German Cultural Studies

Taught in German; some theoretical readings in English. Exploration of German culture in different historical contexts. Examination of various cultural spaces, practices, and standpoints as staged in literary and nonliterary texts, with emphasis on constructions of sex and gender, memory and national identity, and ethnicity and race. Analysis of ways of seeing, thinking, and talking about these issues as manifested in several cultural debates that dominated public discussions in Germany (and Europe) for several weeks, months, or even years (e.g., debates about admission of women to universities at end of 19th century, reconstructing/preserving sites of memory in postwar Germany, and headscarf and integration in contemporary Germany).

Letter grading.