the nonsensical, from practical jokes to political satire, the rich palette of humor provides a unique view of Czech culture.