This morning’s lecture, to everyone’s great approval, began an hour later than usual. And it was for good measure we were given an extra hour of rest, for the lecture proved to be challenging but truly interesting.
The lecture, entitled “Friction: Finding Ways of Living Together”, by Dr Thomas Lorman, introduced us to a historical analysis of cohabitation and adaptation by different groups, through different countries, for different reasons. One of the overarching topics of the lecture was a discussion on human nature. We first looked at Medieval Central Europe and the relationships between different classes, with a particular focus on nobles and peasants. Of great importance was the difference in power, especially political power, between these two classes. The conversation shifted to commentaries on the nature of nationalism and its adaptation by many countries in the 20th Century to unite the nation. Through several historical examples, such as the Polish nobility, Louis XIV and Otto Von Bismarck, we looked in greater depth at the meaning of social unity as well as social class, and how these two concepts can cooperate just as well as they can clash.
In the afternoon we attended the last of our language tutorials. In an emotional ending to the past classes with our teacher, we all found ourselves reading and singing (or in the very least trying) the Polish National Anthem, a really beautiful and moving hymn. To celebrate the conclusion of the day, we all took a picture together with our wonderful teacher, Dagmara Grabska.
Then we finalised and completed our work on the documentary. This proved no easy task. We had to go through hours of footage, choosing which moments from our interview were going to be part of the documentary, and which would just be treasured in our personal memories. We agreed on styling choices, and tried to make our documentary more dynamic and engaging for the viewer, something that would not just be watched and forgotten, but would instead leave an impression.
Finally we left, with a sense of satisfaction and no small dose of anticipation for tomorrow, the last day of the program, where we will finally be able to showcase all our work and efforts.
European London 