HELP Catalogue 2021-2022 [ARCHIVED CATALOG] German Studies Department Contract All Courses | Print this Page Facebook this Page (opens a new window) Tweet this Page (opens a new window)

Chair: Jeffrey Schneider;

Professor: Elliott Schreiber^a,

Associate Professors: Jeffrey Schneider, Silke von der Emde;

Visiting Assistant Professors: Domenic DeSocio, Lioba Gerhardi.

^a On leave 2021/22, first semester

Advisers: The department.

All courses are conducted in German except for GERM 235 , and GERM 265 .

Programs

Major

• •  German Studies Major

Correlate Sequence in German

• •  German Correlate Sequence

Courses

German: I. Introductory

• GERM 101 - Sex Before, During, and After the Nazis

  Semester Offered: Fall
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  This course offers an introduction to Germany’s unique position in the history of sexuality. As early as the late nineteenth century, Germany and Austria were a hotbed for new thinking sexuality and sexual freedom, including the founding of psychoanalysis and the world’s first homosexual emancipation movement. National Socialism, however, forever changed the way that Germans and non-Germans viewed every aspect of Germany’s history and culture, including its sexual politics. This course examines some of Germany’s most salient debates about sex from the late nineteenth century to the Nazi era and beyond, including the sexual revolution of the 1960s and 1970s. Materials include autobiographies, fictional works, plays, films, political tracts, and sexual case studies, as well as secondary texts representing a variety of disciplinary approaches.  Jeff Schneider.
  
  Satisfies college requirement for a First-Year Writing Seminar.

  Readings and discussions in English.
  
  Two 75-minute periods.
  
  Course Format: CLS

• GERM 105 - Beginning German: The Stories of Childhood

  Semester Offered: Fall
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  This course offers a yearlong introduction to the study of German language and culture through literature, fairy tales, and films for and about children. Since these materials tend to be linguistically easier, they are ideal for beginning language learning. Moreover, their role in socializing a new generation makes them important sources for understanding a culture’s fundamental values and way of looking at the world. Materials range from classic texts, such as fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm, to contemporary stories, films, and television shows. In addition to offering a systematic introduction to German grammar and vocabulary, classroom activities promote practical and active oral and written communication. No prior experience with German required.  Domenic DeSocio.
  
  Yearlong course 105-GERM 106 .
  
  Course Format: CLS
• GERM 106 - Beginning German: The Stories of Childhood

  Semester Offered: Spring
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  This course offers a yearlong introduction to the study of German language and culture through literature, fairy tales, and films for and about children. Since these materials tend to be linguistically easier, they are ideal for beginning language learning. Moreover, their role in socializing a new generation makes them important sources for understanding a culture’s fundamental values and way of looking at the world. Materials range from classic texts, such as fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm, to contemporary stories, films, and television shows. In addition to offering a systematic introduction to German grammar and vocabulary, classroom activities promote practical and active oral and written communication. No prior experience with German required.  Silke von der Emde.
  
  Yearlong course GERM 105 -106.
  
  Course Format: CLS
• GERM 109 - Intensive Beginning German

  Semester Offered: Spring
  2 unit(s)

  ---

  A single-semester study of the German language, equivalent to GERM 105 -GERM 106 . Intensive training in the fundamental language skills. Designed for beginning students who wish to accelerate their learning of German. Elliott Schreiber.
  
  Open to all classes; five 75-minute periods, four 30-minute drill sessions, and computer-assisted instruction.
  
  Course Format: CLS

German: II. Intermediate

• GERM 210 - Intermediate German I: Identity in Contemporary Germany

  Semester Offered: Fall
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  Low-intermediate language study through short texts and research topics on questions of national identity in contemporary Germany. Strong emphasis is placed on developing vocabulary and reviewing grammar as well as developing oral and written expression. The course uses an online educational environment and may involve an exchange with learners at another college.  Jeffrey Schneider.
  
  Prerequisite(s): GERM 106 , GERM 109  or the equivalent.
  
