Course Syllabus
Danish Language and Culture Through the Arts |
Hesselholdt & Mejlvang. A Beautiful Act of Patriotism. 2016
| Semester & Location: |
Spring 2025 - DIS Copenhagen |
| Type & Credits: |
Elective Course - 3 credits |
| Major Disciplines: |
Anthropology, Language, Literature |
| Related Disciplines |
Art History |
| Faculty Members: |
Nan Gerdes (please use the Canvas Inbox) |
| Time & Place: |
Thursday, 1:15 PM - 4:10 PM in in Fi6-Metro 102 |
Course Description
This course is an integrated language and culture course where we explore the Danish language and life in Denmark through the special lens of literature, visual- and dramatic arts. Serving as an advantageous entry point for your studies abroad in Denmark, the course offers an introduction to the Danish language while also exploring important themes in Danish cultures and society through art and fiction. The course will help you navigate and understand your new environment and its artistic dimensions, strengthening your sense of place and sense of belonging while studying abroad.
Our engagement with art and fiction in and outside the classroom will open up for discussions that provide insights into both the Danish language and Danish cultures, history, and politics more broadly. Are there themes or stylistic traits that make Danish artists and authors distinct from others? What can we learn about Danish traditions, values, beliefs, and conflicts through our exploration of literary, visual and dramatic works of art?
The language learning in the course will emphasize spoken everyday Danish, reading comprehension, and simple grammar, which will allow you to interact in basic ways with your local surroundings. The functional approach is evident both in classroom interactions, hands-on exercises, and experiential learning through field studies around Copenhagen and environs.
An important component of the course is your own observations of Danish society as you are studying abroad. As this is an integrated language and culture course, we explore how culture is reflected in language through expressions, concepts, and keywords. By openly and critically studying values, symbols, and dominant and marginalized narratives in Danish culture and history we will begin to understand how these continue to shape identities today. With Denmark as your case study, you will develop your ability to understand and study other cultures from an intercultural perspective.
Learning Objectives
- Acquire knowledge and understanding of Danish culture and society through the lens of art and fiction
- Ability to speak, read, and understand Danish on a basic level
- Gain an understanding of connections between language and culture
- Enhance intercultural awareness and critical reflection
- Develop a sense of belonging
Faculty
Nan Gerdes, PhD (Comparative Literature, University of Copenhagen with research stay at UC Berkeley, 2017). Postdocs at University of Copenhagen, Roskilde University (in collaboration with Stockholm University) and Aarhus University in literature, philosophy and drama. Lecturer in Danish as Second Language since 2019. With DIS since 2018.
Readings
- Danish at DIS: A Sense of Belonging
- Adriansen, Inge: “Summary Volume II”, Nationale Symboler i Det Danske Rige, Museum Tusculanums Press 2003
- Anderson, Benedict: “Introduction”, Imagined Communities, Verso 1991
- Assmann, Aleida, "Memory, Individual and Collective," in Robert Goodin, and Charles Tilly (eds), The Oxford Handbook of Contextual Political Analysis, Oxford, 2006; online edn, Oxford Academic, 2 Sept. 2009
- Bregnsbo, Michael., and Kurt Villads. Jensen. The Rise and Fall of the Danish Empire. Excerpts from the introduction and chapter 10. Cham: Springer International Publishing AG, 2022
- The Dynamics of Social Solidarity: The Danish Welfare State, 1900-2000," Scandinavian Journal of History, 2001, 26:3, 177-196
- Jespersen, Knud J.V.: "The Danish Model of the Welfare State," A History of Denmark, Palgrave, 2004
- Parker, Noel: "Differentiating, Collaborating, Outdoing: Nordic Identity and Marginality in the Contemporary World." Identities: Global Studies in Culture and Power, 9:3, 2002, 355-381
- Risager, Karen. "The Concept of Culture: An Introduction." In Karen Risager. Language and
Culture: Global Flows and Local Complexity. Bristol, Blue Ridge Summit: Multilingual Matters,
2006 - Østergaard, Uffe. “Danes.” Ethnic Groups of Europe : An Encyclopedia. Edited by Jeffrey E. Cole, and Jeffrey E Cole, ABC-CLIO, LLC, 2011, p. 103–107
Literary fiction
- Blixen, Karen. Babette's Feast. London and New York: Penguin, 2013
- Ditlevsen, Tove. Selection from Childhood in The Copenhagen Triology. Childhood Street
- Jacobsen, Siri Ranva Hjelm. The Sea Letters (unpublished translation)
Visual art
- Astrup & Bordorff
- Bolatta Silis Høegh
Podcasts
On Canvas, you can find podcasts that you can use to practice vocabulary, phrases, and pronunciation. In the textbook Danish at DIS, you find a qr-code that will take you directly to the recordings. They are also available through the 'Danish at DIS - Worksheets, Media and Guidelines' Canvas course.
