HIST 241-001: Topics in History And Text: Heroes & Myths in Modern Europ (Spring 2010)

Content: From the beginning, every European nation-state has been marked by an attempt to give itself historical legitimacy. Especially important have been mythical constructions that not only seek to justify the existence of a nation, but also define its specific features through the use of national heroes. European states attempted to define themselves by reference to events from their respective national histories, which are then invested with symbolic importance in order to validate their political claims. This course attempts to define the concept of “national myth” by exploring the formation and function of the cults surrounding figures like the Cheruscan prince Hermann (Germany), Joan of Arc (France) or William Tell (Switzerland). We will also draw comparisons with the U.S. What, for example, are the central myths in American history, and when and why did they acquire significance? What was their role in the formation of a specifically American identity, and what significance do they continue to have in the present?

Required Texts: Friedrich Schiller, Wilhelm Tell. Translated and with an Introduction by William F. Mainland. University of Chicago Press: 1972 [ISBN: 0-226-73801-9]; Kate Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, 7^th ed. University of Chicago Press: 2007 [ISBN: 0-226-82337-7].

Recommended Texts: Anderson, Benedict, Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism. Revised Edition. London/New York: Verso 1991; Smith, Anthony D., National Identity. London/New York: Penguin Books 1991.