  Course Format: CLS
• GERM 211 - Intermediate German II: Space in Weimar Germany

  Semester Offered: Spring
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  Intermediate language study through texts and research topics on questions of space in Weimar Germany at the time of the “Roaring Twenties.” Strong emphasis is placed on developing vocabulary and reviewing grammar as well as developing oral and written expression. The course uses an online educational environment and may involve an exchange with learners at another college.  Domenic DeSocio
  
  Prerequisite(s): GERM 210  or the equivalent.
  
  Course Format: CLS
• GERM 230 - Contemporary German Culture and Media

  Semester Offered: Fall
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  Advanced intermediate language study through an examination of contemporary German culture and the role played by different media such as newspapers, television, radio, film, and the Internet. Strong emphasis is placed on developing vocabulary, reviewing grammar, as well as oral and written expression. The course may involve an exchange with native speakers of German. Domenic DeSocio.
  
  Prerequisite(s): GERM 211  or the equivalent.
  
  Course Format: CLS
• GERM 232 - Faust, Music, and Romanticism

  
  0.5 unit(s)

  ---

  (Same as MUSI 232 ) No literary text of the early Romantic era was read more avidly than Goethe’s Faust. After its publication in 1808, composers rapidly began setting it to music. In this six-week course, we begin with a close reading of Faust Part I (in English translation), then study musical interpretations of it by Schubert, Mendelssohn, Berlioz, Liszt, and others. Kathryn Libin
  
  Prerequisite(s): One course in Music or German, or permission of the instructor.
  
  First six-week course.
  
  Two 75-minute periods.
  
  Course Format: CLS
• GERM 235 - Introduction to German Cultural Studies

  Semester Offered: Spring
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  Topic for 2021/2022b: The German Invention of Sexuality. (Same as WMST 235 ) Does sexuality have a history? How have the ways we think about, talk about, and act on sexual desire and sexual identity changed over time? And what roles did the German-speaking world play in this development? In this course we investigate the origins of our modern understanding of sexuality in German-speaking culture. As individuals began to see their sexual desires as an expression of their inner self in the nineteenth century, sex emerged as a scientific field of study, a theme for literary experimentation, and a cause for political activism. This heady mix of the personal, the social, and the political revolutionized the way we think (about) sex. Terms such as “homosexual,” “heterosexual,” and “transexual,” fetish, and S&M can be traced back to German-speaking thinkers, activists, and writers. After examining the origins, we also probe the dissemination, reception, and adaptation of this knowledge across time, nation, culture, race, and class, using a variety of literary texts, documents, images, and films. All readings and discussions in English. Domenic DeSocio.
  
  Open to all classes.
  
  Two 75-minute periods.
  
  Course Format: CLS
• GERM 240 - A Culture of Play: An Introduction to German Theater

  
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  Since the eighteenth century, drama and theater have held a vaunted place within Germany’s language literary and cultural production. This course offers an introduction to that tradition through the study of specific authors, texts, and theories. Students have the opportunity to hone their speaking skills through performance activities, such as mounting scenes or an entire production. Strong emphasis is placed on developing vocabulary and reviewing grammar as well as developing written expression. Authors may include Brecht, Büchner, Dürrenmatt, Handke, Hauptmann, Jelinek, Loher, and Weiss. 
  
  Prerequisite(s): GERM 211  or the equivalent.
  
  Two 75-minute periods.
  
  Not offered in 2021/22.
  
  Course Format: CLS
• GERM 255 - Follow the Lieder

  
  0.5 unit(s)

  ---

  (Same as MUSI 255 ) In the early 19th century Beethoven and Schubert established Vienna as the seat of German song.  Brahms, Wolf, and Strauss carried the form forward into the modern era.  This six-week course examines the intimate marriage of German poetry and music during the romantic period when the Austrian empire went from being the largest power in Europe to a sentimental land on Europe’s eastern front.  This course offers performance opportunities for singers and pianists as well as non-performance related projects. The course is open to all students, regardless of performance background. Drew Minter and Miriam Charney.
  
