Y1900 Connected to Y2K
The Fin de Siecle Meets Y2K:
Exploring Similar Cultural Trends
Elizabeth L. Horn and Barbara F. Olic-Hamilton
The time from the 1880's to 1914 was often called the fin de siecle-the French equivalent of "turn of the century."
It was an explosive, revolutionary time in world culture.
Today's high school students are entering into the twentieth century's fin de siecle, which is also a revolutionary time in our culture.
The parallels between these two time periods can show students that patterns exist throughout history.
Photographs from the American Memory Collections of the Library of Congress will initiate discussion and allow students to draw conclusions about the end of the nineteenth century.
They will then identify or create a related visual for the 1990s.
Projects will demonstrate students' understanding of the connections between the 1890s and Y2K.
Objectives
The student will be able to
á Practice visual literacy using photographs from the 1890s.
á Use electronic equipment to access American Memory sources.
á Draw conclusions based on observation of primary sources and prior knowledge of literature from that time period.
á Synthesize these conclusions by choosing or creating a comparable modern picture.
á Demonstrate their understanding of the connections between these two time periods.
á Recognize the existence of historical and cultural patterns.
Time Required
Four to five class periods plus a week to complete projects out of class.
Recommended Grade Level
12th Grade
Curriculum Fit
This assignment will culminate a unit in a world literature class on the end of the 19th century and provide a bridge into the twentieth century.
Literature that is most often included in this unit: Isben's A Doll's House or Enemy of the People, Conrad's Heart of Darkness, or Chopin's The Awakening.
Resources Used
á Link for "Young Prisoners"
á Link for the Detroit collection
á Gilbert, Sandra M. and Susan Gubar.
"Turn-of-the-Century Literature." The Norton Anthology of Literature by Women. Eds. Gilbert and Gubar.
New York: W.W. Norton Company, 1985. 948-969.
á The Western Tradition: A New Public; Fin de Siecle. #46. (Video) U.S. Annenberg/CPB Project, 1989.
Dist. By Intellimation, Santa Barbara, CA 93116-1922.
á Link for AltaVista site
Procedure
1. Day 1.
In the classroom.
Discuss the previously assigned Gilbert article.
Make a chart of the major changes during the last fin de siecle in one column.
List parallel trends or evens in the right hand column.
Add things to the current fin de siecle list that might not be on the 1800's list.
2. Day 2.
In the computer lab or library.
The media specialist introduces the concept of the Library of Congress American Memories project.
Students will log on to computers in pairs, move into the American Memories site, and connect to the (link for "Young Prisoners" here).
The media specialist will introduce the technique of Object Observation (link to worksheet) and have students use this picture for practice.
Students will share their responses.
If there is time at the end of the class period, students will be encouraged to "surf" in the American Memories collections.
3. Day 3 and 4 (or one block period).
Students will be given the printed assignment sheet (link to worksheet) and time to work in pairs.
(link to AltaVista site) and similar sites might prove to be good sources for modern pictures.
4. Day 5.
In the classroom.
Time to work on poster or finish computer work.
5. On the due date, students will evaluate each other's work using the scoring grid (link to sample).
Teacher evaluation will be based on the same criteria.
Evaluation and Extension
Evaluation
The finished products will be displayed in the library's windows so that other students can view both sides of the projects.
Extensions
Possible extension activities:
1. Students could brainstorm a list of cultural artifacts that a 21st century curator for the AM Collection might include representing the 1990s.
Discussion might cover: Why preserve this artifact?
What does it show about our culture?
What is the curator's job?
What should be preserved?
Why were these items chosen?
These topics could generate full research projects, use of community resources such as the local historical society, or encourage further online searches or electronic correspondence with major museum curators.
2. Students could identify an important cultural artifact from the 1990s and locate a similar artifact from the 1890s.
Their responses could take the form of activities such as a small group discussion, a poster similar to the above project, or a role-playing scenario where archaeologists are trying to convince a museum curator to purchase this artifact.
3. Students could make a videotape or perform a live skit showing a commentator in 2099 interviewing an archaeologist who has just unearthed the remains of your high school which has been buried since Y2K.
4. Students could create, build, photograph, or draw an artifact from 2099 and explain to the class how that artifact will be significant to society of the late twenty-first century.