Language Courses
Reading & Composition
Freshman Seminar
Courses Taught in English
Courses Taught in German
Dutch
Yiddish
Graduate
LANGUAGE COURSES
Please note that all sections of German 1 through German 4 will still meet five hours per week. However at each level we are introducing sections that will meet three days per week, rather than five days per week.
German 1
1. (5) Elementary German. Euba in charge.
Fall/Spring. Five units; classes meet three or five times a week. All four foreign language skills (reading, writing, speaking, and listening) are addressed to help students acquire communicative competence in the German language while being sensitized to the links between language and culture. German 1 is for students with no prior knowledge of German.
German 2
2. (5) Elementary German. Euba in charge.
Fall/Spring. Five units; classes meet three or five times a week. Prerequisite: G1 or equivalent. In German 2, students will continue to develop communicative competence in the German language and expand their sensitivity towards the relationship between language and culture. While all language skills will be addressed, additional emphasis will be on the various styles of written and spoken German. Prerequisite: G1 or equivalent.
German 1G/2G
1G/2G. (0) Reading German for Graduates (S/U) . Dewey, T.
Fall/Spring. Taken on S/U basis. Prepares graduate students from other disciplines to take their German reading exam. One year of German should be taken before 1G; 1G or consent of instructor for 2G. Students who will take 2G should enroll in it at the beginning of the semester; 2G will begin approximately the eighth week of instruction. All students interested in the G courses should attend the first meeting of the semester.
German 3
3. (5) Intermediate German. Topics in German Language and Cultural History. Euba in charge.
Fall/Spring. Five units; classes meet three or five times a week. While continuing to expand students' communicative competence in German, this content-driven course will provide insights into postwar German history and cultural trends. Primary focus will be on the development of literacy skills (critical reading and writing), vocabulary expansion, and a thorough review of structural concepts. You will be guided towards expressing yourself on more abstract topics, such as language and power in society, multiculturalism, rebellion and protest, and social justice and towards drawing connections between texts and contexts, using a variety of text genres (journalistic, historical, short story, poetry, drama, advertising, film). This course fulfills the International Studies Breadth Requirement.
German 4
4. (5) Advanced German. Topics in German Language and Culture. Euba in charge.
Fall/Spring. Five units; classes meet three or five times a week. In this fourth-semester German language course you will work on strengthening your interpretative abilities as well as your written and oral forms of expression. While continuing the development of communicative competence and literacy skills, students will discuss a variety of texts and films and try to find innovative ways in which to engage with familiar presuppositions about who we are, about what determines our values and actions and about the function and power of language. This course fulfills the International Studies Breadth Requirement.
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READING AND COMPOSITION
German R5A
R5A. Reading & Composition
German R5A is designed to fulfill the first half of the university's Reading and Composition requirement. All readings and discussion will be in English. Topics to be announced!
R5A, sec. 001. (4).Allred
This course will focus on intersections between German literature and
visual culture. We will read a variety of texts that thematize, exhibit,
or even resist elements of popular visual culture of the last 150 years.
The roles of vision and visualization will help to frame the readings and
our ability to write about both written and visual texts.
R5A, sec. 002. (4).Haubenreich
In this course, we will explore texts of different media (literature, philosophy, visual arts, film, video games) that ÒplayÓ with the boundaries of reality. We will explore theoretical frameworks that propose that art, and culture itself, emerge out of the phenomenon of play. And finally, we will pursue written exercises with an understanding of writing as a process that expands reality and alters the world we live in.
R5A, sec.003 (4).St.Clair
The Federal Republic of Germany of the twenty-first century is vastly different from that of Imperial Germany at the end of the nineteenth century. For example, during the twentieth century Germany lost about one-third of its territory. During the same century, Germany became increasing less agriculture, more industrial, and eventually high-tech. The ethnic composition of Germany has also changed radically during the twentieth century, and instead of purely linguistic polarization, ethnic division now involves differences in religion.
R5A, sec. 004 (4). Staff
TBA
R5A, sec. 5 (4).Orich
This course will explore the different ways in which cultural works of art
have responded to the emergence of genetic sciences in the 20th century.
We will discuss a selection of different texts (films, novels, paintings,
essays) engaging with issues of cloning, bioengineering, assisted
reproductive technologies, etc. We will consider how these texts convey
current anxieties and promises evoked by genetic sciences, and how
scientific and artistic discourses are intertwined in their attempt to
make sense of human life. We will question in which ways the different
media that articulate these responses participate as well as shape the
debate about the geneticization of contemporary Western culture. The topic
of genetic discourses as depicted in the selected works of art will serve
as a means to facilitate the primary goal of this course, which is to
improve our analytical thinking and writing skills.