  Prerequisite(s): One course in Music or German.
  
  First six-week course.
  
  Two 75-minute periods plus extra periods.
  
  Not offered in 2021/22.
  
  Course Format: CLS
• GERM 260 - Developments in German Literature

  Semester Offered: Spring
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  Topic for 2021/2022b: Love Trouble: Passion and Heartbreak in Modern German Literature and Culture. Starting in the late nineteenth century, German-speaking Europe became a hotbed of theorizing and activism around sexuality and sexual expression. But while many activists fought for sexual freedom and a future in which “sex will be good again,” others found themselves focusing on the countless reasons why relationships often fell short of expectations:  racism, antisemitism, women’s oppression, homophobia, class differences, age differences, politics, and German society as a whole. This course explores the efforts to document and overcome these problems in essays, fiction, poetry, and film against larger developments in German society. Authors and filmmakers may include Fatih Akin, Ingeborg Bachmann, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Dea Loher, Thomas Mann, Emine Özdamar, Ulrich Plenzdorf, Bernhard Schlink, Arthur Schnitzler, Frank Wedekind, and Christa Wolf. Jeffrey Schneider.
  
  Prerequisite(s): GERM 230  or GERM 240 , or permission of the instructor.
  
  Two 75-minute periods.
  
  Course Format: CLS
• GERM 265 - German Film in English Translation

  Semester Offered: Spring
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  (Same as FILM 265 ) Topic for 2021/22b: From Caligari to Hitler? Tracing the Roots of Fascism in German Cinema between the Two World Wars. In his seminal work on German film history during the Weimar Republic, Siegfried Kracauer drew a direct line from the titular madman-manipulator in the silent horror classic The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari to Adolf Hitler. This course scrutinizes Kracauer’s approach as part of our own analysis of the cinematic landscape of Germany’s first flawed attempt at democracy in the 1920s and early 1930s. In addition to examining a wide range of genres, from slapstick comedy to socialist drama, we explore aesthetic styles and technological developments in cinema as well as filmic forebodings of authoritarian and fascist structures. Authors and filmmakers include: Béla Balázs, Bert Brecht, Lotte Eisner, Fritz Lang, Ernst Lubitsch, F.W. Murnau, Leni Riefenstahl, and Josef von Sternberg. Lioba Gerhardi.
  
  Readings and discussions are in English, and all films have English subtitles.

  Open to all classes.
  
  Two 75-minute periods.
  
  Course Format: CLS

• GERM 275 - Spiel: Exploring the Wonderful World of German Board Games

  
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  Particularly with the international blockbuster Settlers of Catan, contemporary German board games have revitalized the analog gaming industry. Since the Second World War, they have set themselves apart from counterparts in the U.S. by emphasizing strategy and social skills while de-emphasizing war games and the early elimination of players. Through this Intensive, students study the history of German parlor games and board games, including such milestones as Reisewitz’s Kriegsspiel (1812), which was used to train Prussian officers in military strategy. This game set the stage for wargames in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries (including the popular board game Risk), a tradition with which contemporary German board games intentionally break. Our exploration of the history of the development of board games over approximately the last two centuries is guided by a variety of questions: What function do they  play in society for both children and adults? How do they reflect or undermine societal values? What accounts for the popularity of particular games, whether nationally or internationally? What constitutes a well-designed game? What relationship do analog games today have with the digital environment? To help investigate these questions, we travel to Germany over October Break to conduct research at one of the largest analog game archives in the world, the Deutsches Spielearchiv in Nuremberg, and then at the largest convention of analog games in the world, the Internationale Spieltage in Essen. This study trip forms the basis for several projects in the second half of the semester, including an analysis of a game, the creation and testing of a game, and the compilation of a collection of games for use by the Vassar community.
  
  Prerequisite(s): Student is expected to have completed the equivalent of one year of Beginning German, and to be at least a Sophomore in Fall 2019.
  
  One 2-hour period.
  
