Lecture (LEC)

• IUB GenEd A&H credit
• COLL (CASE) A&H Breadth of Inq
• IUB GenEd World Culture credit
• COLL (CASE) Global Civ & Cultr

• Above class meets second eight weeks only
• Above class open to undergraduates only
• IUB GenEd A&H credit
• IUB GenEd World Culture credit
• COLL (CASE) A&H Breadth of Inquiry credit
• COLL (CASE) Global Civ & Culture credit

The course is a HEADY and INTOXICATING introduction to a people and culture that made ROBOTS and PILSNER BEER household names. We will take a virtual tour of Czech history, literature, film, art and brewmastery in an attempt to answer the central question: Who are the Czechs and why don¿t people take them more seriously? Format: The course will be conducted through a mixture of lectures, instructor-led discussions, and film/video viewing concerning the cultural, historical, and political history of the Czechs and their various national instantiations from their origins up to today. STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES: Our goals include the development of a range of skills necessary not only for the academic success but for encountering, analyzing, and enjoying differences in real world situations. The skills we will be developing in this course are defined as follows by the IU General Education Learning Outcomes: Arts & Humanities: AH1: knowledge of origins, varieties, and meanings of the expressions and artifacts of human experience, including (a) original written texts in various literary forms, (b) works of visual art and design, (c) musical compositions, and (d) dramatic performance (live theater, dance, film, video, digital, etc.); AH2: knowledge of the cultural, intellectual, and historical contexts through which these expressions and artifacts are interpreted; AH4: the ability to develop arguments, ideas, and opinions about forms of human expression, grounded in rational analysis and in an understanding of and respect for the historical context of expressions and artifacts, and to express these ideas in written and/or oral form; World Languages & Cultures: WC3: knowledge of other cultures (including beliefs, values, perspectives, practices, and products); NO KNOWLEDGE OF CZECH OR ANYTHING IN PARTICULAR REQUIRED Texts The following books are available for purchase at the IU Bookstore in the Memorial Union: Franz Kafka, The Complete Stories (Schocken, 1995) Bohumil Hrabal, Too Loud a Solitude (Mariner Books, 1992) Other readings will be posted on Canvas under Modules and the appropriate week. Keywords: Czech, Czechia, Czechoslovakia, Czech culture