German Studies 405 Introduction to Middle High German
After a brief introduction to the medieval universe and constructions of the self, we will read representative texts of twelfth- and thirteenth-century courtly culture. Using the main genres of aristocratic self-representation, the heroic epic (Nibelungenlied), Arthurian romance (Iwein), and the lyric (Minnesang), discussions will focus on the court as the locus of conflicting forces in the rise of secular culture. We will examine such issues as the first vernacular constructions of social and sexual identity, generational conflicts within the communal/dynastic order, the rise of individualism (the chivalric quest), and subjectivity (the love lyric). Emphasis will be placed on acquiring a reading facility in Middle High German and a familiarity with high medieval aristocratic culture.
Course requirements: There will be several translation quizzes, 1-2
short papers, and a take-home final.
Required text: A course reader will be available at KC Copy after
the first week of classes.
Tentative Schedule:
Books on reserve in Olin 301
Joachim Bumke, Courtly Culture (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991) DD 61 B94 1991
Joachim Bumke, Geschichte der deutschen Literatur im hohen Mittelalter (Munich: DTV, 1990) PT 187 B94
Thomas Cramer, Geschichte der deutschen Literatur im späten Mittelalter (Munich: DTV, 1990) PT 187 C88
Georges Duby, The Chivalrous Society (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1977) D 119 D82 1977
Jerold Frakes, Brides and Doom: Gender, Property, and Power in Medieval German Women's Epic (Philadelphia: Univ. of Pennsylvania Press, 1994) PT 202 F73x 1994
Hans Fromm, ed., Der deutsche Minnesang (Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1973) PT 217 F93
Horst Fuhrmann, Germany in the High Middle Ages (Cambridge/New York: University of Cambridge Press, 1986) DD 141 F95 1986
Hartmann von Aue, Iwein, trans. Thomas Cramer (Berlin: De Gruyter, 1968) PT 1534 I2 B46 1968
Hartmann von Aue, Iwein, trans. Patrick McConeghy (New York: Garland, 1984) PT 1534 I3 1984
Alfred Haverkamp, Medieval Germany (Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press, 1988) DD 126 H38 1988
Werner Hoffmann, Mittelhochdeutsche Heldendichtung (Berlin: E. Schmidt, 1974) PT 204 H71
Dieter Kartschocke, Geschichte der deutschen Literatur im frühen Mittelalter (Munich: DTV, 1990) PT 183 K18 G3
Hugo Kuhn, ed., Hartmann von Aue (Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1973) PT 1535 K96
Matthias Lexer, Mittelhochdeutsches Taschenwörterbuch (Leipzig: Hirzel, 1972) PF 4327 L67 1972
Winder McConnell, A Companion to the Nibelungenlied (Columbia, S.C.: Camden, 1998) PT 1589 C66x 1998
Jan-Dirk Müller, Spielregeln für den Untergang: Die Welt des Nibelungenliedes (Tübingen: Niemeyer, 1998) PT 1589 M85 1998
Peter Oettli, A First Dictionary of Middle High German (Göppingen: Kümmerle, 1986) PF 4333 O28
Els Oksaar, Mittelhochdeutsch (Stockholm: Almqvist and Wicksel, 1972) PF 4327 L67 1972
Hermann Paul, Mittelhochdeutsche Grammatik (Tübingen: Niemeyer, 1989) PD 25 S18 ser. l, no. 2 1989
Kurt Ruh, Höfische Epik des deutschen Mittelalters (Berlin: Schmidt, 1967) PT 203 R93 v. 1
Heinz Rupp, ed., Nibelungenlied und Kudrun (Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1976) PT 1590 N57
Günther Schweikle, Minnesang (Stuttgart: Metzler, 1989) PT 217 S42 1989