Study and Discussion Questions

*Interview video clips have usually been edited for instructional purposes (some sections may have been removed).

Study questions for clip* from an interview conversation with a representative of the Danish Design Center (http://en.ddc.dk/). Copenhagen. Denmark. Interviewer: Megan Eaton (around 9 min).

While viewing, think about what the interviewee says about ...
what the primary and secondary missions and the main target group of the Danish Design Center are

• the types of activities the DDC engages in
• the motivations behind the definition of design and it multidisciplinary nature.
• “the combination of aesthetics and added value”
• what three words were chosen to characterize Scandinavian design and why
• facets of the current nature of Danish design
• the center’s use of “design guides” and “design cases”
• the Copenhagen Design Week and its 2009 sustainability theme
• the Danish design prize
  

Øllgaard, Gertrud. "A super-elliptical moment in the cultural form of the table: a case study of a Danish table." Journal of Design History, Vol 12(2), 1999, 143-157.
• Who designed the super-elliptical table? When?
• What role did/does advertising play on the reception or popularity of designs?
• How has the magazine Bo Bedre affected Danish consumers’ tastes?
• What is “super-elliptical” syndrome?
• Some argue that modern designs like the ones featured in this article are already old fashioned and show a lack of creativity and fresh thinking. What do you think?

Study questions for clip* from Kosta Boda, art glass/crystal, Sweden (around 4 min.). [Interviewer: Cecilia O. Alm]

While viewing, consider what you observe about ...

• the glass blowing process
• the Kosta Boda company and its trademarks
• the profile or the company’s buyers and the percentage of their export
  

Company websites where you can view more art glass: http://www.kostaboda.us/ and http://www.orrefors.se/main.asp.

Morgan, James. “The World’s Best Designed Country.” National Geographic Traveller. Vol. 23, No. 5, (July/August 2006). S.74-83.
• Why is Sweden "the world’s best designed country", in Morgan’s opinion?
• He talks about design in many ways, not just fashion and decorating. What other areas does he mention that we can find good design in Sweden?

Fashionably Low-Key: Olso’s New Opera and It's a Stripey, Stripey World (Nordic Reach Vol XXII 2009).
• What design characteristics do the designers/objects profiled share? Where do they diverge?
• What picture of Scandinavian design do the articles paint?
• What role does nature play in the work of these designers?

Study questions for clip* from an interview conversation with the Senior Curator of Prints & Drawings at the Munch Museum, Oslo (around 10 min.). [Interviewer: Cecilia O. Alm]

While viewing, consider what the interviewee says about ...

• the breath and scope of Edvard Munch’s work
• the Munch Museum’s mission and its international collaborations
• how Munch’s work has influenced other painters and artists
• Munch’s status as an icon of national identity
• possible “Scandinavian” aspects of Munch’s work
• the woodcut Encounter in space
• how Munch worked on his most famous painting Skrik (The Scream)

Website where Munch’s writings will soon become available for electronic search: http://www.emunch.no

Discussion Questions for “Introduction” from Transnational Cinema in a Global North: Nordic Cinema in Transition
by Andrew Nestingen
• Think about the Nordic films you have seen. How are they (or are they not) manifestations of a transnational film market? What is Trollywood? Have you heard of other labels of regional Scandinavian film centers?
• How do the themes in popular Nordic films such as the Danish The Celebration (Festen), the Norwegian Elling, and the Swedish The Seventh Seal (Det sjunde inseglet) represent national identity? What are the issues of national representation in regards to the multinational production, distribution, and exhibition that characterize Nordic film?
• Think about the “economic, political, and cultural terrain” of American film. How do these factors differ in the multinational production of Nordic film?
• In the transition between a national cinema culture and one dictated by a “global Hollywood,” ae typical Nordic genres (i.e. Dogma 95, immigrant films, costume drama, art films) in danger of being lost? What do these genres mean to Nordic identity? Does a national cinema really exist?
• Think about the categorization dilemma in Troell’s Hamsun. How important is cultural authenticity in a film market that has become increasingly multinational? How much does ignorance matter to your perceived “success” of a film?
• With the English language as a key “ingredient” to globalizing movie content, what does the scarcity of study and writing on Nordic film in English mean for the future of Nordic film?

Study questions for article by Frederik Marker “Tradition and experiment since 1945” from A History of Scandinavian Theatre for April 21.

