German Studies

German Language for Beginners

An intensive language course taught in small groups. By the end of the year you will be able to read German and use the language in a variety of social contexts (CEFR A1/2).

20

Core

Understanding German History and Culture*

This course offers an overview of German history from Napoleon's invasion, to Bismarck's unification and the two World Wars, right up to the fall of the Berlin Wall and Germany today. We also look at major literary texts and political and philosophical ideas (e.g. Freud, Marx, Kafka, Bachman).   

* This course is Core if you are studying one or two languages and cultures and Optional if you are studying three languages and cultures

20

Core /
Optional

Visions of Germany

Explore the unfolding of German history over the past 100 years through images and film: Expressionist classics of silent film and abstract art, innovation and poverty in the turbulent Weimar era, National Socialist visual propaganda, state-building and reconstruction in East and West after 1945, memorials and changing cityscapes, protest art, as well as recent films about terrorism, the collapse of the GDR, multiculturalism and the “Berlin Republic”.

Open to all, taught in English 

German Language Post A-Level

In this intensive language course you will build on your existing German language. You will encounter more sophisticated grammar and extend your reading and speaking skills. By the the end of the year you will have gained B1/2 fluency.

Understanding German History and Culture*

This course offers an overview of German history from Napoleon's invasion, to Bismarck's unification and the two World Wars, right up to the fall of the Berlin Wall and Germany today. We also look at major literary texts and political and philosophical ideas (e.g. Freud, Marx, Kafka, Bachman).   

* This course is Core if you are studying one or two languages and cultures and Optional if you are studying three languages and cultures

Visions of Germany

Explore the unfolding of German history over the past 100 years through images and film: Expressionist classics of silent film and abstract art, innovation and poverty in the turbulent Weimar era, National Socialist visual propaganda, state-building and reconstruction in East and West after 1945, memorials and changing cityscapes, protest art, as well as recent films about terrorism, the collapse of the GDR, multiculturalism and the “Berlin Republic”.

Open to all, taught in English 

German Language Intermediate

This course builds on the skills and knowledge acquired in the German Language for Beginners module. You will learn how to construct more sophisticated sentences in German, will be able to communicate in different registers and we will discuss a range of new topics relevant to German-speaking countries. At intermediate level we aim to reach a level of language proficiency that is equivalent to CEFR B1/B2.

German Language Higher Intermediate

The Higher Intermediate Language module is focused on preparing you to spend time in a German-speaking country, so that you have the confidence to tackle CV writing, work presentations or academic essays in German. Alongside this skills-based work is an additional class devoted to advanced grammar, in which you explore and practise more complex syntactic structures, testing these as you translate into and out of German. (CEFR Level B2.2 / C1).

The Restless Era: German Society from Empire to Dictatorship

This course will look at the fascinating and rapid transformation of German society in the pivotal era from the Kaiserreich to the Weimar Republic. Key issues are socialism, feminism, militarism, and totalitarianism as well as gender norms and expectations. Students will explore questions such as: how did all women and working men get the vote; how were traditional concepts of masculinity and femininity transformed into the androgynous and athletic ideal of the Weimar era; how did the Nazis manage to sell their evil ideology to the German people? By the end of the module students will have wide-ranging knowledge of the Kaiserreich and the Weimar Republic, have a good understanding of the effect of social and political upheaval on gender roles and be in a position to offer a critical analysis of the relation between popular movements, ideologies and politics.

