COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course examines history and film in Europe from the immediate aftermath of the devastation of the Second World War to the recent past. Topics include: the memory of the Second World War and the reconstruction of Europe, the Cold War, the dilemmas of Americanization, the expansion of the social welfare state, decolonization and immigration, student protest, the radical right, (the challenges of) European integration, and more.

The course will be taught with a mix of lecture and discussion. A large part of our studies will be devoted to a consideration of how the larger political and social struggles of Europe have been refracted and interpreted in the art of cinema. Throughout the semester, we’ll return to a set of central questions: How has Europe (and how have Europeans) recovered from the disaster that was the first half of the twentieth century? How have filmmakers reflected upon this history? How can film help to illuminate our understanding of history? How can history help to illuminate our understanding of film?

There will be (required) weekly film viewings every week – on Thursday evening, with an alternate viewing on Friday. We’ll watch important (and often challenging) films from postwar European cinema. Titles include: The Third Man, Rome: Open City, The Marriage of Maria Braun, Blow-Up, Blind Chance, Hate.

LEARNING GOALS

At the end of the course, students should be able to:

• Identify and describe the major developments in politics, society, economics, and culture in Europe from 1945 to the present
• Identify and describe key films from postwar European cinema that shed light on this history
• Apply essential tools of historical analysis
• Apply essential tools of film criticism