DEPARTMENT OF GERMAN STUDIES
FALL 2008 COURSES
German Placement Exams
Fall 2008
Basic German Placement Exam
The German Placement exam is scheduled for Saturday, August 23, 2008, at 3:00
p.m., in the computer language lab in Language Resource Center (near Beebe Lake).
The German placement make-up exam is scheduled for Tuesday, September 2, 2008, at 7:00 p.m., in the computer language lab in Language Resource Center (near Beebe Lake).
German CASE Exam
Monday, August 25, 2008, at 9:00 a.m., in 142 Goldwin Smith Hall.
Please contact Gunhild Lischke (gl15@cornell.edu; 255-0725) if you have any
questions.
SCROLL DOWN OR SELECT FROM THE FOLLOWING:
FIRST-YEAR
WRITING SEMINARS.
3 credits. No knowledge of German is expected.
GERST 1109 FROM FAIRY TALES TO THE UNCANNY: EXPLORING THE ROMANTIC CONSCIOUSNESS
Section 1, MWF TBA
Section 2, MWF TBA
This seminar will explore a variety of themes (doubles, madness, incest, cyborgs,
alchemy) expressing a fascination with the paranormal, the supernatural, and
the uncanny in the German folktale and its transformations in Romantic fiction
and beyond. Reading and writing assignments range from fairy tales of the Brothers
Grimm and short narratives by Romantic writers (e.g., E. T. A. Hoffmann, Tieck,
Kleist) to other traditions, such as Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, tales
of Edgar Allan Poe, and modern cinematic works by both Disney and Hollywood.
GERST
1170 MARX,
NIETZSCHE, FREUD
TBA
To understand—and criticize—contemporary discourses in the core
disciplines of the social sciences, the humanities, and even the natural sciences
it is necessary to have a basic grasp of Marx, Nietzsche, and Freud. This seminar
introduces: (1) these three revolutionaries who have exerted a massive influence
globally on modern and postmodern thought and practice; and (2) key terms and
analytic models of political economy, philosophy, and psychoanalysis, including
the differences and intersection points among them. Focus is on short texts
or short passages from longer texts, essential to understand their work and
to produce a critical analysis of contemporary world society, politics and culture.
The core problem: Do alternative ways of thinking and acting exist in opposition
to how we always already think and act?
GERST
1210 EXPLORING GERMAN CONTEXTS I
4 credits.
Intended for students with no prior experience in German or
with an LPG score below 37 or an SAT II score below 370.
Lectures: T 11:15-12:05 or 12:20-1:10, G. Lischke, Coordinator
Section 1 MWRF 10:10-11:00, G. Lischke
Section 2 MWRF 11:15-12:05
Section 3 MWRF 12:20-1:10,
Section 4 MWRF 1:25-2:15,
Students develop basic abilities in listening, reading, writing and speaking
German in meaningful contexts through interaction in small group activities.
Course material including videos, short articles, poems, and songs provide students
with varied perspectives on German language, culture and society.
GERST
1220 EXPLORING GERMAN CONTEXTS II
4 credits.
Prerequisite: German 121 or an LPG score of 37-44 or an SAT
II score of 370-450.
Lecture: R 11:15-12:05 or 12:20-1:10, G. Matthias, Coordinator
Section 1 MTWF 10:10-11:00, G. Matthias
Section 2 MTWF 12:20-1:10,
Students
build on their basic knowledge of German by engaging in intensive and more sustained
interaction in the language. Students learn more advanced language structures
allowing them to express more complex ideas in German. Discussions, videos and
group activities address topics of relevance to the contemporary German-speaking
world .
GERST
1230 EXPANDING THE GERMAN DOSSIER
4 credits.
Limited to students who have previously studied German and
have an LPG score of 45-55 or an SAT II score of 460-580.
Section 1 MTWF 10:10-11:00,
Section 2 MTWF 11:15-12:05, G. Matthias
Students continue to develop their language skills by discussing a variety of
cultural topics and themes in the German-speaking world. The focus of the course
is on expanding vocabulary, reviewing major grammar topics, developing effective
reading strategies, improving listening comprehension, and working on writing
skills. Work in small groups increases each student's opportunity to speak in
German and provides for greater feedback and individual help.