Ordbogen.com
DIS has a subscription to Ordbogen, a Danish-English/English-Danish online dictionary. You are able to access this dictionary via this link
A good resource for help with pronunciation is: https://ordnet.dk/ddoLinks to an external site.
Course Format
12 weekly class sessions are scheduled throughout the semester. Most of our classes are long (1:15-4:10 PM), but some are of shorter length (typically two hours).
Learning a new language is a process that requires persistency. To support continuous acquisition of language skills, group work or individual independent class work in Danish is assigned in weeks with shorter class sessions.
Long class sessions serve to support academic focus and enable us to complement our work in the classroom with activities on other locations, thereby extending class topics and discussions to concrete experiences with art and culture in Denmark.
An oral exam in Danish takes place in session 12.
Slides from classes are posted after class under 'Files' -> 'Slides'.
Field Studies
Our field studies serve as an opportunities to engage with class relevant art works and artists. For time and details, see the calendar.
Approach to Teaching, expectations of participants, and tech policy
The teaching style of our class is interactive. You are expected to prepare for each class by doing all the assigned homework and to come to class with notes, questions, and relevant observations. You are expected to actively participate in class discussions and other activities in every class and to engage respectfully with your fellow students.
Keep in mind that learning a new language requires curiosity and commitment. We share the ambition of maintaining a classroom culture in which everyone feels at ease talking in a new and unfamiliar language.
For a three credit course like this, DIS generally expects students to work an average of six hours per week outside of class per three hours in class. The six hours include the time students spend on assignments, tests, exams, field studies and seminar nights related to the class.
Students with accommodations should reach out to faculty as soon as they wish to use their accommodations. For more information about academic accommodations, please contact Academic Support acadsupp@dis.dk.
To aid your learning process and class dialogue, use of computers and phones are not allowed in the classroom or during course related activities, including group work, unless you have accommodations or if devises are part of class work. Failure to comply will affect your participation grade. After our first session, all readings will be used in hard copy, as books or hand-outs.
The use of AI is only permitted for pre-writing purposes and should always be referenced and used with critical awareness on your part.
Absence policy
Because the course is scheduled in double sessions, you will miss the equivalent of two regular classes by being absent from one full session. For that reason, Academic Support at DIS will be notified without further notice if you miss one double session (or more) due to unexcused absence. Academic Support will also be informed if you are late to class or absent during sessions on multiple occasions. Always reach out to your faculty before class about your absence.
What to do if you miss a class: You are expected to do all preparations for all classes, also classes you miss. If you miss a class, reach out to another student from class to hear if you can see their notes. Also go over the slides from class (and other material, if relevant) in the 'Slides from Class' folder in 'Files.'
Grading
| Assignment |
Percent |
| Engaged participation |
30% |
|
Cultural Assignments |
35% |
|
Online Worksheets* |
10% |
|
Oral Exam |
25 % |
* Online Worksheets for chapter 1-5 are part of the final grading and can be accessed in the "DLC: Resources, Worksheets, audio and video files, and exam guidelines" Canvas course. We encourage to complete the worksheets throughout the semester as they correspond to the chapters in the text book. The final deadline to complete the worksheets is the same as the oral exam deadline midnight - see Canvas calendar for details.
Academic Regulations
Please make sure to read the Academic Regulations on the DIS website. There you will find regulations on:
DIS - Study Abroad in Scandinavia - www.DISabroad.org
The syllabus is subject to change
Sign up for Language Lab Workshops: https://navigate.disabroad.org/groups/language-cafe-group/info
Course Summary:
| Date | Details | Due |
|---|---|---|