• How are Sjöberg’s rejection of all technology but light and his innovative set designs related to the ideas of making theatre a “tradition of experiment,” theatre as a “moral imperative,” and theatre as a “protest against reality?” How does he use scenic illusion and conscious theatricality to highlight the idea of the world as a theatre?
• How has the political climate in Sweden manifested itself in theatre? Is it different in the U.S.? If yes, how so?
• Discuss the reformation of the theatre experience in the ‘60s and ‘70s to create a “people’s theatre” where “nothing was intended for eternity” and the relationship between actor and audience was emotionally intensified. How did this fit the political climate at the time?
• What issues arose with the growth of subsidized, universally accessible theatres in Scandinavia in the ‘70s? How did the traditional roles of actor, director, playwright, and the play itself change with this new model of the stage?
• How does Barba’s idea of theatre being most significant as ideology and anthropology relate to the theatre of social purpose and revolt against institutionalized theatre that sprang up in the late ‘60s as a weapon for class struggle?
• Does the absence of major new Scandinavian dramatists in the postwar years and their subsequent appearance in the ‘60s and ‘70s really (in your opinion) indicate the possibility of a Scandinavian Renaissance as Marker suggests? What themes do you feel would characterize such a Renaissance?

Study questions for article by Anna Westerståhl Stenport “Bodies Under Assault: Nation and Immigration in Henning Mankell’s Faceless Killers” from Scandinavian Studies, 79(1), 2007, for April 19
• How has popular culture reflected sentiments and changing sentiments to the Swedish reception of immigrants and the multicultural society?
• How does Mankell’s detective novel Faceless Killers differ from other films and literature addressing the immigrant experience and issues of immigration policy? Why does it work? Think about the content, structure, and rhetoric of representation.
• Why do fantasy worlds, locale/landscape, the temporal present, and the body matter in Faceless Killers and how do they work to demonstrate warring ideologies on immigration in the specific context of a detective novel? Can you tell what Mankell believes about immigration’s effect of the Welfare State?
• What changes has immigration policy in Sweden experienced over the past decades? How have these changes affected living and working conditions?
• In what three ways does Faceless Killers place the detective (and the reader, by association) in the place of the criminal? What effect does this achieve?
• Discuss Faceless Killers as “the attempt at rewriting another kind of history",

Study questions for clip* from an interview conversation with Lars-Gunnar Andersson, Professor of Modern Swedish, Gothenburg University, Sweden (around 13 min.). [Interviewer: Megan Eaton.]

While viewing, consider what Lars-Gunnar Andersson says about ...

• why Gothenburg University has a Chair in Modern Swedish (note: nordiska språk - Nordic languages)
• how he engages with the public about Swedish and language
• the kind of letters and questions that he receives from the public
• how new words may enter into Swedish (note: miljö – environment)
• how English is influencing Swedish, and how some feel about that
• the new Swedish language law
• how the Internet is “democratizing” language
• the public interest in language issues

Note: You can find information about the Swedish Department at Gothenburg University here: http://www.svenska.gu.se/english.

Discussion questions on Pippi and Lindgren readings (week 11/12)

• What was Lindgren’s opinion about writing for children versus writing for adults? Why does she write for children?
• What had Singer said about the differences in child and adult expectations and reasons for reading? How do his words interact with Lindgren’s view of books as a relationship between the reader and the author?
• Did you experience Pippi or other Lindgren characters growing up? If you did, what do you remember from those experiences?
• What was Lindgren’s response to the question, “What should we expect of a good children’s book?” To the question, “What did you mean by this?” What is her view on critics?
• Pippi was published in 1945; is this significant? Why do you think Pippi upset some adults then (and now)?
• Lindgren talked about the annoying habit translators have of trying to “doctor up” her stories. What issues of intent and meaning arise in the translation process? How are these issues similar to the ones that arise in adult criticism of children’s books?
• How did Lindgren feel about cutting content to fit format? What advice does she give to new authors on dealing with publishers?
• Lindgren said that “if there is a future for man, then there is a future for books.” Do you agree or disagree? Why?

Discussion questions on readings for first part of April 9 lesson.

• What is the Pirate Bay?
• What do you think about Pirate Bay’s name? Why may they have chosen that instead of something along the lines of Napster, Kazaa, or Limewire?
• Why were the founders sued in Swedish court? What happened? Do you agree with the ruling?
• What are outcomes that can result from file sharing activities of the Pirate Bay and similar websites?
• Are there specific arguments that could be brought in support of/against the Pirate Bay’s file sharing activities?
• Why do you think the atmosphere outside the courtroom was described the way it was?
• Mulliagan described the Pirate Bay trial as “good PR” for media industries. Do you agree?
  
