German Studies Course Descriptions

The first course of a two-term sequence that introduces students to the basics of German. Students practice the four skills of speaking, writing, reading, and listening all within a German cultural studies context.

A continuation of German 101. Students build on their language proficiency with continued practice in the four skills of speaking, writing, reading, and listening all within a German cultural studies context. PREREQUISITES: GER 101 or the equivalent

This course examines a variety of special topics in German cultural studies. It is designed for first-and second-year students and those who have limited knowledge of German Cultural Studies and/or German language proficiency. When the course is paired, German Studies majors and minors must register for GER 418. This course is taught in English. May be repeated with topic is different.

Directed study follows a syllabus set primarily by the instructor to meet the needs or interests of an individual student or small group of students. The main goal of directed study is knowledge or skill acquisition, not research or creative work. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

An opportunity for students to apply their German language skills in business, government, and the non-profit sector on the regional, national, and international level. Arranged in collaboration with and supervised by a member of the department. Includes readings, discussion, report, and/or portfolio. Advance consultation and application required. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

Further development of the four basic skills with an emphasis on increasing the student’s ability to understand literary as well as non-literary texts of increasing difficulty. PREREQUISITES: GER 102 or the equivalent

Special emphasis on building reading and writing skills, expanding vocabulary, and developing cultural knowledge of the German-speaking countries. Cultural units may include “literary and art history, the environment, multiculturalism and diversity, and politics. PREREQUISITES: GER 201 or the equivalent

The course focuses on tales collected by the Brothers Grimm, but it will also include works from broader continental contexts (Africa, Asia, Europe) and modern adaptations. Students will be introduced to various interpretative approaches (e.g. feminist, Marxist, psychoanalytic, postcolonial, structuralist) that will enable them to analyze tale types, themes, and motives across cultures. Taught in English. Course will count toward the humanities general education requirement for BA and BA/BMus students.

With its pivotal role in the inauguration of the cinema, knowledge of German film is critical to an understanding of the history of film. Considered as one of the most accessible aesthetic forms, the moving image pervades our everyday lives, and yet we seldom think of what we do as "reading" films. Throughout this course, students will be introduced to the practice of reading German films using three structuring lenses: 1) film and cultural history, 2) formal and generic elements, and 3) film criticism.

This course follows GER202. Students improve and refine writing, speaking, and cultural analysis skills through the study of a variety of written texts (e.g. poetry, drama), films, and visual art. The discussion-based course allows students to acquire deeper knowledge of the language, history, and culture of the German-speaking countries. Students prepare grammar exercises, essays, presentations, and other assignments that expand students engagement with German cultural studies. PREREQUISITES: GER 202 or consent of instructor

This course introduces students to one of the world’s great cities. Classwork includes the history, culture, and literature of Berlin as well as preparations for a series of day-long walking tours of the city that students will conduct themselves for their classmates with the help of a guidebook. In addition, students will conduct comparative research on some aspect of life in the U.S. or Germany. Students must complete both the classroom portion of the course and the Berlin trip to receive credit. Taught in English. Not open to students who have previously received or need to receive credit for GER 389.

This course serves as an introduction to German cultural studies and prepares students for upper-level course work in the major and minor. Students encounter the objects, methods, and theories of the interdisciplinary field German Studies, from film and literature to material culture; genre analysis to the close reading of poetry; and New Historicism to critical whiteness studies. The course is conducted primarily as a discussion seminar. PREREQUISITES: GER 285 or consent of instructor

This course focuses on literary responses to the Holocaust, but it also deals with film and the issue of commemoration. After a discussion of the difficulty of representing the Holocaust, the course examines the Holocaust’s role in the construction of German-Jewish identity and its impact on post-war German culture. Taught in English. German majors and minors may participate in a two-unit tutorial in which discussions and some course readings will be in German. PREREQUISITES: Sophomore standing or consent of instructor

This course selects from 90 years of filmmaking in Germany. Films range from expressionism to Nazi propaganda and from escapist comedies to avant garde art. Learning to “read” German films critically also means finding out how to understand movies from Hollywood and beyond. Possible topics include “From Caligari to Hitler,” “German Literature as Film,” and “What Makes Lola Run.” Taught in English. German majors and minors may participate in a two-unit tutorial in which discussions and some course readings will be in German. May be repeated when topic is different.