GERST
2000 GERMANY: INTERCULTURAL CONTEXT
3 credits. (CA)
Prerequisite: GERST 1230, LPG scores of 56-64, or SAT II score
of 590-680 or placement by examination. Satisfies Option 1.
Section 1, MWF 10:10-11:00,
Section 2 MWF 11:15-12:05,
A content-based language course on the intermediate level. Students examine
important aspects of present-day German culture while expanding and strengthening
their reading, writing and speaking skills in German. Materials for each topic
are selected from a variety of sources (fiction, newspapers, magazines, and
the Internet). Units address a variety of topics including studying at a German
university, modern literature, Germany online, and Germany at the turn of the
century. Oral and written work, individual and group presentations emphasize
accurate and idiomatic expression in German. Successful completion of the course
enables students to continue with more advanced courses in language, literature
and culture.
GERST
2040 WORKING WITH TEXTS
3 credits. (CA)
Prerequisite: GERST 2000, or placement by examination (placement score and CASE).
Satisfies Option 1.
MWF 12:20-1:10, D. McBride
Emphasis on improving oral and written expression of idiomatic German. Enrichment
of vocabulary and appropriate use of language in different conversational contexts
and written genres. Material consists of readings in contemporary prose, articles
on current events, videos and group projects. Topics include: awareness of culture,
dependence of meaning on perspective, German news broadcasts, reading German
newspapers on the Internet.
GERST
2060 GERMAN IN BUSINESS CULTURE 3
credits.
Taught in German. Prerequisites: GERST 2000, or placement by examination. Students
without previous knowledge of Business German are welcome. Satisfies Option
1.
MWF
1:25-2:15, G. Lischke
Learn German and understand German business culture at the same time. This is
a German language course that examines the German economic structure and its
major components: industry, trade unions, the banking system, and the government.
Participants will learn about the business culture in Germany and how to be
effective in a work environment, Germany's role within the European Union, the
role of the Bundesbank, the importance of trade and globalization, and current
economic issues in Germany. The materials consist of authentic documents from
the German business world, TV footage, and a Business German textbook. At the
end of the course, the external Goethe Institut exam "Deutsch für
den Beruf" will be offered.
GERST
3010 SCENES OF THE CRIME: GERMAN MYSTERY AND DETECTIVE FICTION
4 credits. (LA)
Taught
in German. Prerequisites: GERST 2020,GERST 2040, GERST 2060 or equivalent or
permission of instructor. This course may be counted towards the requirement
for 3000-level language work in the major
MWF 10:10-11:00, P. Gilgen
An exploration of German crime, detective, and mystery writing in texts ranging
from the early nineteenth century to contemporary fiction. Authors to be studied
may include: Kleist, E. T. A. Hoffmann, Dürrenmatt, Schatten, Süskind,
Handke, Ören, Arjouni, Ani, and Glauser. In addition to exercising hermeneutic
skills (and, by extension, that gray matter of which Sherlock Holmes and Hercule
Poirot were so fond), this course aims at improving proficiency in aural and
reading comprehension, as well as speaking and writing skills, with emphasis
on vocabulary expansion, advanced grammar review, and stylistic development.
Recommended to students interested in a combined introduction to literature
and high-level language training.
GERST
3250 THE AGE OF GOETHE
(formerly GERST 358) 4 credits. (LA)
Taught
in German. Prerequisites: Any 3000-level German course or permission of instructor.
Satisfies Option 1.
MWF 11:15-12:05, A. Groos
This course provides an introduction to literary and philosophical texts of
the Age of Goethe, ranging from the late Enlightenment through Romanticism.