R5A, sec. 6 (4).Little
TBA
R5A, sec. 7 (4).Winters
There may only be six or seven plots in all literature, but there are endless ways of telling a story. The study of storytelling is called narratology, and this will be our focus for the semester. We will consider a broad sample of texts from antiquity, the middle ages, and the modern era from a narratological perspective, and seek to understand what makes each author's voice distinctive.
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COURSES TAUGHT IN ENGLISH
German C75 Seminar. Feldman
What or who decides whether something is beautiful or not? What purpose do beauty and art serve? Where do originality, genius and inspiration come from? What do art and beauty have to do with freedom and human progress? In this 4-unit course we will examine primarily western European and north American approaches to beauty as represented in works of philosophy, literary theory and theories of art and aesthetics. This course is not a comprehensive survey of the history of philosophical aesthetics nor of art; the goal is instead to examine key theoretical questions as they evolve between several intellectual arenas and over many centuries.While some of our main readings may be abstract and difficult, we will nonetheless make every attempt to render them lucid and understandable at a level appropriate to undergraduates. Careful, repeated reading and patience with abstract concepts are requirements of this course.The course reader is available at Copy Central on Bancroft Ave.
German 104/ Comp. Lit. 190 (3)-Senior Colloquium. Largier, N.
German 105 (3)- Middle High German for Undergraduates. Tennant E.
This course will introduce students to the language and literature of the Middle High German period. The focus will be on reading competence and linguistic analysis of Middle High German texts, using structural comparison with Modern German to help students develop their translation skills. Knowledge of Modern German (or another older Germanic language) recommended. Taught in English.
German 157C (4)- Heidegger and Arendt. Feldman, K.
This course is an introduction to the work of Martin Heidegger and Hannah Arendt. We will begin with an investigation into Heidegger's conceptualiztions of language, time, and human dwelling. We will then move to an examination of Arendt's political philosophy, including her focus on the public/private distinction. Taught in English.
German 160B (4)-Facism and Propaganda. Staff.
This course will focus on the theory and practice of propaganda during the 12 years of the Third Reich. It takes a close look at the ideology the Nazis tried to transmit, the techniques, organization, and effectiveness of their propaganda. Challenging the idea of the total power of propaganda, it looks for the limits of persuasion and possible other reasons for which Germans might have decided to follow Hitler. Sources will include the press, radio, film, photography, political posters, and a few literary works of the time.
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COURSES TAUGHT IN GERMAN.
German 100.
100 (3) Reading Culture-Dewulf, J.
This course is intended to acquaint students with selected works from German cultural history and to familiarize them with various methods of interpretation and analysis. Required of all German majors. Fulfills the L&S breadth requirement in Arts and Literature or International Studies. Taught in German. Fulfills the L&S breadth requirement in Arts and Literature or International Studies. Taught in German.
German 101
101 (3) Advanced German: Conversation, Composition and Style- Euba, N.
Fulfills the Arts and Literature or International breadth requirement. Taught in German. Students with native fluency in German are not eligible to enroll in German 101.
German 102D
102D (3) Advanced Language Practice: Popculture-Schuler, M.
Focusing on popular culture in German speaking countries, this advanced level language course will help students to improve and expand on spoken and written language functions. Fulfills the L&S breadth requirement in Arts and Literature or International Studies. Taught in German.
German 103
103. (3) Introuciton to German Linguistics-Shannon, T.
This course is designed to provide students with an overview of the major subfields of linguistics as they apply to German. Gateway course for undergraduate study of German linguistics. Required for German majors. Taught in German.
German 108
108. (3)Literary Translation-Kudszus, W.
This course introduces students to the problems of literary translation from German to English.
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DUTCH
Dutch 1. (5) Elementary Dutch. Hollander, I.
Prerequisite: None; no previous knowledge of Dutch is required.
Focus of the course is on acquiring basic communicative competence in the language, i.e. developing the ability to appropriately use the language (spoken as well as written) in authentic situations. The course introduces fundamental structures and a core vocabulary, which will enable you to engage in conversation and to read and write short texts. You are encouraged to build confidence and skill by actively participating in classroom activities and interacting with others. The course meets five hours per week. In addition to classroom instruction, one hour at the language lab is required.
