Admission requirements
Admission to (one of) the programme(s) listed under Part of in the information bar on the right.
If you are interested in taking this course, but NOT a student of (one of) the listed programme(s), please contact the Education Coordinator.
To broaden the scope of this course, students interested in other societal and cultural fields or from other disciplines are encouraged to participate in the seminar. The more comprehensive the range of topics, the richer the course will be.
Students with little or no knowledge of the modern history of the Middle East should read James L. Gelvin, The Modern Middle East. A History fourth edition Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2016, BEFORE the start of the course.
Description
“There is perhaps no better anthropological or aesthetic artefact with which to read social change, to gauge resistance and to trace the scars of history and ideology on local populations than the novel”. Erdağ Göknar sees the novel in Turkey as a “vehicle of modernisation that reveals Ottoman and Turkish experience as human experience” (“The novel in Turkish: narrative tradition to Nobel prize,” The Cambridge History of Turkey, Reşat Kasaba ed, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2008, pp. 472-503). What holds true for Turkey might be extrapolated to the Middle East (Turkey, Iran, the Arab world and Israel) at large. Where the novel was a ‘vehicle of modernisation’ during the first half of the 20th century in the Middle East, this role passed on to film during the second half of the twentieth century and to television drama more recently. This course wants to explore precisely this shift in focus toward visual media in the context of Middle Eastern culture and its meaning for contemporary Middle Eastern societies (from 1900 (1850) onwards).
To achieve this, Middle Eastern cultural products will be positioned within their societal context and how they relate to society will be examined. This means studying primary source materials such as novels, poetry, films, and television series, that matter: those books, films and television series that show us political developments in Middle Eastern societies and/or constitute symbols for societal change. In addition, secondary source material on political, societal and historical developments in the contemporary Middle East will be used. If possible, this depends on the fields of interest of the students participating, a comparison between Middle Eastern societal and narrative culture and other cultures could be incorporated. This seminar will start with discussing topical issues related to the Middle East by reading recent texts on socio-political history. This will be followed by introductory lectures about methodology and examples of Middle Eastern cultural production that matter. Subsequently, students will read/view primary and secondary source material, present this to each other and prepare a publishable blog or vlog on it. Finally, all students choose a topic for themselves. give a presentation and write their final paper.
Course objectives
The objectives of this course are:
To deepen knowledge and understanding of Middle Eastern history and culture and establish insight into the transformation of cultural media that represented and changed societies throughout the 20th century.
Improve writing skills by practicing with different textual media, blogs/vlogs, and academic output.
To improve presentational skills
To improve collaboration skills.
Timetable
The timetables are available through My Timetable.
Mode of instruction
Seminar
Assessment method
Assessment and weighing
| Partial Assessment | Weighing |
|---|---|
| Assignments related to classes | 5% |
| Presentation on primary and secondary source material | 5% |
| Presentation of own research | 5% |
| Midterm: blog/vlog | 30% |
| Final paper | 55% |
Resit
A resit is offered for both an insufficient Midterm blog/vlog or an insufficient final paper, provided that the total weighted average is insufficient (5.49 or lower). In that case the course convenor may decide to assign a (new) topic. The deadline for this version will be determined in consultation. Missing a presentation or late submissions of the assignments results in a 0 for the respective parts of the assessment. Resits for insufficient presentations or for assignments are not possible.
Reading list
Information on the primary and secondary sources used in the course will be supplied through Bright Space.
Those with a gap in their knowledge on the modern history of Turkey, should read before the start of the course: James L. Gelvin, The Modern Middle East. A History, fourth edition Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2016,.
Registration
Enrolment through MyStudyMap is mandatory for:
MA Middle Eastern Studies students: the number of places is limited and the principle is first come, first served. Priority is given to students who started with the MA programme in 2024-2025.
MA Mid-le Eastern Studies (research) students who opt for the Research MA version of the course. The number of places is limited and the principle is first come, first served.
General information about course and exam enrolment is available on the website.
Students from the other MA programmes listed under Part of in the information bar on the right, need to contact their study adviser for information on the enrolment procedure. After admission they will be registered by the Education Administration Office Herta Mohr.
Contact
For substantive questions, contact the lecturer listed in the right information bar.
For questions about enrolment, admission, etc, contact the Education Administration Office Herta Mohr
Remarks
Please note that the additional course information is an integral part of this course description.