  
• What is the Pirate Party? Is it affiliated with The Pirate Bay? Describe the Pirate Party’s political history.
• What is the Pirate Party’s platform? Is it only about file-sharing?
• What do you think of the Pirate Party as a political group? Do they fit in with the other political parties in Sweden (or elsewhere in Europe for that matter)? How are they different? How are they similar? Do they belong?
• What repercussions, positive or negative, might the presence of the Pirate Party in parliament have on Swedish/European politics.
• Given the political landscape, do you think the Pirate Party has a chance to gain parliamentary seats in the Swedish Riksdag in the fall 2010 elections? Why (not)?
  

Discussion questions on interview with Rene Engström, creator of ALM, for second part of April 7 lesson.

• Characterize the comic ALM, its background, and the cartoonist behind it.
• Discuss the characters (Anders, Maria, etc.). Did you find any particular character particularly interesting? Did any particular event or episode stand out? Why?
• From the perspective of entreprenuerial acticities, given the discussion of very large enterprises we studied earlier this week, can you make any connections with this cartoonist's professional activities? (Yes, it is probably a too broad question, but it is OK to be creative here.)
• Rene Engström mentions a number of Swedish aspects of the comic. Can you relate to these given certain passages you read?
• Looking at this webcomic from "outside" of Sweden, were there other aspects that you found Scandinavian/Swedish?
  

Discussion and study questions for week 8 readings

• According to the discussion in Puhakka et al, what three aspects of tourism and environmental issues does PAN hope to bring together? What are the main concerns regarding tourism’s effects on culture?
• Based on the data in Puhakka et al's article, what can you say about the PAN project’s efficacy? What do you think about the interview method of gathering data on ecotourism?
• What are the central conflicts expressed in the article? What compromises might you suggest to easy the tensions between tourism and culture?
  
• According to Spencer's text, how many “eco-municipalities” does Sweden have? What exactly does this term mean? What is TNS?

Discussion and study questions for week 7 Friday Green Party reading

• Following Burchett, what does it mean that the Green Party was considered an “anti-party” party? What problems could more radical vs. moderate Green Party branches face as they seek to gain political ground?
• How would you describe the dilemma within the Swedish Green Party when they were asked to enter a coalition? What decision did the Green Party come to and what repercussions did this have? Would they be in the same place today? Do you think the Swedish Green Party actually has a traditional political alignment despite its platform?
• How is the Swedish Green Party best able to put its parliamentary presence to use? How has the Swedish Green Party developed differently than the Green Parties in other European countries?
• If you were to advise the Swedish Green Party as they move through the 21st century, what advice would you give them?
  

Study questions for clip* from an interview conversation with Gun Rudquist, Swedish Society for Nature Conservation, an environmental NGO in Sweden (around 15 min.). Interviewer: Megan Eaton. [This interview was recorded before the Copenhagen climate meeting.]

While viewing, think about what Gun Rudquist says about ...

• public memberships in this NGO and NGOs in general
• how the society started
• Good Environmental Choice, companies and consumers
• her perspective on Swedish environmental progress compared to international, and special areas of strength
• 16 environmental goals set by the Swedish parliament, and how this can be used in their work as an NGO
• illustrative examples of public awareness building campaigns and campaigns involving interactions with companies and governments
• examples of some of the organization’s centennial achievements (note: havsörn means sea eagle)
• her projection what the next global environmental discussion area will be

Discuss and brainstorm in small groups: What were some concrete examples of awareness raising. activism, and campaigns mentioned? What are some other ways in which one could raise awareness or work to reduce the stress on the environment and global climate change?

Study questions for the commission report "Making Sweden an OIL-FREE society" (week 7)
• The commission reached a consensus, except on one issue. What was it?
• What is the rebound effect?
• Around how much of Sweden’s energy consumption did crude oil and oil products vs. biofuels account for in 2004?
• What were the top 2-3 oil using sectors in Swedish society in 2004?
• What’s the 2020 target for heating oil in residential/commercial buildings?
• What’s the 2020 reduction target for petrol and diesel for road transport?
• What is the 2020 reduction target for use of oil in industry?
• What is the overall 2020 target for increasing energy efficiency?
• What alternative, domestic energy sources are mentioned for investment?
• What problems do they envision with large-scale natural gas introduction?
• Through which venues do they want to spread knowledge about energy efficiency?
• What are some proposals made for road transport?
• Summarize the proposal for public transport.
• How could Information Technology (IT) decrease environmental stress?
• What is the Green Car (phase 2)?
• Name and explain some of the many areas of targeted R&D investment named.
• What does Sweden’s current investment in fuel cell & hydrogen gas research total?