After initial readings on the Enlightenment by Lessing, Kant, and Schiller,
readings/discussions will explore major literary representatives of the Sturm-und-Drang
and Weimar periods, such as Goethe’s Werther and Faust I (selections),
Schiller’s Kabale und Liebe and Maria Stuart, and a wide selection of
poetry. Readings in Romantic literature will include narratives by writers such
as Kleist, E.T.A. Hoffmann, and Tieck, as well as poetry by Hölderlin,
Novalis, Brentano, and Eichendorf.
GERST
3270 TOO MUCH TO SEE: GERMAN LITERARY AND VISUAL CULTURES, 1900-1933
4 credits. (CA)
Taught
in German. Prerequisites: Any 3000-level German course or permission of instructor.
Satisfies Option 1.
TR 11:40-12:55, P. McBride
Are we drowning in images? This is a question critics and intellectuals in Western
and Central Europe insistently posed at the beginning of the twentieth century.
They were reacting to the momentous cultural changes brought about by the rise
of new media and forms of communication that rely primarily on the visual—from
photography to film, from advertising to new typographical styles. “Stop
reading! Look!” a German cultural critic recommended in the 1920s. This
became the rallying cry of avant-garde artists eager to leave behind traditional
cultural modes based on writing and reading and embrace a modern experience
permeated by images. How does a visual culture shape our ways of perceiving
our environment and our identity as individuals? What is the place of traditional
literacy in this transformed world? Are the issues raised by a new dominance
of the visual still helpful in navigating our contemporary cultural environments?
These are some of the questions we will consider as we explore the visual revolution
that transformed the culture of the German-speaking countries in the first half
of the twentieth century.
GERST
4050 INTROUDCTION TO MEDIEVAL GERMAN LITERATURE I
4 credits.
Prerequisites:
reading knowledge of German
MWF 9:05-9:55, A. Groos
After a brief introduction to basic aspects of the medieval universe, ranging
from cosmology to psychology, reading will focus on introductory texts of late
twelfth-century courtly culture. Using the predominant genres of aristocratic
self-representation, the heroic epic (Nibelungenlied), Arthurian romance (Hartmann's
Iwein), and Minnesang, discussions will investigate the court as the locus of
conflicting forces in the rise of the secular culture in Germany, examining
such issues as the first vernacular construction of social and sexual identity,
generational conflicts within the communal-dynastic order, the rise of individualism
(the knightly quest), and subjectivity (the love lyric).
GERST
4090 SPINOZA AND THE NEW SPINOZISM
(also COML 4090, GOVT 4769, JWST 4790) 4 credits. (LA)
TR 10:10-11:25, G. Waite
Benedict (Baruch) Spinoza was excommunicated in his lifetime, wrote under various
threats, including death, and has remained a scandal to philosophy, psychoanalysis,
ethics, political theory and practice. "Every philosopher has two philosophies,
his own and Spinoza's" (Henri Bergson); and hence "the savage anomaly"
(Toni Negri) has exerted intense, if subterranean, influence on Marx, Nietzsche,
and Freud, among many others. Our seminar has two main aims: (1) to introduce
Spinoza's writing and thinking; (2) to trace his legacy, beginning with the
"Spinoza conversations and controversy" between Lessing and Jacobi
in the eighteenth century, then Schelling in the early nineteenth century, and
finally today's heterogeneous, international group referred to as The New Spinozists
(e.g., Gabriel Albiac, Louis Althusser, Etienne Balibar, Gilles Deleuze &
Félix Guattari, Emilia Giancotti, Luce Irigaray, Kôjin Karatani,
Jacques Lacan, Pierre Macherey, Toni Negri), some of whom have been using Spinoza
to develop a non- or even anti-Kantian and non- or even anti-Hegelian analysis
of contemporary philosophical, political, and cultural questions. We will also
take seriously Leo Strauss's reading of Spinoza. Our seminar will ask another
questions: What is freedom, and whose power does it serve?, if "The new
world system, the ultimate third stage of capitalism is for us the absent totality,
Spinoza's God or Nature, the ultimate (indeed perhaps the only) referent, the
true ground of Being in our time" (Fredric Jameson). In addition, especially,
to close readings of salient (from Latin salire) passages in Spinoza, beginning
with his early Emendation of the Intellect and ending with the unfinished Political
Treatise, we will also, only then, read The Spinoza Conversations between Lessing
and Jacobi, Schelling, On the Essence of Human Freedom, the anthology The New
Spinoza (ed. W. Montag and T. Stolze), and monographs
GERST
GERST 4100 SENIOR SEMINAR: THE FAMILY SCENE IN GERMAN LITERATURE
4 credits. (CA)
Prerequisite: Any course at 3000-level taught in German or
equivalent or permission of instructor. Reasings and discussions in German.