  Not offered in 2021/22.
  
  Course Format: INT
• GERM 290 - Community-Engaged Learning

  
  0.5 to 1 unit(s)

  ---

  Course Format: INT
• GERM 298 - Independent Work

  Semester Offered: Fall or Spring
  0.5 to 1 unit(s)

  ---

  Permission required.
  
  Course Format: OTH

German: III. Advanced

• GERM 300 - Senior Thesis

  Semester Offered: Fall or Spring
  1 to 2 unit(s)

  ---

  The department.
  
  Open only to majors.

  Permission required.
  
  Course Format: INT

• GERM 301 - Senior Seminar

  Semester Offered: Fall
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  Topic for 2021/22a: Germany in the Time of Black Lives Matter. Activist, sociologist and filmmaker Auma Obama, Barack Obama’s half-sister, once said that she found her own voice in Germany. In fact, Germany is home to many Black intellectuals, artists, and people from all across the African diaspora. Yet while Germany has been praised for its Erinnerungskultur (culture of remembrance) around the Holocaust, that legacy has often overshadowed Germany’s efforts to deal with its colonial past or its present-day racism, leaving many Black Germans feeling invisible, ignored and discriminated against. Fortunately, in the wake of the international Black Lives Matter movement, their existence, history and cultural contributions have begun to receive some long overdue attention. This seminar explores the rich culture that diverse groups of black and brown people in Germany have created while at the same time addressing the history of people of color in Germany and some of the issues and barriers they have faced or continue to face. Together we analyze a range of political, scholarly, and literary texts along with a variety of films, plays, music, dance and art works by authors and artists such as Mo Asumang, May Ayim, Sheri Hagen, Audre Lorde, Ilka Hügel Marshall, Hans-Jürgen Massaquoi, Branwen Okpako, Sharon Dodua Otoo, and Melanie Raabe. Silke von der Emde.
  
  Prerequisite(s): GERM 260  or the equivalent.
  
  Two 75-minute periods.
  
  Course Format: CLS
• GERM 302 - Senior Thesis

  Semester Offered: Fall
  0.5 unit(s)

  ---

  The department.
  
  Open only to majors.

  Permission required.
  
  Yearlong course 302-GERM 303 .
  
  Course Format: INT

• GERM 303 - Senior Thesis

  Semester Offered: Spring
  0.5 unit(s)

  ---

  The department.
  
  Open only to majors.

  Permission required.
  
  Yearlong course GERM 302 -303.
  
  Course Format: INT

• GERM 355 - Advanced Seminar

  
  1 unit(s)

  ---

   

   
  
  Prerequisite(s): GERM 260  or GERM 270 , or the equivalent.
  
  Two 75-minute periods.
  
  Not offered in 2021/22.
  
  Course Format: CLS

• GERM 374 - Senior Colloquium

  Semester Offered: Spring
  1 unit(s)

  ---

  Until this point in their education, seniors and other advanced students of German language, literature, and culture have taken courses and seminars carefully designed by faculty with specialized knowledge of the topics. For this intensive, students collaborate to develop a semester-long course of study that reflects and deepens their own knowledge and scholarly interest in a particular author, movement, period, or issue. Following pre-registration, students meet with the instructor to identify a list of common readings that form the basis for weekly discussions the first half of the semester. During the second half of the semester, students work individually with the instructor to pursue an extended research paper related to the topic. While papers develop an original argument vis-à-vis the scholarly literature on their topic, they also offer students an opportunity to refine their academic writing style in German through a couple of workshops developed in collaboration with the instructor. Toward the end of the semester all students present their papers colloquium-style. The final version of the papers may then be published in an online departmental journal as part of a special issue devoted to this topic and edited by the participating students. Silke von der Emde.
  
  Prerequisite(s): GERM 301  or the equivalent.
  
  One 2-hour period.
  
  Course Format: INT
• GERM 399 - Senior Independent Work

  
  0.5 to 1 unit(s)

  ---

  Course Format: OTH

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