PS Approaching Aotearoa / New Zealand
Aotearoa/New Zealand is commonly portrayed as a peaceful Pacific paradise, praised for its ("100% Pure") unspoilt nature and spectacular scenery as well as its harmonious race relations and egalitarian spirit. This seminar sets out to look both at and beyond the nation’s (colonial) myths and narratives and seeks to critically explore the small country’s brief history and cultural formation. Following a roughly chronological order for the first half of the term, the course will cover major events from the arrival of the first Polynesian settlers in the 13th century, its British colonisation in the 19th century, the Māori Renaissance, and bicultural policies of the late 20th century to the challenges of its pluralistic society today. Against the backdrop of these historical contexts, the second part of the seminar will proceed thematically by looking into Māori–Pākehā relations and the role of te reo (Māori language), the myth of the ‘classless society’, nature and ‘the great outdoors’, immigration and multiculturalism, and gender roles. Throughout, the participants’ understanding of Aotearoa/New Zealand contexts is advanced by a selection of readings including excerpts from historical sources, official documents, a vast range of literary works, film, plus secondary and theoretical texts on the nation’s history, culture, and literature as well as (settler)(post)colonialism in general. All readings will be made available on the VC.
Aotearoa/New Zealand is commonly portrayed as a peaceful Pacific paradise, praised for its ("100% Pure") unspoilt nature and spectacular scenery as well as its harmonious race relations and egalitarian spirit. This seminar sets out to look both at and beyond the nation’s (colonial) myths and narratives and seeks to critically explore the small country’s brief history and cultural formation. Following a roughly chronological order for the first half of the term, the course will cover major events from the arrival of the first Polynesian settlers in the 13th century, its British colonisation in the 19th century, the Māori Renaissance, and bicultural policies of the late 20th century to the challenges of its pluralistic society today. Against the backdrop of these historical contexts, the second part of the seminar will proceed thematically by looking into Māori–Pākehā relations and the role of te reo (Māori language), the myth of the ‘classless society’, nature and ‘the great outdoors’, immigration and multiculturalism, and gender roles. Throughout, the participants’ understanding of Aotearoa/New Zealand contexts is advanced by a selection of readings including excerpts from historical sources, official documents, a vast range of literary works, film, plus secondary and theoretical texts on the nation’s history, culture, and literature as well as (settler)(post)colonialism in general. All readings will be made available on the VC.
- Moderator/in: Lina Strempel
- Moderator/in: Carmen Zink
Semester: 2023 Sommersemester