History of Latvian Literature 3020-BB1HLO

The aim of the course is to introduce students to the history of Latvian literature from its birth to the present day. Each class is devoted to a character, text, issue or phenomenon that significantly influenced not only the final shape of literature, but Latvian culture in general. The first few classes are devoted to discussing the processes (primarily the activities of the Herrnhutians, East Baltic Germans and Young Latvians) that led to the awakening of Latvians' national consciousness, the formation of their identity and, ultimately, to the creation of the Latvian state at the beginning of the 20th century. The first decades of the twentieth century were both a time of experimentation in literature and of reaching for decidedly more classical solutions. The process of literary creation was interrupted by the Second World War and the subsequent occupations, which made it necessary for Latvian authors to adopt a different attitude. After the war, Latvian literature split into two currents: domestic (Soviet literature) and émigré, which were only able to merge after Latvia regained its independence. However, they will not be presented as two separate literatures, but as a certain whole that carries on an engaging dialogue with each other.
The 1950s were a time of great panoramic epics, and the following decades within the borders of the USSR - of poetic and prose texts brimming with metaphors and allegories, through which important content for the maintenance of national consciousness is conveyed to Latvian society and a bold message to the hegemon.
The period of independence after the 1990s will be shown through the perspective of the rebirth of Latvian literature, the freedom of creative expression, the reference by authors to contemporary literary currents in the world, as well as the return to the roots - folk literature and Latvian mythology.
The final class is a wide-ranging discussion of trends and perspectives, as well as the problems and challenges facing contemporary Latvian literature.

Szacunkowa liczba godzin, które student musi przeznaczyć na osiągnięcie zdefiniowanych dla przedmiotu efektów uczenia się:
konwersatorium – 60 godz.,
samodzielne przygotowywanie się do zajęć – 60 godz.,
konsultacje dot. pracy pisemnej i przygotowanie pracy – 30 godz.,
przygotowanie się do egzaminu końcowego – 30 godz.
RAZEM = 180 godzin.