Prof. Karl J. Skutski

Modern Languages & Literatures

MLL 476-W

www.skutski.org

What is the significance of the date September 11 in Islamic and European history?

Second Siege of Vienna, September 11, 1683Juliusz Kossak

The Pope and other foreign dignitaries hailed Sobieski as the "Savior of Vienna and Western European civilization." In a letter to his wife he wrote, "All the common people kissed my hands, my feet, my clothes; others only touched me, saying: 'Ah, let us kiss so valiant a hand!'"Jan Sobieski

King of Poland1674-96

Ottoman Empire1480

First Seige of Vienna by

Suliman the Great, 1529

The world according to White Anglo-Saxon males, based upon the mythology of Western Europe, rooted in the Judeo-Christian religion and Greek-Roman philosophy.

Western man is superior.

Progress, reason and science are the highest manifestations of humanity.

Western man was put one earth to modernize the world (e.g., Manifest Density, the Columbus myth).

The rest of the world consists of barbarians and “orientals” (ergo, colonialization)

The Legacy of Modernism

“Prejudice ruled the mills as easier jobs were given to citizens and Northern Europeans, while the most dangerous tasks were assigned to Eastern Europeans.”

Source: Misko, S. Pennsylvania Folk Lore. Fall 2008.

• An introduction to the cultures and “collective psyches” of Eastern & Central Europe as reflected in the recent cinema of the region’s greatest directors (and a few writings).

• An introduction to film theory—the Hollywood model, vs. other film aesthetics; how cinematic style is reflective of the Zeitgeist and Weltanschauung of different cultures

Two Courses in One:

KEY COURSE THEMES:

1. We have a prejudicial view of the “Other Europe” as a result of

• Our education system is rooted in Western European values and belief in the “Enlightenment Project” (and our “manifest destiny” to colonize and modernize the world)

• Economic dominance of the West (Carnegie, Mellon, Frick, Heinz, etc.)

• Military suppression (history is written by the victors)E.g., Austro-Hungarian Empire, Germany

• Government propaganda about Eastern EuropeE.g.,The “Evil Empire”

• Hollywood and mass media reinforces stereotypes (clip)

• Lack of access to Eastern and Western Europe (“Iron Curtain”)

KEY COURSE THEMES:

2. What is considered a great art or cinema is determined more by those who have the power to control the media than by the intrinsic value of the work of art itself…thus:

• When we think of great painters, we think of…

• When we think of great films, we think of…

Or simply the denial of access and exposure (e.g., Soviet repression of culture and information PPT)

KEY COURSE THEMES:

3. Cinema, mass media, and pop culture play a major role in constructing our view of world, identities and sense of aesthetics

• Lenin used cinema to manipulate the masses and“engineer the human soul”

• Hollywood and TV distort our view of the world

• In America, we prefer hyper-reality to reality (Baudrillard)

• All countries and cultures utilize mass media to manipulate and control the masses (clip)

KEY COURSE THEMES:

4. We view other cultures—and the cinemas that reflect their cultures—through postmodern lenses constructed by Hollywood

• We like action, lots of eye candy and happy endings (clip) (clip)

• Theory: Our brains have become hard-wired to accept and expect a steady onslaught of media imagery, which has increased steadily with the advancement of techology

• We need to get out of our “aesthetic comfort zones” to appreciate cinema and art from other cultures (clip) (6:07, 6:54.17:28. 29:45)

• How we react to a Polish or Russian film says a lot about our own views and values

Neuroplasticity:

Plasticity, or neuroplasticity, describes how experiences reorganize neural pathways in the brain. Long lasting functional changes in the brain occur when we learn new things or memorize new information. These changes in neural connections are what we call neuroplasticity.

FACT : The environment plays a key role in influencing plasticity.

TRANSLATION:

You are what you watch.

KEY COURSE THEMES:

5. To appreciate these films, you need to be willing to step out of your aesthetic comfort zones—and negate your Hollywood fabricated identities.

• What are your really saying when you say, “The film is slow and boring”?

KEY COURSE THEMES:

“I, as an American student, weaned on Hollywood and MTV, and accustomed to formulaic star-centric plots, rapid montage editing, loud non-diegetic music and special effects, find it difficult to appreciate films with less than three shots every ten seconds, or do not have background music to tell me how I should feel and react to the image on the screen, or that make me think too hard or deal with the ambiguities of life…”

KEY COURSE THEMES:

6. Cinema and art provide experiential insight into the collective psyches of different cultures

• What do films such as American Pie and Wedding Crashers say about American culture?

• Why are Polish comedies so dark? (Clip 1:23)

• Why are Bollywood films so idealized and formulaic (all contain a set number of song and dance numbers)?

• What are Serbian films so raucous and filled with machismo-laden characters?

KEY COURSE THEMES:

7. Cinema is a powerful weapon of cultural imperialism.

• American movies are “corrupting” the native cultures and cinemas of countries around the world

• ECE and other European countries are attempting to ward off the relentless Hollywood invasion with government subsidies, lotteries, tariffs, quotas, national festivals and prizes—with little success—in order to protect their national identities and “heroes”

• Small countries simply can’t compete or support their own film industries

• Multi-national productions are a partial solution

THESIS FOR TODAY’S CLASS (documentary):

Hollywood movies are commercial products of our capitalistic system.