German Culture and Ideas

We shall consider social and psychological - i.e. cultural - criticism from the mid-nineteenth century to the present day, through the lens of film and from the perspectives of literature and theory. We will be especially interested in ideas that emerge in German culture beyond unified Germany, and so are less often studied: above all Switzerland, Austria, and the former German Democratic Republic of East Germany. The module is research-led.
The first semester will focus on “nation and place”, and provisionally it will be structured as follows. We’ll launch from your lectures at Level 1, reading satire full of biting but also comedic criticism against all-powerful German princes around the revolutions of 1848. But the place in the German-speaking world where the uprisings of that period were most successful - and so
the shortest lived - was Switzerland. Thus we will turn to the creation of Swiss national identity, not least through the story of Heidi. Unravelling the Swiss myth together, we shall see how stereotypes of the Alps were shaped and continue as kitsch into the present day. Cliches of the Germans as disciplined, in contrast, were likewise conceived in the second half of the nineteenth century, when Germany was now unified as an empire under the Prussians. Moving through the twentieth century, we will analyse the propagandistic (self-)image of the GDR, before reflecting on nostalgia and “Ostalgie” in film of the 1990s.
In the second semester, we will turn to how ideas of nationhood and place have solidified or unsettled a sense of the (German) self in film and literature - a connection enabled in large part by psychological concepts. This secondary focus raises questions of sexual and gender diversity, and relative control over our own lives. We will interrogate the uncanny, reading unheimlich stories; we shall discover the Austrian source of “masochism” as a concept and lifestyle, in the controversial text Venus in Furs; and we will think about how Heimat has been appropriated in film and literature for both conservative, traditional ideas of womanhood and to more emancipatory ends. Finally, we will interrogate youth culture in the GDR, and its criticism
of constraints on personal freedoms in representations of death by suicide.

Within Germanic Studies you can also opt for: 

Dutch for Beginners 

The course gives students the opportunity to learn a new but by no means difficult Germanic language. Students will discover that Dutch is an accessible language spoken by 24 million people in our neighbouring countries, and in the Dutch Caribbean. For this intensive beginners language course you will work for 4 hours a week in small groups. We cover all aspects of language learning and you will read your first short book in Dutch before Christmas. With a bit of effort and dedication you will reach a generous CEFR level A2. Students tend to really enjoy this course.

Dutch Intermediate

This module builds on the language skills you have built up during the Beginners' Dutch course in your First Year. At the end of this course you can understand and speak Dutch in common social circumstances, read all but the most complicated Dutch text without difficulty (perhaps with the occasional help of your dictionary) and write Dutch texts in both formal and informal styles. We work around a number of cultural and everyday topics and our lively conversation classes are an integral part of the course. In terms of CEFR you will have attained at least level B1.

Imagining the Past: Colonial past and multicultural present in the Low Countries

This course treats literature and culture as very specific ways to think about the world. We will discuss and study real world issues and look at how literary writing and, art more generally, always speaks to our contemporary world, about the culture, the circumstances and the situation of the text or cultural artefact. You could call this a 'cultural studies' approach towards literature: we will not just look at 'the words on the page' but also at the context. This course will focus particularly on national narrative, colonial history and the contemporary multicultural Low Countries.

In the second semester we will put our findings into practice. We will look at relevant opportunities for knowledge co-creation. This can take the form of a collaborative project with for example, British Library, Dutch Centre at Austin Friars or other outside parties.

Luxembourgish Language and Culture

This module provides students with an introduction to the Luxembourgish language, a small West Germanic language that has been recognised as the national language of Luxembourg since 1984. Development of vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation skills will enable students to develop communicative proficiency in Luxembourgish at the CEFR A2 level. Students will also obtain insights into the culture and society of Luxembourg, which will contextualise the predominantly oral use of Luxembourgish in the broader sociolinguistic context of Luxembourg (Luxembourgish, French and German).

German Language Advanced

This advanced language module has two strands:

1) a core strand which enables you to produce fluent and accurate written and spoken German (CEFR level C1 / C2) using complex structures and appropriate vocabulary in multiple registers und employing a variety of rhetorical strategies;

2) a language specialism strand in which you choose from either Advanced Translation or Presenting and Debating. In Advanced Translation you work mostly from German into English, dealing with syntactic and lexical problems on the basis of a range of journalistic and literary texts. Presenting and Debating will provide techniques and practice to equip you with the confidence not only to present your own views, but also to analyse and counter views those of others within a formal debate.  

