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Stephen Dowden, Chair
German modernism. Romanticism.The Novel: Kafka, Bernhard, Thomas Mann, Broch, Musil, Goethe.Austrian literature.
Faina Broude-Epstein
Nineteenth- and 20th-centuryRussian literature. Soviet literature, literature of the firstimmigration. Soviet cinema and art.
Eberhard Frey, UndergraduateAdvising Head, German
Eighteenth-, 19th-, and 20th-centuryGerman literature. German and general stylistics.
Robin Feuer Miller
Dostoevsky and Tolstoy. Nineteenth-centuryRussian literature and comparative literature. The novel. Reader-responsecriticism.
Andrew Swensen
Nineteenth- and 20th-centuryRussian literature. Russian and comparative Romanticism. Russianand comparative literature of the fantastic.
Robert Szulkin, UndergraduateAdvising Head, Russian
Nineteenth- and 20th-centuryRussian literature. Soviet literature.
Sabine von Mering
Eighteenth- and 19th-centuryGerman literature. German women writers. Feminist theory. Languagepedagogy. Drama.
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The German section of the Departmentof Germanic and Slavic Languages offers instruction in the Germanlanguage and literature aimed at providing access to many aspectsof the culture, past and present, of Germany, Austria, and partsof Switzerland. German has always been one of the prime languagesof international scholarship, and the recent reunification ofGermany has drawn renewed attention to the European and indeedworldwide importance of that country. In past years some Germanmajors have gone on to graduate school in German literature toprepare for a career of teaching and research or to professionalschools in law, medicine, or business, entered government work,or found employment with publishing companies or business firmswith international connections.
The department welcomes allstudents to become concentrators in German language and literature.Both non-concentrators and concentrators are offered computer-aidedinstruction in German, and work in the classroom and the LanguageMedia Center is supplemented with regular German-speaking luncheontables at a dining hall. Concentrators in German literature areencouraged to participate in the annual Brandeis Summer Programat Augsburg, Germany, or spend their junior year in Germany orany other German-speaking countries. In addition to the majorin German literature, the section offers a minor in German literatureand participates in the program in European cultural studies.(The abbreviation GECS denotes German and European Cultural Studiescourses.) Virtually all German literature courses are given inGerman.
A.ECS 100a (European Cultural Studies: The Proseminar), to be completedno later than the junior year.
B.Advanced language and literature study: GER 112a (formerly GER102a), 106a, 120a, 121a, 140a; any two of the following: GECS170b, 195b, GER 160b, or 181a.
C.Concentrators are required to enroll in and complete one of thefollowing options in the senior year: GER 97a or b (Senior Essay),GER 99d (Senior Thesis), a full-year course. Students who wishto be considered for departmental honors must elect the thesisoption. Honors will be awarded on the basis of cumulative excellencein all courses taken in the concentration, including the SeniorThesis.
Four semester courses are requiredfrom List B above. These must include GER 106a. Successful completionof GER 14b or 103a or the equivalent is a prerequisite of theminor.
GER 10a Beginning German
Enrollment limited to 18.
Intended for students withlittle or no previous knowledge of German. Emphasis is placedon comprehending, reading, writing, and conversing in German,and the presentation of basic grammar. Class work is supplementedby extensive computer-aided exercises. Usually offered every year.
Staff
GER 20b Continuing German
Prerequisite: GER 10a orthe equivalent. Enrollment limited to 18.
Conclusion of the basic grammarpresentation started in GER 10a. Continued practice of reading,writing, listening, and speaking skills in the context of Germancultural topics. The textbook from GER 10a is supplemented bya vocabulary-building reader and extensive computer-aided exercises.Usually offered every year.
Staff
GER 30a Intermediate German
[ fl ]
Prerequisite: GER 20b orthe equivalent. Enrollment limited to 18.
The major objectives are systematicgrammar review with emphasis on some fine points, expansion ofvocabulary, reading of literary and expository prose, writingof short essays, and conversation in German. A review grammarand reader will be used, with occasional newspaper, magazine,and video material. Some individual choice of emphasis may beavailable through special projects. Usually offered every semester.
Staff
GER 39a Intermediate German:Honors
[ fl ]
Prerequisite: GER 20b, 30a,or the equivalent. Signature of the instructor required.
An intensive course coveringessential elements of a third and fourth semester language sequencein one semester. Review of grammatical trouble spots; reading,viewing, and discussion of cultural material, and extensive vocabularybuilding will require independent student effort. A final gradeof B- or better in this course will provide direct access to 100-levelGerman courses. Three class hours and one scheduled lab hour perweek. Usually offered every year.
Staff
GER 40b Advanced German
[ hum ]
Prerequisite: GER 30a, 39a,or the equivalent.