Eastern European films are not. *

To fully appreciate European films, it will help to understand how they differ from the Hollywood model:

• History (Hollywood studio system)

• Purpose (entertainment products designed to make money for corporations)

• Cinematic style (generic formulas with mass audience appeal—e.g., romantic comedies, murder-mysteries, horror, etc.—that utilize rapid montage editing, as opposed to “cinematic realism”)

THESIS FOR NEXT FEW WEEKS:

Hollywood vs. HollyŁódź:

The fundamental differences between the Hollywood model and the ECE film aesthetic

(and what the differences say about our collective psyches and cultures)

Krzystof Kieslowski (1941-1996)

• University of Łódź Film School

1970s-80s• Socialist documentaries

1980s• Films critical of Communism• The Decalogue

1990s• The Double Life of Veronique• Tricolors Trilogy (Blue, White, Red)

HollyŁódź:

Oppression of the individual

No middle class

Struggle for survival

Distrust of all governments

Pursuit of tolerable dignified existence

Wars happen here

Film as mirror of harsh existence

Not many happy endings

“Dark, somber, ironic, existential”

Hollywood

“It’s all about me”

Star-centric

Obsession with status, personal freedoms

America is the greatest

Pursuit of happiness

Wars happen elsewhere

Film as spectacle

Formula, “happy-ending” plots

Aesthetic of pretense

COURSE OBJECTIVES

&

REQUIREMENTS

OBJECTIVES:

1. Introduce you to the history and culture of Eastern and Central Europe through a close examination of recent films and literature—to “round out” your study of European culture and history (which has focused primarily on the cultures of Western Europe).

OBJECTIVES:

2. Stretch your aesthetic comfort zone (which has been socially constructed for you by Hollywood, the media, and the forces of secular materialism and consumerism) by exposing you to filmmakers who embrace aesthetic theories that transcend the Hollywood model.

OBJECTIVES:

3. Re-examine and evaluate our own attitudes toward the “other Europe” and other cultures (including US foreign policy), and gain a better understanding of the reasons behind cultural arrogance and discrimination.

OBJECTIVES:

4. Demonstrate how artistic expression is shaped by and reflects cultural, social, historical, economic and political influences.

Compare and contrast Eastern and Central European cinema with the Hollywood model—in order to show how film reflects the “collective psyche” and inherent values of different cultures (E.g., Why wouldn’t The Decalogue be tolerated by American television audiences? What does the madcap style of Underground say about the Serbian machismo spirit? What does the hyperrealistic style of Magnolia say about contemporary American society?)

OBJECTIVES:

5. Introduce you to film theory (different approaches to depicting “reality” on the screen).

• Bazinian cinematic realism(Kieslowski and Tarkovsky)

• Montage editing(Eisenstein and Hollywood)

OBJECTIVES:

6. Enhance your ability to view and analyze film, with a critical discerning eye—with the goal of developing and articulating informed opinions and perspectives (a fundamental skill of a liberal arts education, that is readily transferable to your professional career, be it law, business, medicine, or plumbing).

OBJECTIVES:

7. Further develop your critical writing skills, including the ability to formulate and defend a thesis statement, conduct scholarly research, and write a well-argued and supported critical essay (with ample references to the text under study and secondary sources).

OBJECTIVES:

8. Prepare you to be a citizen of the postmodern world, free of “ugly American” prejudices, sensitive to other cultures, other views, other attitudes.

OBJECTIVES:

9. Enjoy some great films!

APPROACH:

1. History and culture of Eastern and Central Europe

2. Multidisiplinary perspective

• History, religion, art, philosophy, psychology, politics, foreign affairs, feminism, etc.

3. Film & aesthetic theory

4. Critical thinking and analysis (forensics), researchand writing

APPROACH:

1. PPT lectures on key topics (posted on course schedule)

2. Student background presentations

3. In-class discussion and analysis of scenes from the films

4. In-class exercises

5. A few in-class viewings of complete films

----

Your personal viewings and contemplations on the films

Background readings

Writing and research

Web site

Requirements

Class schedule

Blackboard

Viewing the films

Hollywood vs HollyŁódź

Hollywood vs HollyŁódź:

• In what ways do Hollywood films reflect the bedrock values and beliefs of America?

• How have American history and culture helped to shape Hollywood—and vice versa?

• How has Hollywood help to shape our national and personal identities?

Hollywood vs HollyŁódź:

• In what ways do Hollywood films reflect the bedrock values and beliefs of America?

• How have American history and culture helped to shape Hollywood—and vice versa?

• How has Hollywood help to shape our national and personal identities?

Europeans Who Believe in God

The map shows the results of a Eurobarometer poll conducted in 2005. [http://europa.eu.int/comm/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_225_report_en.pdf Available here].

Krzystof Kieslowski (1941-1996)

• University of Łódź Film School

1970s-80s• Socialist documentaries

1980s• Films critical of Communism• The Decalogue

1990s• The Double Life of Veronique• Tricolors Trilogy (Blue, White, Red)

Krzystof Kieslowski (1941-1996)

• His career parallels the evolution of Poland

• Middle career: Focus on the psychological baggage of the average Pole, still tormented by the tragedies of the past (Hitler and Stalin), clinging to Catholicism, distrustful of all authority, little hope for the future

• Late career:“Prophet of secular humanism in the new Europe”

Krzystof Kieslowski (1941-1996)

Captures the fundamental questions that Eastern and Central European nations continue to wrestle with:

• Old values versus new?• Catholicism vs secular humanism?• Gay and minority rights?• Capitalism or socialism?• Alignment with Moscow, US or EU?

The Polish Psyche:

Captures the fundamental questions that Eastern and Central European nations continue to wrestle with:

• Old values versus new?• Catholicism vs secular humanism?• Gay and minority rights?• Capitalism or socialism?• Alignment with Moscow, US or EU?• Can Poland trust Germany?• Can Ukraine trust Russia?• What does the future hold for young

people?