This course seeks to reveal the ways in which the question of monstrous difference is articulated in a variety of German “texts.” Its main goal is to examine the ways that representations of monstrousness are employed to stage complex public and private anxieties as well as to provide an expression of rebellion against various systems of hierarchy. Featured in the works of canonized authors as well as within the realm of popular culture, the representational functions of the monster can provide valuable insight into numerous aspects of German history and psychosexual relations.

Although Novellen developed as a literary form throughout Europe, it was particularly popular in Germany from the late 18th through the 20th centuries. This course introduces students to the Novelle as a form, to a variety of interesting works of literature and to the cultural, social and political developments in which Novellen were written and read. PREREQUISITES: GER 312

This course dispels racial myths of the European continent, introduces the Black Diaspora beyond the African American context, pushes the boundaries of belonging and national identity in Europe, and presents black individuals/collectives as historical agents and transnational actors on and beyond the continent. Course materials may consist of literature, poetry, music videos, film, and art. Assessments include short reflection papers, research papers, and oral presentations. Taught in English. German majors and minors may participate in a two-unit tutorial in which discussions and some course readings will be in German.

Study of German dramatic literature that may or may not culminate in a workshop performance of a play or portions of plays. Students will situate German plays in their literary, historical and cultural context and also perform short dramatic readings. Assignments may also include short essays and oral presentations. PREREQUISITES: GER 312

An introduction to one of the world's great cities. Classwork includes the history, culture and literature of Berlin and preparations for day-long walking tours that students will lead. Students will do some readings and discussions in German and write their comparative paper in German Students must completed both the classroom portion of the course and the Berlin trip to receive credit. Taught in English. Not open to students who have previously received credit for GER 290. PREREQUISITES: GER 312

Individual study arranged and carried out in close consultation with an instructor. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

Directed study follows a syllabus set primarily by the instructor to meet the needs or interests of an individual student or small group of students. The main goal of directed study is knowledge or skill acquisition, not research or creative work. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

An opportunity for students to apply their German language skills in business, government, and the non-profit sector on the regional, national, and international level. Arranged in collaboration with and supervised by a member of the department. Includes readings, discussion, report, and/or portfolio. Advance consultation and application required. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

Advanced research on a topic of the student’s choice, arranged in consultation with the department. Students considering an honors project should register for this course. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

Few would question literature's status as art, but literary texts are often also locations where authors explore imaginary solutions to real social problems. Unlike political pamphlets or non-fiction accounts, literature lets readers experience various problems and issues as they impact the lives of individual characters caught in difficult situations, e.g., class, ethnic, and gender conflicts, ecological disasters. PREREQUISITES: GER 312

This course explores the aesthetic and cultural trends of the Weimar Republic (1918-1933), one of the most vibrant periods of German history. With particular emphasis on gender, race, and sexuality in modernity, we examine film, visual art, literary works, magazines, music and cultural phenomena such as the "new woman," the body beautiful, and the "Third Sex." Taught in German as a discussion seminar. PREREQUISITES: GER312 or equivalent

This course examines the development of the distinct genre of literature for children and adolescents since the 18th century. It combines the analysis of classic texts, e.g., Heidi or Karl May, with close readings of modern cult classics. PREREQUISITES: GER 312 or consent of instructor

In the years since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, both the promise and the problems of the German Democratic Republic have faded from memory. Indeed, the experience seems to have receded into the distant past. This course explores both the lofty goals and difficult circumstances of the DDR’s birth and its gradual decline and fall. The course pays particular attention to literary and filmic representations of hope and fear that the country engendered. PREREQUISITES: GER 312

Topics in German Cultural Studies allows for an in-depth examination of topics across time, for example, women’s writing or crime fiction, or it permits a detailed analysis of special topics, for example, Turkish-German culture in contemporary German film. May be repeated when topic is different.