Texts:
E. Ham, et al. Help! (Deel 1): Kunt u mij helpen? Compl. rev. ed. Utrecht: Nederlands Centrum Buitenlanders, 2002.
W.H.T.M. Tersteeg, et al. Help! English Supplement, Utrecht: Nederlands Centrum Buitenlanders, 1998.
Dutch 110 (3)Advanced Dutch-Hollander, I.
Focus of this course is on reinforcing and expanding patterns and vocabulary acquired in 2. All the major grammar will be reviewed. Written and spoken proficiency will be improved.
Dutch 171AC (4) From Amsterdam to New York: Race, Culture, and...-Dewulf, J.
What would it mean to begin modern American history on the island of Manhattan instead of New England? We intend to question the Anglo-American perspective on the representation of cultural identity, national identity, ethnicity, and race by constrasting the traditional foundation story of the United States with that of the 17th-century Dutch colony on Manhattan. Readings will include historical and ethnographic writings, self-representations of the different ethnic groups, and fictional accounts.
Satisfies the American Cultures requirement.
Dutch 173(4) Cultural Studies- Renders, L.
"The White Man's Burden: Colonial and Post-colonial Literature on the Congo".
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YIDDISH Check out the new Yiddish web site!
Yiddish 101
101 (5) Elementary Yiddish. Cohen, M.
This is an introduction to Yiddish language, literature, and culture. With particular focus on the basics of Yiddish grammar, we will develop reading, writing, speaking, and comprehension skills. In so doing, we will also have an opportunity to explore simple Yiddish songs, stories, and dialogues as reflections of Yiddish culture and history.
Yiddish 103
103 (3) Readings in Yiddish. Chaver, Y.
Sholem Aleichem, perhaps the best known and the most popular of the 19th-century "Three Classic Yiddish Writers" (the musical "Fiddler on the Roof" is based on one of his tales), presents keen depictions of Eastern Jewish life in the unique voice of an observer-participant. His work hovers betwen melodrama, psychology and satire. We will read some of his stories and situate them in the writer's cultural world and literary context. Primary texts are in Yiddish; critical texts are in English. Taught in English. Requirement: One year of Yiddish or equivalent knowledge.
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GRADUATE COURSES
LITERATURE/CULTURE
German 201B (4)
16th and 17th Century- Tennant, E.
German 204 (2)
Compact Seminar-Koch, G.
This course will meet on Fridays for four weeks beginning September 9 and ending September.
German 214 (4)
Studies in the 20th Century-Gokturk
This seminar will collaboratively analyze symbolic constructions of Europe in moving images from Lumiere to YouTube and installations of video art. Our focus will be on spectatorship, formation of publics, and practices of orientation. We will explore ways of imagining Europe as a polyphonic space shaped by migration and shifting border zones, including perspectives from the Middle East, North Africa and former socialist countries .
German 256 (4)
Problems of Literary Theory-Kudszus, W.
"Nietzsche/Freud". Our readings in this seminar will include Friedrich Nietzsche's Die fröhliche Wissenschaft (1882), Also sprach Zarathustra (1885), Jenseits von Gut und Böse (1886), Zur Genealogie der Moral (1887), and Sigmund Freud's Die Traumdeutung (1900), Jenseits des Lustprinzips (1920), and Das Unbehagen in der Kultur (1930).
German 265 (4)
Film Theory-Kaes, A.
German 268 (4)
Aspects of Literary and Cultural History-Gokturk/Tang
GERMANIC LINGUISTICS
German 270 (4)
History of the German Language-Rauch, I.
German 285 (4)
Approaches and Issues in the Study of Modern German. Shannon, T.
German 290 (4)
Seminar in German Linguistics- Rauch, I.
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PEDAGOGY
German 351 (3)
Seminar in Foreign Language Pedagogy: Teaching College German (II). Euba, N.
This second course in a two-semester sequence is again designed to provide graduate students in German with knowledge and tools for their careers as teachers in the language classroom and beyond. Emphasizing critical reflection on pedagogical practices, this course will prepare for language teaching at the intermediate and advanced levels. The theoretical and practical exploration of recent developments in second language acquisition and teaching will focus on the development of literacy, the teaching of literary texts, the teaching of writing, and curriculum design. Along with the continous development of practices which promote professional growth, this should provide a basis for staying theoretically informed while participating in the professional discourse of a rapidly developing field. Included in this course is a significant practical component, addressing the day-to-day challenges of planning for and teaching the simultaneously offered intermediate German language courses.
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