Norwegian Culture and History - An Introduction

Introduction

The purpose of the course is to give the students an insight into Norwegian history, culture and society with an emphasis on politics, economics and culture from 1814 until today. The course gives a broad overview of important dimensions of Norwegian history. Norwegian culture means both an attempt to understand Norwegian approaches to politics and the economy as well as culture in a traditional sense, with in-depth studies of selected topics such as literature, music, architecture and visual art. There will also be excursions to Norwegian heritage sites.

Course content

The course consists of the following topics:

• Introduction
• Norwegian History: 800-1814
• Democracy in practice, 1814-1931
• Democratic capitalism and the Main deal, 1920s and 1930s
• A model democracy? 1935-2020
• Cultural History
• Field trip
• Cultural representations
• Ibsen and modern literature
• Coastal Norway
• The egalitarian tradition
• Norway's oil economy
• Gender Equality in Norway
• Wrap up