Germanic Languages | Intro to German Literature - Themes
G306 | 2794-2795 | Breger / Roberts
Prerequisite: G300 with a minimum grade of C-. Recommended: G330.
So-called “Gypsies” (that is, Sinti and Roma) and Jews are the two
major minorities that have been residents – and partially citizens –
in German-speaking countries throughout the last centuries. In this
course, we look at the ways in which their presence has been
reflected in German literature. In particular, we will discuss how
both minorities have been portrayed as “others” of what writers
imagined to be “German”, and how these ideas about their “otherness”
helped to carve out the very idea of what it means to be “German”. We
will also talk about German Jewish and Roma/Sinti self-portrayals,
and about the ways in which the long tradition of persecution, which
culminated in the Holocaust, informs more recent literature on these
Assignments will include two larger papers (midterm and final), and
several shorter papers and/or a presentation in class.
Achim v. Arnim: Isabella von Ägypten. Reclam: Ditzingen, ISBN
A course reader with shorter texts.