TR 11:40-12:55, A. Schwarz
When and why does "the family" become an object
of literature? What can we find out about sibling relationships, concepts of
parenthood and questions of ancestry and genealogy when they are part of a plot
in novellas, novels or short stories? In this course we shall trace the history
of "family" as a literary topic and investigate the various forms
of family literary imagination has presented to us throughout three centuries.
Topics of discussion will include: when did the "mother" take on the
central role of education? When did the "father" take on the roles
of protector or antagonist? When did literature decide to portray ancestors
as ghosts? How does literature portray sibling rivalry and family crimes? The
course shall feature literary works and texts from anthropology, psychoanalysis,
history and law. Authors include: Goethe, Schiller, Hoffmann, Keller, Stifter,
Kleist, Brothers Grimm, Brothers Mann, Kafka, Bernhard, Freud and others. Texts
and discussion in German.
GERST
4270 FREUD AND HIS COMMENTATORS
(also HIST 4250) 4 credits. Limited to 15 students.
W 2:30-4:25, C. Robcis
This seminar offers an introduction to Freud's writings, organized more or less
chronologically. From Freud's early "case studies" to his more anthropological
works and theories on the group, we will attempt to understand the specificity
of the psychoanalytic method, as we engage with the historical context in which
psychoanalysis emerged. We will also read a number of Freud's critics (Jacques
Lacan, Judith Butler, Douglas Crimp, Leo Bersani, Joan Copjec, David Eng, Jacqueline
Rose, Tim Dean) in order to help us situate psychoanalysis in a contemporary
political frame.
GERST
4310 THEORY OF THEATRE AND DRAMA (also COML 4050, THETR
4310) 4 credits.
R 2:30-4:25, H. Yan
This course is a survey of dramatic theory and theories of theatrical representation
from Aristotle to the present. Although covering a span of over two thousand
years, the point will be to focus our analysis on a smaller number of key representative
texts from the European, American, and postcolonial traditions. In so doing
we will seek to develop a close reading of each text, while at the same time
exploring both their reception within the context in which they emerged as well
as their importance in the ever-evolving process of the institutions of theatre
and drama over greater periods of time. Participants will be expected to read
carefully the primary and background texts assigned for each session and come
to class prepared to raise and answer questions about the material at hand.
GERST
4510 INDEPENDENT STUDY 1-4 credits each term.
Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
Hours to be arranged. Staff.
GERST
4530 HONORS RESEARCH
4 credits.
Hours to be arranged. Staff.
GERST 4570 IMAGINING THE HOLOCAUST (also
ENGL 4580, JWST 4580) 4 credits.
T 10:10-12:05, D. Schwarz
What is the role of the literary imagination in keeping the memory of the Holocaust
alive for our culture? We shall examine major and widely read Holocaust narratives
which have shaped the way we understand and respond to the Holocaust. As we
move further away from the original events, why do the kinds of narratives with
which authors render the Holocaust horror evolve to include fantasy and parable?
Employing both a chronological overview and a synchronic approach—which
conceives of the authors having a conversation with one another—we shall
discover recurring themes and structural patterns in the works we read. We shall
begin with first-person reminiscences—Wiesel's Night, Levi's Survival
at Auschwitz, and The Diary of Anne Frank—before turning to searingly
realistic fictions such as Hersey's The Wall, Kosinski's The Painted Bird, and
Ozick's The Shawl. In later weeks, we shall explore diverse kinds of fictions
and discuss the mythopoeic vision of Schwarz-Bart's The Last of the Just, the
illuminating distortions of Epstein's King of the Just, the Kafkaesque parable
of Appelfeld's Badenheim 1939, and the fantastic cartoons of Spiegelman's Maus
books. We shall also include Kineally's Schindler's List, which was the source
of Spielberg's academy award-winning film, and compare the book with the film.
