A comparative introduction to modern Celtic cultures: principally Irish, Welsh, Scottish Gaelic and Breton. The development of the distinctive cultures of the Celtic "nations without states" from 1500 to the present; an examination of the role of minority cultures and minority languages in larger political cultural entities. Theme topics will vary, but will include folklore, nationalism and linguistic history from time to time.

Shadowy elfin populated isles; forty-shades of green; shamrocks and kilts; rebels and religions; poets and druids; goddesses and witches; hobbits and orcs. Besides these charming allures, what do we mean by “Celtic Culture”? This course provides, through lecture, discussion, and multimedia presentation, some tentative answers and some secure answers to basic questions about Celtic Culture as it manifests itself in modernity. The course will cover the major Celtic cultures, including the Celts of Ireland, Wales, Scotland, Brittany, and Cornwall. The course will be concerned with the cultural capital that modern Celtic peoples bring to the modern world, as well as the way that modernity has affected the ancient traditions. Our lectures and readings focus on literary and artistic contributions from these varied cultures. Historical context will be provided as we move from one culture to another, from one period to another; particular attention will be paid to risings, rebellions, and resistance among the modern Celts. Among the concerns of the course will be: the ideology and meaning of Celticism; the folklore of Celtic cultures; the reception of Celtic material by modern mainstream culture in film and the other arts; the development of literary and other aesthetic forms in Celtic cultures, including fiction, drama, lyric, and other genres. Some working questions for us will be: How are certain cultural forms and practices specific to modern Celtic cultures? How do those forms affect the non-Celtic mainstream in Europe and beyond Europe? In what ways do Celtic cultures emerge as oppressed, under-represented, and exploited within the recent centuries of revolution and de-colonization? Student Requirements: A midterm and a final; a short essay which may be used as a basis for a term paper; a short research project; and a final. Projects can be developed according to student interest. Possible projects include film, music, art, folklore, and other cultural forms. Grades will be based on an amalgam of the assessments assigned to the above assignments. Attendance and participation will help improve the average of the grades. Partial list of books: The Celts: A Very Short Introduction. Barry Cunliffe. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003. The Customs and Traditions of Wales. Trefor M. Owen. Cardiff, Wales: University of Wales Press, 2016 The Invention of Tradition. Edd. Eric Hobsbawm and Terence Ranger. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983. Handbook of the Irish Revival: An Anthology of the Irish Cultural and Political Writings 1891-1922. Edd. Declan Kiberd and P. J. Matthews. The Cambridge Companion to Modern Irish Culture. Edd. Joe Cleary and Claire Connolly. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 0 521 52629-9. Petticoat Heroes: Gender, Culture and Popular Protest in the Rebecca Riots. Chicago: Chicago University Press, 2005. ISBN: 9781783167883. Poems of Repossession: Leabhar na hAthghabhála. Ed. Louis de Paor. Bloodaxe Books, 2016. ISBN: 978 1 78037 299 0.

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Requirements class fulfills