Imagining the Dutch: themes in Dutch History

URL study guide

https://studiegids.vu.nl/en/courses/2024-2025/L_GCBAALG003

Course Objective

The main goal of this course is to familiarize diverse group of students coming from different countries and educational backgrounds with some core aspects of the history of the Netherlands and of the way the Netherlands is imagined. Students will also learn how to connect Dutch history with a number of present-day academic as well as public debates on issues such as national identity, tolerance, environment, colonialism, World War II, democracy and multiculturalism. They will learn how to critically connect these themes to different representations of Dutch history in the media, in museums and the internet. As this course is open to non-history students, it will also introduce several concepts of history as an academic discipline, by discussing subfields of history such as political history, colonial history, environmental history and national history. After taking this course, students will be able to recognize normative thinking in academic literature and in the work of historians, to read and summarize academic writing, to use scientific literature in debates and to critically addresses historical information and images.

Course Content

Often, the perception of the Netherlands at home and abroad is ridden with stereotypes. It is a country of cheese, herring and coffeeshops. Canals, clogs, windmills and a very liberal attitude to life choices are also elements in this imagery. The struggle against water is yet another recurring theme in the way the Dutch are perceived and see themselves. The course will cover a period of over 500 years from 1500 until the present, giving an overview of the multiple histories of the Netherlands. Besides written texts, audio-visual sources will also be employed in order to illuminate the themes that will be discussed. Breaking away from the Spanish Habsburg Empire in the late sixteenth century, the Dutch Republic became a world power in the course of the seventeenth century. As a republic it was an exception in an age of kingdoms and empires. The seventeenth century was marked by economic, scientific and cultural success. The foundations for a large colonial empire were laid in the seventeenth century. This period has been coined the ‘Golden Age’, a term that has come under scrutiny and debate in recent years. In the course the emergence of the Dutch Republic and the way the ‘Golden Age’ came into being and is remembered will be discussed. Several characteristics that are considered ‘typically Dutch’ such as a pragmatic, entrepreneurial mentality are linked to this period The merchant and the minister are two other images that are often used in characterizing the Dutch. As a country dependent on trade, international relations have always been of the utmost importance. As a small nation the Netherlands also has a tradition in international law as well as a tendency to imagine itself as holding the moral high-ground and a guide to the world. During the course among others the following themes will be discussed: -The emergence of the Netherlands as an independent political nation and its development as a Republic in the seventeenth century -Notions of tolerance and religious diversity -The economic, scientific and cultural developments in the Netherlands ( Rembrandt, Hugio Grotius) -The Dutch and water: a maritime power at sea, managing water at home -The Dutch as a colonial power and a post-colonial society -The transition from a Republic to a Kingdom
- Pillarrized consensus democracy and present-day Dutch politics
- The Dutch and the World Wars
- Migration, diversity and race In the Netherlands Discussion among students about the content of the lectures and the course literature is part of this course, which is specifically designed to connect history with contemporary issues. Quizzes and polls will be employed to stimulate class engagement.

Teaching Methods

In period 1,each week there will be two lectures All the thematic lectures will be given by various lectures, primarily from the History Department of the VU. Presence in class is mandatory. Students who have a reason to be absent have to inform the course coordinator in time of their absence, which is limited to a maximum of two times, after which the student can be penalized with exclusion from participating in the exams.

Method of Assessment

There is one written assignments (40%), as well as a written exam (60%).

Literature

Handbook: Kennedy, J. C. (2017). A concise history of the Netherlands. Cambridge University Press. Students will also be asked to read additional articles or book chapters related to each theme, which will be posted on Canvas in due time.

Target Audience

This course is open to students taking part in the minor programme 'History' or the programme 'A Semester in Amsterdam'; other exchange students and Dutch students interested in Dutch History.

Additional Information

This course will be provided two times during the academic year in period 1 (L_GCBAALG003) and in periods 4&5 (L_GCBAALG004). All the lectures will be in English. Students who follow a Dutch language program can make their assignments in Dutch.