German
Coordinator: Francoise Rosset
Department home page: http://www.wheatonma.edu/Acad/German
The German Department offers courses in German language, literature, film and culture, both in German and English. Students may choose to major in German or in German Studies--or to minor in German. We have recently been active in film and video, in theatre and in multicultural studies--and active in connections with history and in the sciences.
Major
Major in German
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The major in German consists of ten courses beyond the level of Ger 201 and includes a minimum of four courses at the 300 level and Ger 401. Beyond the basics of language and literature, we concentrate on film and video filmmaking; theatre; pedagogy and multicultural studies.
Major in German Studies
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In this major, students pursue interdisciplinary studies in a number of fields that relate directly to German; it does not require as much proficiency in the language as does our German major. Students construct their own program of 10 courses: six within the German Department and, with our approval, four in other departments. The six courses must include at least two courses at the 300 level and German 401 or the equivalent.
We encourage students to go abroad on our exciting Wheaton in Germany program at the University of Regensburg in consortium with Vanderbilt and Wesleyan. Each year, this program features a resident director from one of these three German faculties.
Minor
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The German minor provides a global component to many other majors. It consists of five courses in German, with one at the 300 level.
Courses
Language courses
We encourage students both to begin and to continue their study of German at Wheaton. We focus on proficiency and communication in our language classes. During orientation, we provide a placement test for incoming students with a background in German. Up to two Wheaton graduation credits (awarded after completing a German course at Wheaton) may be earned by those students who matriculate with a score of 4 or 5 on the German Advanced Placement Examination (ETS).
101. Elementary German
This course develops the ability to understand and speak German in a real-life context. Extensive use of video and tapes to develop skills in listening, speaking, reading and writing. Special attention paid to cultural aspects of language and to Germany after the Wall. Three classes a week plus a weekly intensive session with our German language assistant.
102. Elementary German
A continuation of Ger 101 with emphasis on speaking and listening skills through use of video and video filmmaking.
201. Intermediate German
A course that puts to practical use German skills acquired at Wheaton or elsewhere. We will pay special attention to contemporary Germany. This course consists of three hours of class a week and a weekly intensive session with our German language assistant.
(Tessa Lee)
Connections:
Conx 20007 German Language in European History
202. Intermediate German
A continuation of Ger 201 with an emphasis on speaking and listening through the use of video and video filmmaking.
(Tessa Lee)
Connections:
Conx 20007 German Language in European History
240. Advanced German
The emphasis of this course is on increasing reading, speaking and writing skills. Reading of literary and nonliterary texts; viewing of videos and film; writing of short compositions and conversations in German.
(Tessa Lee)
241/341. Kafka and the Kafkaesque
This course examines Kafka's life and major works in the historical and social context of early-20th-century Central Europe. Central themes are: generational conflicts, the function of humor and parody in his writings, modernity in and as crisis, the figure of the outsider as well as the "foreign," the eccentric, the illogical, the uncanny--the Kafkaesque. Several film adaptations that attempt to visualize Kafka's imaginative depths will also be studied.
(Tessa Lee)
242. Introduction to German Studies
Conducted entirely in German, this course is a general introduction to German culture, German history and German society. Its goal is to provide students with a basic level of cultural literacy about the German-speaking world.
In this course, we will study major trends in 20th century German film and literature with a special focus on issues of national, political and cultural identity.
Students coming out of the course should have a broad understanding of the various tensions and problems that have characterized German culture and society for the last century. In addition to broadening students' cultural knowledge about the German-speaking world, this course will continue to emphasize the improvement of students' ability to speak, read, write and listen to German.
(Tessa Lee)
Courses in literature and culture
These courses are conducted in German and all reading and writing is in German.
302. Business German
This course is designed to broaden students' knowledge of German as a language of commerce and industry. Emphasis is given to business terminology, development of communication skills, and current international business topics. Students will be introduced to differences in "small c" culture and communication in the world of German business transactions and will be encouraged to take the internationally recognized "Pruefung Wirtschaftsdeutsch" (International Business German Exam) administered by the German Chamber of Commerce.
(Tessa Lee)
303. Telling Fantastic Tales: Märchen und Novellen
From fairy tales and the fantastic novellas and love stories of the Romantic Era to modern stories of the Wall and reunification, the course focuses on the art of telling stories in German: cultural context, purpose and technique.
(Tessa Lee)
304. Literary Greatest Hits: Erbe und Canon
A survey of great works of German literature and the Germans who created them. Canon-building, cultural icons, concepts of genius and greatness--and alternative canons that call the "Germanness" of that culture into question.
(Tessa Lee)
341. Kafka and the Kafkaesque
364. German Theatre and Culture
This course will offer students the experience of observing the process of working on the production of a play by a professional theatre company in Freiburg, Germany. In collaboration with students and instructors in German theatre classes being conducted simultaneously at Colgate University, Lafayette College and Vassar, the class will interpret the play and develop a well-researched plan for its staging. In addition to viewing a tape of the performance and analyzing other materials (costume and set designs), students will have the chance to interview actors, designers and the director of the German production at the Theater Freiburg via video conferencing throughout the term.
370. Classicism and Romanticism in German Literature
This class will be a survey of ideas and literary movements in Germany between 1750 and 1850. Particular attention will be given to the transition from the Classical to the Romantic Period: the critique of the Classical by Romantic authors, the role of Shakespeare as a model for both, the elevation of music as the highest form of artistic expression, the long career of Goethe encompassing both periods. Authors to be read include Goethe, Schiller, Lessing, Schlegel, Kleist, Brentano, Eichendorff, Büchner and Heine.
374. Film and German Culture
This course consists of a weekly film series focusing on Expressionism, New Wave and the newest films from Germany. Enhanced by a study of fairy-tale and romantic novella and readings in contemporary German literature.