Discussion and study questions for week 6 Friday and week 7 Monday readings
• What are the five parts of globalization defined by Jan Aart Scholte (as cited by Einhorn & Logue)?
• Following Einhorn & Logue, how has historical “Scandinavian cooperation” affected the Nordic countries’ interactions with other countries? Why are the Scandinavian countries considered “Western”?
• From Einhorn & Logue’s perspective, what effect has Scandinavia’s non-interventionist stance had on its interactions with other countries? It’s international role?
• Can you summarize moves made in Scandinavia toward globalization (monetary, trade-related, political). What has been the effect of globalization on national policy making?
• What is the “democratic deficit”, according to Einhorn & Logue?
• What advantages and disadvantages of the Swedish healthcare system does Precht mention? What is the average life expectancy for the population? What percentage of healthcare spending is publicly funded?
• Following Pontusson, why shouldn’t “social democracy” be conflated with “social Europe?” (p.1) Also, what characteristics define the “social democratic policy regime”.
• What models, reseach and data does Pontusson employ? Why?
• Given Pontusson’s discussion define “Varieties-of-Capitalism” and “post-industrial” society. What does the latter have to do with service employment?
• Education plays a large role in Pontusson’s arguments. How does he characterize education in the Nordic countries? Why is it so important? How does vocational training differ between the Nordic countries and continental Europe?
• What is precarious employment and how does the incidence of precarious employment differ between Nordic and continental countries?
• After reading Pontusson’s article, do you believe that the US could benefit from stronger unions?
Could the US benefit from emulating the Nordic countries in terms of education, or the egalitarianism of Nordic social democratic policies? What arguments support your point of view?

Study questions for clip* from an interview conversation with Mira Banjac, Swedish preschool teacher, Stockholm (around 4.5 min.). Interviewer: Cecilia Ovesdotter Alm.

While viewing, consider what Mira Banjac says about ...

• the EduCare approach and how that reflects the idea of a national preschool curriculum and, philosophically, whether the focus is on children or parents
• equal rights to preschool education and how this relates to the max. ceiling cost (by the way, 1250 SEK ≈ $175, 2000 SEK ≈ $280) .
• how parents tend to divide their parental leave
  Note: You can read more about the Swedish national preschool curriculum, and how it compares with Norway’s preschool here: http://ecrp.uiuc.edu/v1n2/alvestad.html.
  

Study questions for clip* from an interview conversation with Marie Andrée Kriisa, co-founder, Beredskapsmuseet, outside Helsingborg, Sweden (around 3 min.). Interviewer: Cecilia Ovesdotter Alm.

While viewing, consider what Marie Andrée Kriisa says about ...

• the location of the museum
• the military layout of the site in 1940, and its goal
• the story behind the museum’s symbol En svensk tiger (its background, its UK counterpart, what it intended to convey, and why)
• From a broader perspective:
  • In the beginning, she says “We are a peaceful nation […]”. How do you relate this to Swedish history? To other contexts?
  • In what way(s) does the WWII preparation era correspond to or contrast with other aspects of peace and conflict studied in the course?
  Note: You can view a map of this strategic location here: http://www.beredskapsmuseet.com/visit.html .

Study questions for article by Hübner and Summer with Monika excerpt
• Who is the more central character in the film--Harry or Monika (and why)?
• What is the significance of Monika’s wish to escape? What about her connection to nature?
• How does the physical presence of the camera and the use of close up in the scenes of Summer with Monika highlight shifting perspectives, the process of looking, and illusions that the film is trying to capture? (Consider Hübner's discussion of the last mirror scene, for instance.)
• What can you say about the association of the female with both community (an angle for identification) and commodity (a sexualized object) in Bergman's film?

Study questions for clip* from an interview conversation with Erik Höök, Senior Curator, Strindberg Museum, Stockholm (approximately 6.5 min.). Interviewer: Cecilia Ovesdotter Alm.

While viewing, consider what Erik Höök says about ...

• the location of the Strindberg museum and Strindberg’s apartment
• Miss Julie and its status in international theater
• Strindberg’s creativity beyond the written word
• contrasting perspectives on Strindberg’s relationship with the female gender
• the professional relationship between Strindberg and Ibsen
• how and why Strindberg remains relevant today (on and off stage)
• Strindberg’s language and the issue of translation
  Lastly, if you recognize the historical figure depicted in the wall image behind the interviewee, how is that character relevant to Strindberg’s written work?.