Topic for Fall 2024: Marginalized Communities
PREREQUISITES: GER 312 This course examines artistic and cultural productions of people belonging to marginalized communities in the German-speaking world. Focusing on Black Germans, disabled communities, Muslim and Jewish communities, and the experiences of refugees and migrants, the course interrogates, resists, and destabilizes stereotypes about unity and national belonging.

This course focuses on tales collected by the Brothers Grimm, but it will also include works from broader continental contexts (Africa, Asia, Europe) and modern adaptations. Students will be introduced to various interpretative approaches (e.g. feminist, Marxist, psychoanalytic, postcolonial, structuralist) that will enable them to analyze tale types, themes, and motives across cultures. Taught in German. PREREQUISITES: GER 312 or consent of instructor

In this course we will examine the development of crime and detective fiction in the German-speaking countries through close reading of several different media--novels, short stories, film, radio drama, television, and essays. PREREQUISITES: GER 312 or instructor approval

Study of German-Jewish authors, intellectual figures, and topics from the Enlightenment to the present. This course will examine the role of dual identities, issues of assimilation/acculturation, Jewish identification and the notion of Jewish self-hatred. Representative writers include Mendelssohn, Heine, Kafka, Freud, Benjamin, Celan, Becker, Hilsenrath, and Honigmann. May be repeated when topic is different.

Despite a long-term refusal to open itself to immigration, Germany has become a nation of immigrants and asylum-seekers. The course focuses on how both literature and films, including works by and about minorities in Germany, have dealt with key cultural phenomena: multiculturalism, diversity, acculturation, assimilation, “majority culture,” and parallel societies. PREREQUISITES: GER 312 or consent of the instructor

This course examines the borders of the human through the figures of the vampire, monster, and femme fatale in literature, film, and the visual arts. Featured in the works of canonized authors as well as within popular culture, “monstrousness” can provide valuable insights into numerous aspects of German history and psychosexual relations. Possible texts include the early vampire film Nosferatu, Wedekind’s Lulu tragedies, Patrick Süskind’s Das Parfüm, and paintings by H.R. Giger. PREREQUISITES: GER 312

This course explores recent developments in German culture: recent literature, visual culture, music and other arts, as well as topics from politics and society. May be repeated when topic is different.

Individual study arranged and carried out in close consultation with an instructor. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

Directed study follows a syllabus set primarily by the instructor to meet the needs or interests of an individual student or small group of students. The main goal of directed study is knowledge or skill acquisition, not research or creative work. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

An opportunity for students to apply their German language skills in business, government, and the non-profit sector on the regional, national, and international level. Arranged in collaboration with and supervised by a member of the department. Includes readings, discussion, report, and/or portfolio. Advance consultation and application required. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

Advanced research on a topic of the student’s choice, arranged in consultation with the department. Students considering an honors project should register for this course. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

This two-term course serves as the Senior Experience for German Studies majors. Students explore potential topics, develop the scope of their project, conduct research, write and revise, and review each other's work. By the end of the course, they will produce an independently researched scholarly or creative project demonstrating their knowledge of the discipline. The course is conducted primarily as a workshop. PREREQUISITES: Declared major in German

Individual study arranged and carried out in close consultation with an instructor. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

Directed study follows a syllabus set primarily by the instructor to meet the needs or interests of an individual student or small group of students. The main goal of directed study is knowledge or skill acquisition, not research or creative work. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

An opportunity for students to apply their German language skills in business, government, and the non-profit sector on the regional, national, and international level. Arranged in collaboration with and supervised by a member of the department. Includes readings, discussion, report, and/or portfolio. Advance consultation and application required. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.

Advanced research on a topic of the student’s choice, arranged in consultation with the department. Students considering an honors project should register for this course. PREREQUISITES: To register student must complete the Student Initiated Course Form with consultation of supervising instructor.