DUTCH
1210 ELEMENTARY DUTCH 4 credits.
MTWF 10:10-11:00, C. Hosea
Intensive practice in listening, speaking, reading, and writing basic Dutch
in meaningful contexts. The course, which is taught in Dutch, also offers insight
into Netherlandic language, culture, and society worldwide.
DUTCH
2030 CONTINUING DUTCH
3 credits.
Prerequisite: Dutch 122 or permission of instructor.
MWF 11:15-12:05, C. Hosea
Improved control of Dutch grammatical structures and vocabulary through guided
conversation, discussion, compositions, reading, and film, drawing on all Dutch-speaking
cultures. Taught in Dutch.
DUTCH
2050 BEYOND WOODEN SHOES AND TULIPS: DUTCH CULTURE AND SOCIETY 3
credits. (CA)
MWF 9:05-9:55, M. Briggs
The Netherlands is known as the country of tulips, cheese and windmills as well
as being infamous for its liberal policies regarding legalized soft drugs, prostitution
and gay marriage. What is the truth behind these holiday snapshots and the superficial
image of a liberal party spot? How did this tiny country with a landmass similar
to the size of Maryland once rule the seas, how did it come to stand at the
cradle of the State of New York and how does it remain a major player in European
affairs and world economics? During this course we will discuss various aspects
of Dutch history, such as the Dutch relationship with the sea, Dutch-American
relations, World War II, as well as contemporary and controversial issues such
as the role of Islam and integration, the welfare state and Dutch liberal policies
as well as the Netherlandic character of Flanders in neighboring Belgium. Through
these studies, we will learn how the history and geography of the Low Countries
has influenced its own early and contemporary culture and psyche as well as
how it influenced others parts of the world. The course will offer significant
moments in Dutch History, its glorious Golden Age, politics, kleinkunst, film
and hot-of-the-press current events and more.
SWED
1210 INTRODUCTORY SWEDISH 4
credits.
MTWR 12:20-1:10, C. Alm
Participants gain fundamental Swedish language proficiency and functional communication
skills, as well as cultural insights into Sweden and Swedish-speaking contexts.
The course covers topics such as introducing oneself and friends, family, housing,
time, seasonal festivities, food, restaurant visits, shopping, clothing, travel,
and visiting Sweden. Oral and written expression and skills in listening and
reading are developed in an interactive immersion classroom, enriched by a Virtual
Textbook, practical activities using current web tools, and additive audio-visual
and textual materials. Brief podcasts introduce current Swedish issues, and
participants explore Swedish language, culture and society in guided portfolios.
Intended for students without prior experience in Swedish.
SWED
2030 INTERMEDIATE SWEDISH 3
credits.
Prerequisite: Swedish 1220 or equivalent Swedish-language
background.
TBA, C. Alm
By studying the Swedish language alongside cultural and societal content in
theme-based units, participants further enhance their skills of the forms and
functions of Swedish at the intermediate to advanced level, while enriching
stylistic and expressive variation in their use of Swedish and strengthening
their understanding of Sweden and the Scandinavian context. Topics may include
Vikings and Norse mythology, the Swedish popular music industry, Sweden and
the EU, technology and entrepreneurship in Swedish-speaking contexts, contemporary
multicultural Sweden, the history of the Swedish language, and Swedish design
and creative expression. An interactive classroom that fully immerses participants
in the Swedish language is combined with recent media, film, music, selections
from factual and literary texts, activities using current web tools and virtual
fieldwork. Participants are given opportunities to develop specialized interests
in language and culture creatively in a team wiki project and guided portfolios.0
SPECIAL INTEREST COURSES FOR GRADUATE STUDENTS
GERST
4070 DEUTSCH ALS FREMDSPRACHE / TEACHING GERMAN AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE
4 credits.