Continued enhancement of thevarious language skills and of cultural sensitivity through readings,writing, discussions, group activities, special events, and immersionin our rich language media and computer environment. Review ofgrammatical trouble spots and building of special vocabulary maybe individualized to some extent. Three class hours and one scheduledlab hour per week. Usually offered every year.
Staff
GER 97a Senior Essay
Signature of the instructorrequired. Students should consult the advising head.
Usually offered every year.
Staff
GER 97b Senior Essay
Signature of the instructorrequired. Students should consult the advising head.
Usually offered every year.
Staff
GER 98a Independent Study
May be taken only with thepermission of the advising head. Signature of the instructor required.
Readings and reports underfaculty supervision. Usually offered every year.
Staff
GER 98b Independent Study
May be taken only with thepermission of the advising head. Signature of the instructor required.
Readings and reports underfaculty supervision. Usually offered every year.
Staff
GER 99d Senior Thesis
Signature of the instructorrequired. Students should consult advising head.
Usually offered every year.
Staff
The abbreviation GECS denotesGerman and European Cultural Studies courses.
GER 103a Readings in German
[ hum ]
Prerequisite: GER 40b, 39a,A- or better in GER 30a, or the equivalent.
Intended to prepare studentsfor the extensive reading in German literature seminars, for studyabroad and other advanced uses of German, this course will focuson increasing speed of reading, using both literary and nonliterarytexts, on taking lecture notes, and on further developing oraland written communication skills. Usually offered every year andalso in the annual Brandeis Summer Program at Augsburg, Germany.
Ms. von Mering
GER 104a German Conversationand Grammar
[ hum ]
Prerequisite: GER 40b, 39a,A- or better in GER 30a, or the equivalent.
Intensive study and exerciseof contemporary spoken German with an emphasis on fluency of expression,idiomatic accuracy, and proper pronunciation. Oral reports, discussions,speeches, and debates on a variety of intellectually challengingtopics will be based on material derived from dramatic dialogues,radio plays, films, essays, the daily press, and guest speakers.Usually offered in even years.
Mr. Frey
GER 106a German Compositionand Style
[ hum ]
Prerequisite: GER 40b, B-or better in GER 39a, or the equivalent.
Exercises ranging from simpleletters, stories, and dialogues to more complex analyses willimprove personal writing style. Stylistic sensitivity and analyticalabilities will be enhanced through the study of contemporary shortstories, films, advertisements, and writings of the great masters.Usually offered in odd years.
Mr. Frey
GER 110a Goethe
[ hum ]
Intensive study of many ofGoethe's dramatic, lyric, and prose works, including Goetz,Werther, Faust I, and a comprehensive selection of poetry.Lectures and readings in English. Usually offered every thirdyear. Last offered in the fall of 1995.
Mr. Dowden
GER 112a German LiteratureBefore 1700
(Formerly GER 102a)
[ hum ]
Prerequisites: GER 40b,B- or better in GER 39a, or the equivalent. (GER 103b is recommended.)Lectures and readings in German.
Though the emphasis will beon Minnesang, the Middle High German epics, and Baroque literature,there will be some attention to the Gothic and Old High Germanperiods as well as the literature of the Reformation. Lecturesand readings in the original. Usually offered every third year.Last offered in the spring of 1995.
Ms. Werner
GER 120a German Enlightenmentand Classicism
[ hum ]
Prerequisites: GER 40b,39a, A- or better in GER 30a, or the equivalent.
Careful reading and discussion(in German) of some of the most moving dramatic scenes and lyricalpoems written by Lessing, Klopstock, Lenz, Goethe, Schiller, Hölderlin,and others will provide an overview of those fertile literaryand intellectual movements--Enlightenment, Storm and Stress, Idealism--thateventually culminated in German Classicism. A lower reading loadand an optional grammar review make this course a good transitionto more advanced German courses. Usually offered every third year.Will be offered in the fall of 1998.
Ms. von Mering
GER 121a German Lyric Poetry
[ hum ]
Focuses on poets, poems, andcycles of poems in the German lyric tradition since Goethe, andintroduces the various forms of poetry. Acquaints the studentwith some important critics of German lyric, including Adorno,Benn, Gadamer, Heidegger, Heller, Hofmannsthal, Kommerell, Szondiand others. Conducted in German. Usually offered every third year.
Mr. Dowden
GER 140a German Literaturein the Nineteenth Century
[ hum ]
Prerequisites: GER 40b,B- or better in GER 39a, or the equivalent. (GER 103b is recommended.)Lectures and readings in German.
