Scotland: Between the Highlands, the Isle of Skye and Scottish Humour

Scotland is not just the land of bagpipes, tartan and whisky. It is a landscape where dramatic mountain valleys, green pastures, mysterious lochs, historic castles and vibrant cities succeed one another within a single day - and a country that does not care for grand gestures. Its culture has been shaped by centuries of struggle for its own identity, clan traditions, music, poetry and a very distinctive relationship with neighbouring England.

The lecture will explore not only Edinburgh and Stirling in photographs, but also the jagged peaks of the mountains and the Isle of Skye. It will touch on tartan and clans, bagpipes, Scottish pubs and whisky - and also on why the Scots can joke about the weather, their history and themselves with such detachment. Scottish humour is as harsh as the landscape itself: dry, self-ironic and sometimes only understood on second hearing.

Lecturer: Kateřina Vorlická