(Tessa Lee)
Connections:
Conx 23014 Film and Society
380. Identity and Difference in German Culture
What does it mean to be a German today? Recent political, cultural and literary debates in Germany have addressed the question of who is allowed to claim Germany as their "home," their Heimat. Literary (prose, poetry) and nonliterary (film, popular music, journalism) texts by intercultural writers and artists of the last two decades challenge the narrow and exclusive concept of "Germanness." This course will explore important moments in the history of their struggle and responses to these challenges.
(Tessa Lee)
398. Experimental Courses
401. Senior Seminar
Intensive, independent, self-designed research for majors meeting with faculty on a weekly basis.
(Tessa Lee)
500. Individual Research
Honors thesis research. Many of our seniors are now choosing to do innovative two-semester honor theses, which they begin preparing for in terms of research and connections while junior year abroad.
(Tessa Lee)
Courses in English
These courses are conducted in English; all reading and writing is in English translation. There are no prerequisites and no knowledge of German or of German culture is expected. Additional work for German majors to get 300-level credit.
250. German Culture
An interdisciplinary course in 20th-century German culture, history, politics and thought. Weekly examination of historical sources, material and popular culture, and novels/arts/film, looking for continuity and contradictions. Topics include: World War I, Weimar culture, Insiders and Outsiders, the German Other, Hitler, the Holocaust, the Wall, Berlin and post-unification. This course is sometimes team-taught and always has a number of guest speakers.
(Tessa Lee)
Connections:
Conx 20028 Germanies: History vs. Culture
262. The Morality and Fate of Forbidden Knowledge
This course will investigate the perplexing ethical questions raised by the Renaissance shift in attitude toward the Faust legend. The flirtation with forbidden knowledge will be studied by drawing on religious, mythological, literary, philosophical and scientific texts. Taking recent developments in genetic engineering as a case in point, we will ask to what extent the pursuit of knowledge can enhance or be damaging to human experience.
(Tessa Lee)
267. Lulu, Lola and Leni: Women of German Cinema
This course examines the women of German cinema, as filmmakers, as subjects of male filmmakers, and as spectators. While each film will be explored in relation to the sociohistorical, politicocultural and aesthetic contexts of its production, the primary focus will be on the image and representation of the female body and agency and the principal characteristics of women's filmmaking explored through such notions as a "feminine aesthetic." This class covers a wide variety of works from the early beginnings of German cinema to the present. Each week is thematically structured around one film and several readings, on topics such as "the male gaze," "gender and modernity," "the body beautiful," "fascist aesthetics," "the Cold War and sexual repression," and "female spectatorship." Reading and discussions of contemporary feminist (film) theories will aid us in addressing the issue of gender and agency both from the viewpoint of production and consumption, as it also deepens our understanding of the women's movement in Germany as well as in America. In addition, we will expand our knowledge of basic film aesthetics and apply this knowledge to the interpretation of the films viewed during the semester.
Connections:
Conx 23014 Film and Society
273. Film and German Culture
This course consists of a weekly film series focusing on Expressionism, New Wave and the newest films from Germany. Enhanced by a study of fairy tales and romantic novella and readings in contemporary German literature.
(Tessa Lee)
276/376. Berlin: Site of Memory, Site of Construction
Berlin is attracting profit--and thrill-seekers--once again, recapturing something of the vibrant energy of the Roaring Twenties before its imminent descent into fascism and the subsequent construction of the wall that would divide this city and the world at large during the Cold War. This course examines the political, social and cultural metamorphoses of the city with a special focus on the intercultural crossroads in literature, film, music and architecture. We will investigate how new identities and memories are formed at this local and global construction site.
(Tessa Lee)
Connections:
Conx 20068 German Politics and Culture in the European Context
Conx 20028 Germanies: History vs. Culture
279. Literary Translation in Theory and Practice
The course encompasses both the theory and practice of translation. The main work of the course will be to develop the students' own skills in translation. To achieve this, students will be introduced to professional translators, translation agencies, and organizations that support the work of translators in America. students enrolling in this class must have a strong intermediate competence in a foreign language.
298. Experimental Courses
These courses are taught in English. German majors have the option to get 300-level credit with extra reading and work assignments in German.
Instabilities
Focusing on late 19th and early 20th century texts this course explores how instabilities in different areas of society, particularly in gender relations, affected fictional and non-fictional writings. Main emphasis is on the deceptively non-existent discourse on masculinity as well as the decipherment of its motives and meanings. The course concludes with a comparison of instabilities at the turns of the last two centuries.
Introduction to German Literature
This course, taught in English, introduces students to the literary and cultural world of German-speaking countries. Through an eclectic selection of text and other visual materials, we will study literary works of different periods (18th-century to 21st-century) and genres (novel, short story, drama, poetry) in their cultural and sociopolitical contexts.
Literary Translation in Theory and Practice
This course encompasses both the theory and practice of translation. The main work of the course will be to develop the students' own skills in translation. To achieve this, students will be introduced to professional translators, translation agencies and organizations which support the work of translators in America. Students enrolling in this class must have a strong intermediate competence in a foreign language.
Holocaust
This course will investigate the problems and controversies surrounding the depiction of the Nazi period in German history from the perspectives of historians, playwrights and poets, literary critics, documentary and feature film directors and artists constructing public memorials in commemoration of the Holocaust.
376. Berlin: Site of Memory, Site of Construction
Connections:
Conx 20068 German Politics and Culture in the European Context
Conx 20028 Germanies: History vs. Culture
Connections:
Conx 20068 German Politics and Culture in the European Context
Conx 20028 Germanies: History vs. Culture