Berlin Tales: history, Culture, Literature

Some of the most thrilling, momentous, and terrible events of European history occurred in Germany’s old and new capital, Berlin. The city’s streets, buildings, memorials, and cultural monuments offer cautionary tales about the folly of nationalist ambition, have inspired sagas of intellectual and physical courage as well as cold testimonials of crime and retribution, and personal records of hope and despair. In this course, we will explore the city of Berlin as it features in literature, film, architecture, and art. While putting a special emphasis on the time since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, we will also gain an overview of the political, social, and cultural developments in Germany in the late 19th and early 20th century. Working with an open definition of “culture,” we will primarily read texts focusing on the urban experience. You can expect to gain an understanding of the complexities of Germany’s post-war histories and the intricate relationship between culture, history, and politics through weekly lectures, teamwork, and class discussions.

The course will be taught in English but is designed as a dual-language class for English speakers and German speakers alike. Students capable of reading in German and wanting to receive German credit should sign up for GRMN 101. They will also have the opportunity to converse in German.
Days: TU TH  02:00-03:20 PM

Introduction to the major authors and movements of Iberian literature and culture from the Middle Ages to the present.

Prerequisite: SPANISH 3 or SPANISH 3H or AP Spanish Literature Exam. AP Spanish Literature Exam with a minimum score of 4. Placement into SPANISH 101A is also accepted.

Days: TU TH  09:30-10:50 AM

Emphasis/Category: Locating Europes and European Colonies
From the French Revolution to the “velvet revolutions” in 1989 that led to the collapse of the Soviet bloc, revolutions have shaped modern Europe.  These European revolutions continue to inform how we think about protest, resistance, civil disobedience, and the use and abuse of violence as a political means. How can revolutions be started? How can they be ended? How can they be prevented? Why do revolutions occur? Questions like this have preoccupied thinkers, writers, and activists like Edmund Burke, Karl Marx, Rosa Luxemburg, Frantz Fanon, Bertolt Brecht, Hannah Arendt, among many others.  But a gap opened again and again between the theory (and the promises and the propaganda) and the practice of revolutions. Who were the subjects and agents of the revolution in these narratives (working class, oppressed minorities, students, dissidents)? What revolutionary tactics were proposed, used, and decried?  Taking our examples from the rich and varied revolutionary history of modern Europe, we will explore how revolutionary (and anti-revolutionary) narratives have been constructed in European politics, literature, art, and film.
Days: T TH  09:30-10:50 AM

Emphasis/Category: Locating Europes and European Colonies
Some of the most thrilling, momentous, and terrible events of European history occurred in Germany’s old and new capital, Berlin. The city’s streets, buildings, memorials, and cultural monuments offer cautionary tales about the folly of nationalist ambition, have inspired sagas of intellectual and physical courage as well as cold testimonials of crime and retribution, and personal records of hope and despair. In this course, we will explore the city of Berlin as it features in literature, film, architecture, and art. While putting a special emphasis on the time since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, we will also gain an overview of the political, social, and cultural developments in Germany in the late 19th and early 20th century. Working with an open definition of “culture,” we will primarily read texts focusing on the urban experience. You can expect to gain an understanding of the complexities of Germany’s post-war histories and the intricate relationship between culture, history, and politics through weekly lectures, teamwork, and class discussions.
The course will be taught in English but is designed as a dual-language class for English speakers and German speakers alike. Students capable of reading in German and wanting to receive German credit should sign up for GRMN 101. They will also have the opportunity to converse in German.
Days: TU TH  02:00-03:20 PM