A study of German, Austrian,and Swiss prose, poetry, and drama from Heine to Hauptmann, includingthe major figures of Young Germany, Poetic Realism, and Realism.Conducted in German. Usually offered every third year. Last offeredin the spring of 1995.
Mr. Dowden
GER 160b German Drama andPoetry from Naturalism to World War II
[ hum ]
Prerequisites: GER 40b,B- or better in GER 39a, or the equivalent. (GER 103b is recommended.)Lectures and readings in German.
A survey of major trends inthese genres, with an emphasis on close analysis of selected worksby such writers as Hauptmann, Hofmannsthal, Schnitzler, Kaiser,Brecht, Rilke, and George. Lectures and readings in German. Usuallyoffered every third year. Last offered in the spring of 1993.
Mr. Frey
GECS 165a German Film inCultural Context
[ cl13 hum]
Open to all students. Conductedin English with readings in English translation.
A study of important Germanfilms, from the time of silent movies to the present, and theirrelationship to the literary, artistic, and political developmentsof their time. Films are chosen to highlight their varied functionsas works of art, entertainment, information, propaganda, and socialcriticism and to allow comparison with their literary sources.Usually offered in even years.
Mr. Frey
GECS 166b Dreams and Nightmares:The Third Reich on Film
[ cl13 cl27hum ]
Explores the reflection ofNational Socialism and life under its regime in the films of theThird Reich (1933-1945), and looks at the reaction to its triumphsand horrors in post-war German films and abroad. Unabashed propaganda,use of mass psychology, escapism and estheticism, conformity andindividuality, and collaboration and resistance are some of thetopics we discuss. Conducted in English with special assignmentsfor German concentrators. Usually offered in odd years.
Mr. Frey
GECS 170b Starting fromZero: German Literature since World War II
[ hum ]
Open to all students. Conductedin English with readings in German and in English translation.
We will trace efforts of anew generation of writers to come to terms with the horrors ofwar and totalitarianism, with post-war
materialism, and with Germany'seast-west division and reunification. Literary investigation,supplemented by films, will focus on major writers and poets suchas Grass, Borchert, Wolf, Böll, Celan, Dürrenmatt, Frisch,Weiss, and Handke. Usually offered every third year. Last offeredin the spring of 1994.
Mr. Frey
GECS 180b European Modernismand the German Novel
[ hum ]
A study of selected novelistswriting after Nietzsche and before the end of World War II. Thiscourse will explore the culture, concept, and the developmentof European modernism in works by Broch, Canetti, Döblin,Jünger, Kafka, Mann, Musil, Rilke, and Roth. Readings anddiscussions in English. Usually offered in even years.
Mr. Dowden
GER 181a Franz Kafka
[ hum ]
Prerequisites: GER 40b,B- or better in GER 39a, or the equivalent. (GER 103b is recommended.)Lectures and readings in German.
A detailed exploration of Kafka'sworks, life, and thought. Emphasis will be given to his placein the larger scheme of literary modernism. Conducted in German.Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the spring of1996.
Mr. Dowden
GECS 182b Nietzsche
[ hum ]
Open to all students. Conductedin English with readings in English translation.
Covers Friedrich Nietzsche'slife and writings, emphasizing the historical and cultural setting.Usually offered every third year. Last offered in the spring of1998.
Mr. Dowden
GECS 183b A History of Death
[ hum ]
Signature of the instructorrequired.
How has the literary imaginationresponded to the perpetual outrage of death? We survey ancientand modern works of literature that explore the meaning of lifefrom the standpoint of death. Special emphasis falls on deathin German philosophy and literature. Topics include disease, war,murder, suicide, eroticism (Liebestod), immortality, aestheticism,and humor.
Mr. Dowden
GER 190b Vienna at the Turnof the Century
[ cl33 hum]
The literary and cultural scenein imperial Vienna during the final decades of Franz Joseph'sreign is explored through the works of such writers as Schnitzler,Hofmannsthal, Zweig, Altenberg, Herzl, and Kraus. Attention willbe paid to the relationship between men of letters and innovativethinkers, artists, and musicians: Freud, Wittgenstein, Klimt,Loos, Schiele, Mahler, and Schönberg. Conducted in German.Usually offered every third year. Last be offered in the fallof 1996.
Mr. Dowden
GECS 195b German Modernismand the Fascist Backlash
[ cl26 cl33hum ]
Open to all students. Conductedin English with readings in English translation.
Focusing on Berlin in the headytwenties and troubled thirties, we explore German literature andfilm, theater and cabaret, and art and architecture, which initiallyflourished in excessive freedom and then reacted to intense politicalpressure and repression. Usually offered every third year. Lastoffered in the spring of 1996.
Mr. Frey
European Cultural Studies:The Proseminar