Study and discussion questions for week 4 Monday lecture and readings
• In Þrymskviða, what is the story about? How are Freyja, Thor, and Loki depicted?
• What other female vs. male pre-Christian Scandinavian deities are you familiar with? What images of the sexes do they convey?
• Where does our information about Old Norse deities come from? Can you enumerate some key sources?
• How may archeologists establish if a ‘Viking’ burial site is male or female?
• How did women’s roles in Old Norse society differ from men’s, according to Borovsky? Does this correlate with the view based on Jenny Jochens’ work?
• How does Borovksy classify sagas as source, and how did oral performance function in the sagas? According to Borovsky, what relation do women hold to the changes from paganism to Christianity and oral to written culture?
• How does the figure of Steinunn (Icelandic saga) assert her power through verse? What relationship exists between women’s oral performance and their other rights? Did oral performance afford women more opportunities?

Study and discussion questions for week 3 lecture and readings
• Consider how the international perception of 'Swede' compares with the country's current multicultural demographics.
• What types of issues might immigrants to Sweden face today that were not faced by earlier immigrant groups?
• How might the Great Migration to North America be affecting modern Sweden's view of immigration?
• What perspectives on traits of Swedish mentality/ies are given in the Blatte United article? Any opinions/concerns?
• The term “Blatte” is originally a derogatory term. Why would the team choose this for their name? Is it appropriate?
• In your own words, what do the following terms from Gustafson's article mean: sedentarism and methodological nationalism; transnationalism in opposition to nationalism; the two types of belonging mentioned? What are the effects of transnational and national thinking on attitudes toward dual citizenship?
• Critically characterize the Swedish dual-citizenship debate and the rhetorical positions taken in it, following Gustafson.
• NYT articles: What is the main issue at the center of the controversy?
• How does Hedetoft characterize immigration contexts and policies in Denmark vs. in Sweden? What is Hedetoft’s point about the policy vs. the grassroots levels?
• In Ramalingam's thesis, what arguments are brought forth regarding Denmark, politics, and the effects of 20th C. history? How does she compare/contrast the two nations?

Discussion questions on Kristina från Duvemåla, musical adaptation of Moberg's Emigrants series (Friday, week 2)
• Why was the female protagonist Kristina chosen as central character in the musical? (The novel had her husband Karl-Oskar positioned as a more central character, arguably.)
• What could have lead to Kristina being a smash hit in Sweden but not so well received in the US?
• How could staging Moberg’s work as a musical transmit the messages of the novels differently? What is to be gained? What might be lost?

Study and discussion questions for week 2 lectures and readings about the Great Emigration to the United States
• What factors contributed to the mass emigration from Sweden and Scandinavia to the US?
• What effects of the mass emigration have been suggested for Sweden (e.g. by Hovde)?
• How did Swedish-Americans establish a new life in the US? What parts of their culture did they abandon or maintain? What might their reasons have been?
• What reminders of Swedish emigration are still to be found today?
• Can you mention a key figure that played a large role in encouraging emigration. Who was he/she and what did he/she do? Why might she/he have had such a large influence?
• How did view of the New World and emigration tie into political philosophy at the time? Summarize the reasons given for and against migration, in favor of or condemning those that chose to leave Sweden.
• Newspapers played a key role in the Great Migration. How did they affect the rate of emigration and the reasons for emigration? What about letters and connections across the Atlantic? How might things have been different without these forms of involvement?

Study questions for clip* from an interview conversation with Gunnar Andersson, Senior Curator specializing on the late Scandinavian Iron Age ('Viking Age'), Historical Museum, Stockholm. Interviewer: Megan Eaton.

While viewing, consider what Gunnar Andersson says about ...

• the word and label Viking
• Viking helmets and what evidence there is to understand what helmets looked like
• Viking vanity and appearance and what conflicting sources there are
• the museum's "Viking summer” (vikingasommar) program
• Viking migration patterns (travels, settlements, vs. permanent settlements)
• interconnections between settlement and military camps (e.g. Dublin)
• Iceland's settlement and the role of proposed migratory motivations (the reign of Harald Fairhair, vs. scarcity of land, vs. inheritance laws)
• claims that male vs. female settlement of Iceland supposedly had different geographical origins (males from Scandinavia vs. female from the British Isles)
• Internet access for interacting with the Historical Museum’s collections

Discussion questions/food for thought given week 1 lectures Travels and Migratory Diasporas of the 'Vikings' & Terrorists, Romantics and Supermen: The Image of the Vikings
• How does what we talked about compare with what you thought you knew about the 'Vikings'?
• The Scandinavians travelled far. What can this tell us about them as a people?
• How and why do images of ‘Vikings’ persist today?
• How does historical descriptions contrast against modern media ‘Vikings’.
• Why is it so important to know that ‘Vikings’ reached North America?
• Why do you think the Vinland Map and Kensington Rune Stone hoaxes have remained a part of public discourse for so many years? What is so fascinating about these items? What might they represent?

*Interview video clips have usually been edited for instructional purposes (some sections may have been removed).