Europe: Narrating the Nation

This subject is not offered in 2011.

This subject explores national identity in Europe in the modern era. It introduces students to key moments, narratives and mythologies in the emergence of national identity in countries such as France, Germany, Italy, Spain and England. Students will encounter a range of writing (prose, poetry, drama, letters, diaries) which reflects on the significance of events such as revolutions, wars, colonialism and modernisation. An enduring theme will be the ways in which a sense of national self emerges from direct comparison to perceptions of others, including Jews, women, the poor, peoples of other nations. The subject will draw attention to the gendering of the nation, the position of women and Jews and the significance of colonialism to the national narrative of European nations. Students will gain an appreciation of nation and national identity in Europe as a discursive process, and an understanding of the distinct national stories of a number of European countries.

• be aware of how nations and national identity in Europe have emerged in the modern era.
• appreciate national identity as a discursive process, something which is created and reflected upon in writing of various kinds including prose, poetry and life writing.
• through reading texts which reflect on events such as revolutions, wars, colonialism and modernisation, students will gain an understanding of the different national narratives of countries such as France, Germany, Italy, Spain and England.
• Themes such as the gendering of the nation, the position of women and Jews will be explored in various national contexts. Students will understand how the formation of national identities in Europe is a comparative process.

A subject reader will be available at the University Bookshop.

This subject potentially can be taken as a breadth subject component for the following courses:

• Bachelor of Biomedicine
• Bachelor of Commerce
• Bachelor of Environments
• Bachelor of Music
• Bachelor of Science
• Bachelor of Engineering

You should visit learn more about breadth subjects and read the breadth requirements for your degree, and should discuss your choice with your student adviser, before deciding on your subjects.

• appreciate literary and other texts in their historical context.
• summarise and critically engage with texts in oral and written presentations.
• enhance their understanding of texts by referring to existing scholarship.
• interpret and appraise literary reflections on nation and national identity.
• reflect upon the comparative nature of national identity and compare national narratives with respect to themes such as gender, colonialism and the position of Jews.