ClassInfo

Please note: this course will be taught ONLINE in Fall 2020; the language of instruction is German.

New forms of German Jewish memory culture emerged in the 17th-century, and they provided audiences with important tools for individual and communal self-perception as Jews grappled with the fragile bonds between history, memory, and notions of modernity.

As students of German taking an introductory course in German studies, you will critically engage with, and respond to, a variety of these media in this course. The materials in question, either written in German or appearing in German translation, include prose and verse texts, drama, ethnography, philosophy, visual art, public memorials, and exhibitions. You will in turn engage with relevant overarching themes that include: the (unstable) notion of German Jewish "symbiosis" emerging in the 18th century, the role of language(s) for Jewish cultures in Central and Eastern Europe, class and migration, Jewish culture(s) in the First Austrian Republic and Weimar Germany, the Holocaust and its aftermath, and the role of Jewish artists, writers, and thinkers active in Germany and Austria today.

This course is designed to explicitly address four Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs). In this course, you will:

• Locate and critically evaluate information -You will read and analyze textual objects, and discuss how they are presented, circulated, mediated, and adapted over time.

• Have mastered a body of knowledge and a mode of inquiry - This will serve as an introductory course for both German majors and minors, as well as those outside the dept. on a particular subject (German Jewish culture). As a critical reader in a foreign language, you will also develop linguistic fluency and cultural literacy.

• Understand diverse philosophies and cultures within and across societies - You will gain a better understanding of the diversity within Jewish communities in imperial and interwar Germany and Austria before they fell victim to genocide during World War II. In addition, you will also be exposed to the multicultural Jewish communities in Germany and Austria today, as well as the current challenges they face.

• Can communicate effectively - You will actively participate in class discussions, complete written assignments, and collaborate with others to decipher literary texts.

• Understand the role of creativity, innovation, discovery, and expression across disciplines • You will explore the ways in which writers and artists explore their own creativity and subjectivity through a variety of media on a particular subject across time and space.

30% Twice-weekly Responses on Canvas

15% Essay 1

30% Essay 2 (Includes two drafts)

10% Peer-Review Workshopping of Final Paper

15% Participation in small-group and class discussions