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76460-01 - Research seminar: Trauma and Collective Memory in Contemporary Iraqi Literature (4 CP)
| Semester | fall semester 2025 |
| Course frequency | Once only |
| Lecturers | Wolfgang Trimmel (wolfgang.trimmel@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | Representations of Iraq's recent history occupy a central place in contemporary Iraqi literature. Using a memory studies approach (in particular memory in literature as conceptualized by Erll 2017), this seminar will examine the construction of fictional memory narratives regarding major developments in recent Iraqi history, such as the Gulf Wars, the 2003 Iraq War, the subsequent occupation, or the civil war against the Islamic State. Among other things, the seminar will discuss the potential of narrative styles such as magical realism to make traumatic historical events narratable, and the role that literature can play in shaping historical memory. |
| Learning objectives | In the course of this seminar, students will: - get to know a selection of contemporary fictional texts dealing with recent Iraqi history - become familiar with basic concepts and approaches of literary memory studies - develop their skills of literary analysis and discussion - practice translation from Arabic into German. |
| Bibliography | General secondary literature: Assmann, Aleida. 1999. Erinnerungsräume: Formen und Wandlungen des kulturellen Gedächtnisses. München: Beck. Bahoora, Haytham. 2015. “Writing the Dismembered Nation: The Aesthetics of Horror in Iraqi Narratives of War.” The Arab Studies Journal 23:1, pp. 184-208. Caruth, Cathy. 2009. Unclaimed Experience: Trauma, Narrative and History. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. Erll, Astrid. 2017 [2005]. Kollektives Gedächtnis und Erinnerungskulturen. Eine Einführung. Stuttgart: J.B. Metzler. Etkind, Alexander. 2013. Warped Mourning: Stories of the Undead in the Land of the Unburied. Stanford: Stanford University Press. Halbwachs, Maurice. 2006 [1925]. Das Gedächtnis und seine sozialen Bedingungen. Frankfurt a. Main: Suhrkamp. Haugbolle, Sune/Hastrup, Anders (Hg.). 2009. The Politics of Violence, Truth and Reconciliation in the Arab Middle East. London, New York: Routledge. Lachmann, Renate. 2004. “Cultural Memory and the Role of Literature.” European Review, 12:2, pp. 165-178. Masmoudi, Ikram. 2015. War and Occupation in Iraqi Fiction. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. Milich, Stephan. 2011. “Conceptions and Representations of History in Modern Iraqi Fiction.” In Stephan Guth und Gail Ramsay (Hg.): From New Values to New Aesthetics. Turning Points in Modern Arabic Literature. 2. Volume: Postmodernism and Thereafter. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, pp. 167-185. Milich, Stephan. 2015. “Narrating, Metaphorizing or Performing the Unforgettable?” In Friederike Pannewick und Georges Khalil (Hg.): Commitment and Beyond. Reflections on/of the Political in Arabic Literature since the 1940s. Wiesbaden: Reichert, pp. 285-301. Milich, Stephan/Pannewick, Friederike/Tramontini, Leslie. 2012. Conflicting Narratives: War, Trauma and Memory in Iraqi Culture. Wiesbaden: Reichert. al-Nashi, Usama. 2018. Tamaṯṯulāt al-iḥtilāl al-amrīkiyy fī r-riwāya al-ʿirāqiyya. Baġdād: Dār Suṭūr. Ottoson al-Bitar, Astrid. 2012. “Another Story to Be Told. Iraqi Novels of Exile in Sweden.“ In Stephan Milich, Friederike Pannewick und Leslie Tramontini (Hg.): Conflicting Narratives: War, Trauma and Memory in Iraqi Culture. Wiesbaden: Reichert, pp. 199-213. Wien, Peter. 2024. “Problematic Archives: Documentary Knowledge of Modern Iraq between Ex- and Repatriation.” The Middle East Journal 77: 3-4, pp. 350-371. |
| Comments | The seminar will be held in English unless all participants are fluent in German. Please note that classroom discussions will partially be conducted in Arabic. |
| Admission requirements | This seminar is intended for all MA students who have completed the following courses: Arabic I-III as well as ALK I and ALK II. MA students who did not complete the BA programme in Near and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Basel but have sufficient knowledge of Arabic and wish to participate in the seminar are kindly asked to contact the instructor before registering. |
| Course application | Belegen über Online-Services. |
| Language of instruction | German |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|---|
| wöchentlich | Tuesday | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
Dates
| Date | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|
| Tuesday 16.09.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 23.09.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 30.09.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 07.10.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 14.10.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 21.10.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 28.10.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 04.11.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 11.11.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 18.11.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 25.11.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 02.12.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 09.12.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Tuesday 16.12.2025 | 14.15-16.00 | Maiengasse, Raum 104 |
| Modules |
Modul: Themen der Near & Middle Eastern Studies (Master's degree subject: Near & Middle Eastern Studies) Modul: Vertiefung Near & Middle Eastern Studies (Master's degree subject: Near & Middle Eastern Studies) Module: Conflicts and Peacebuilding (Master's degree program: Changing Societies: Migration – Conflicts – Resources) Module: Foundational Texts: Exegetical and Hermeneutical Perspectives (Master's Studies: Interreligious Studies) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment details | Participants will be expected to read about 50 pages of primary and/or secondary literature per week in German or English and translate a short Arabic extract (about one page) into German or English. In addition, they will have to keep a reading diary with weekly entries and give a short presentation. Regular attendance (participants may miss two sessions) and active participation in class are required. |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | no repetition |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Fachbereich Nahost-Studien |