Intended primarily for graduate students preparing to teach
German.
TBA, G. Lischke
GERST
6310
READING ACADEMIC GERMAN I
3 credits.
Intended for graduate students with no prior experience in
German.
MWF 9:05-9:55,
This course emphasizes the acquisition of reading skills in German, using a
variety of prepared and authentic texts. The follow-up course, GERST 632, Reading
Academic German II, is offered in the spring only.
GERST
GERST 6030 LITERATURE OF FASCISM AND ANTI-FASCISM
4 credits.
W 2:30-4:25, P. McBride
This
course will explore the multiple cultural contexts of the Third Reich by drawing
on a variety of media (literature, film, architecture, and the visual arts)
and disciplinary perspectives (literary criticism, political and social theory).
Questions we will discuss include the nature of the style(s) or cultural project(s)
of Nazi official culture; the relationship between high art and mass culture;
and the articulation of gender, class, and racist dimensions in cultural production
and reception. Special attention will be devoted to manifestations of opposition
and resistance that surfaced in the literature, arts, and mass culture of the
period; the culture of the Jewish Community of Germany and Austria; and the
cultural production of the concentration and death camps. Possible readings
include texts by Schmitt, Grimm, Benn, Heidegger, Jünger, Bergengruen,
Klüger, Hitler, Berens-Totenohl, Benjamin, Adorno.
GERST 6131 GERMAN PHILOSOPHICAL TEXTS
(also PHIL 6030) variable 1-4 credits.
TBA, A. Chignell
Reading,
translation, and English-language discussion of important texts in the German
philosophical tradition. Readings for a given term are chosen in consultation
with students. Prerequisites: Basic
reading (not necessarily speaking) knowledge of German, and the permission of
the instructor.
GERST 6470 GERMAN LITERATURE FROM 1949-1989
4 credits.
Anchor course. Reading knowledge of German.
R 2:30-4:25, L. Adelson
This seminar/anchor course will focus on German literature during the period
of the cold war between 1949 and 1989. The point of the course will be to trace
major themes and styles in German-speaking literature, East and West, in light
of contemporaneous events of broad cultural and political significance. While
individual texts will be examined within their specific historical (temporal,
geopolitical, aesthetic) contexts, the course will also be organized comparatively
around critical debates concerning such topics as fictional representations
of the immediate past; attempts by minority/majority voices to challenge and
change the canon; writing and social change; questions concerning a national
cultural identity; the politics of postmodernity and postcolonialism; and others.
Readings will be selected from authors such as W. Borchert, H. Böll, G.
Grass, I. Bachmann, W. Koeppen, A. Andersch, P. Handke, F. Dürrenmatt,
C. Wolf, P. Weiss, H. Müller, V. Braun, C. Hein, I. Morgner, J. Becker,
H. Enzensberger, A. Kluge, P. Schneider, B. Strauss, A. Duden, M. Maron, and
E. Özdamar.
GERST
6600 VISUAL IDEOLOGY
(also ARTH 6060, COML 6600, VISST 6060) 4 credits.
T 2:00-4:25, G. Waite
Some of the most powerful approaches to visual practices have come from outside
or from the peripheries of the institution of art history and criticism. This
seminar will analyze the interactions between academically sanctioned disciplines
(such as iconography and connoisseurship) and innovations coming from philosophy,
psychoanalysis, historiography, sociology, literary theory, mass media criticism,
feminism, and Marxism. We will try especially to develop: (1) a general theory
of "visual ideology" (the gender, social, racial, and class determinations
on the production, consumption, and appropriation of visual artifacts under
modern and postmodern conditions); and (2) contemporary theoretical practices
that articulate these determinations. Examples will be drawn from the history
of oil painting, architecture, city planning, photography, film and other mass
media.
GERST
7530 INDEPENDENT STUDY
1-4 credits.
Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
Hours to be arranged. Staff
GERST
7531 COLLOQUIUM
1-4 credits.
F 3:00-5:00
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