Presentations/Movie Today

I am going to attempt a double post here.

I thought the presentations were very informative. I learned a lot about subjects that I probably would have never learned about, like Swedish prisons and Finnish logging. I found that each presentation gave me enough information to get a good picture of what the subject was about and sparked an interest to learn more about it. I look forward to the next round.

Now switching gears, I found the movie today extremely enjoyable. I was hooked right from the beginning and I can't wait to find out what happens. The story line is very intense and I can't say that I've seen a movie that is anything like it. I'm pulling for the boy to stay with the Swedish family, but that's just my opinion.

Comments on the Film

I also really enjoyed the movie today. I think it's interesting to see a movie from the point of view of a child, because films usually tend to focus on the action of the war itself, rather than the widespread impact it has throughout all aspects of society. On a somewhat related note, if anyone is interested in the WWII era in general, there is a really good Danish film, called Flame and Citron, that I just watched about the Danish resistance in WWII. It's a different country and different perspective of the war, but it is a very interesting movie, and I would recommend it to anyone interested in the time period and how the war affected the Scandinavian countries.

Today's Movie

I loved the movie today. I thought that it gave a such a powerful message and an accurate portrayal of what went on in Finland during the war. I was curious about how many children got shipped away, and I am really looking forward to watching the rest of the movie, and seeing what happens to Erro.

I thought the presentations were a great way to learn about things that interest our classmates. They were very informative, and I look forward to the next round of them. The big thing that stood out to me, was that Scandinavia is just awesome... except for maybe the sterilizations. In general, Scandinavia is a world leader in many fields, and has a very rich culture. Like I said before, I'm excited to listen to our next presentations.

Presentation

I really enjoyed the presentations. It was a great way to learn about a wide and interesting variety of topics that in the end gave a broad picture and outline of Scandinavia. I think what I learned about Scandinavia, like the presentations, is that there are a lot of really interesting topics and cultures that make up Scandinavia and to learn about. Eco-friendliness and technology are forefront and center in Scandinavia, and because of this they are a global leader in innovation. Art, history, nature, culture and traditions are all important as well. While they are involved in and care about the future, they also make sure to place an importance on the past and on keeping and celebrating traditions.

Presentation Reflection

Like everyone else, I found the presentations to be very informative and interesting.

I was especially surprised by the Swedish Eugenics presentation because I had no idea that actually happened, and so (relatively) recently at that! The Nuclear Power information caught me a bit off guard as well. In 1980 Sweden actually planned to close all their power plants by 2010? What a surprise! I would not have though that from the reputation Scandinavian countries have about their "green" cities and culture. Though it is important to remember that Nuclear energy is not renewable, but is preferable to burning coal because of the extremely limited carbon emissions involved in the energy system.

However, listening to all the good, happy, and "better-than-thou" presentations about Scandinavia actually made me curious about what the countries actually do wrong! You can't truly understand a country or a region if you only know its positive aspects--that's only half the story. Perhaps that's why I found the Eugenics and Nuclear energy information so impressionable. I'll be interested to hear more about the controversial and "hot" topics in Scandinavia.

Paper Presentations

I think the presentations from this past week really helped to sort of describe in detail the types of things we highlighted in our group presentations on the countries. It was great to see so many specific examples of all of the broad topics we covered. It was also interesting to learn about such a wide range of topics from art to sustainability and everything in between. I think it helps us paint a good picture of Scandinavia, while at the same time reminding us that generalizations are just that: generalizations, and their is a lot of specific knowledge to be gained from every aspect of studying the Scandinavian countries, and also by looking at them from the perspective of each individual country. I thought it was interesting learning about prisons in Scandinavia, because it had not been something I had though about before, but when you look at the way they build and run their prisons, I think it's incredible how different it is from other regions/countries, and I found it very interesting. Also, you can see how it fits into the general structure of society, and how they are more focused on positive things and moving forward, like rehabilitation and believing in a person's ability to change, than negative things, like punishment. Just by looking at a smaller aspect of society, we can begin to see a broader picture, and it seems that these more specific and focused studies reflect broad Scandinavian views and are consistent with general societal values.