Presenting & Debating in German pathway

This module trains students in 1) the active and confident use of complex syntactic structures and specialist vocabulary and 2) the comprehension and analysis of demanding written and spoken source material. Students learn presenting and debating skills and techniques and prepare sophisticated oral presentations on the basis of German source materials. The module is taught in German. In semester one, students discuss and analyse audiovisual materials showing different formats and styles of presentation in German, prepare short presentations and broaden their knowledge and range of formal and specialist vocabulary. In semester two, they employ their communication skills in a variety of role-play scenarios, prepare longer presentations and organise group debates on topics of their choice.

Translation Pathway

The module provides a link between translation theory and practice, including discussion of the aims of translation, target audiences and translation strategies. It deals with syntactic and lexical problems of translation on the basis of a range of texts. The focus is on translation into English, but some attention will also be paid to English-German translation to enhance students'
awareness of the structural differences in the ways the two languages operate.

Luxury and Liberty

The modern world came into existence with the American and French revolutions and with the industrial revolution, which started in Britain. Yet it is German thinkers and writers above all who have developed the intellectual tools to analyse this world. We look at the most important of them: Marx, Nietzsche, and Freud. We will also analyse the role of film and social media by exploring the work of Walter Benjamin. We then turn to cultural history, applying this intellectual toolkit to phenomena like capitalism, luxury, and consumerism, as well as the performance of the self (say, through fashion) and implicit bias. The module is based on individual or group-based projects, backed up by extensive tutor support and feedback.

Modern German Thought

This course looks at the key ideas of some of the most famous German-language thinkers -such as Marx and Freud - and explores the question of how their ideas can be used to understand our contemporary world better.
The modern world is characterised by contrasts. Freedom is accompanied by exploitation; enormous wealth goes hand in hand with desperate poverty; equality is undermined by old and new forms of discrimination. This world came into existence with the American and French revolutions and with the industrial revolution, which started in Britain. Yet it is German thinkers above all who have developed the intellectual tools to analyse this development. In this course, we look at the most important of them, including Marx, Nietzsche, and Freud. We will also analyse the role of film and social media by exploring the work of Walter Benjamin.

The Self and Other: Twentieth Century Fiction and Drama

The module investigates social and cultural change in the German-speaking world as it has been reflected in and shaped by literary writing. Our overarching theme of “The Self and Other” explores ideas of emancipation, agency and alienation as we look at the ways in which German-speaking writers have written about gender, class, family, memory and migration over the “Long Twentieth Century”.

Within Germanic Studies you can also opt for:

Social Approaches to Multilingualism

This course begins by outlining key theories about multilingualism and then explores language contact and variation, language and identity and differences between individual and societal multilingualism. Students design their own research projects to examine the ways in which issues of language are linked to broader socio-political practices, policies and debates. Project topics include language and digital media, language and migration, multilingual education and linguistic landscapes in multiple sites around the world to obtain global perspectives.

Familie duurt een mensenlevenlang
Representation of family life in contemporary Dutch and Flemish Culture

This is a module about the family. Not just about Dutch or Flemish families, but about how families are represented in literature, in films, and in the media. The family is a powerful construct and in this course we will unpick the fixed expectations and roles and behaviour that are part of the family ideology. Most of our sources will be literary texts in Dutch and films or documentaries. We also include theoretical and reflective pieces on the family. Students find this course a real eye-opener.

Dutch Intermediate

This Dutch Intermediate module builds on the language skills you have already acquired before coming to university. At the end of this course you can understand and speak Dutch in common social circumstances, read all but the most complicated Dutch text without difficulty (perhaps with the occasional help of your dictionary) and write Dutch texts in both formal and informal styles. We work around a number of cultural and everyday topics and our lively conversation classes are an integral part of the course. In terms of CEFR you will have attained at least level B1.

Dutch Advanced

Dutch Advanced builds on Intermediate Dutch: your vocabulary grows, you get more fluent and your grammar gets more and more sophisticated. This growing knowledge and confidence in Dutch means that we can introduce a translation element: you will work with a Dutch or Flemish visiting author and a professional translator. We also focus on speaking and presenting in Dutch with confidence and on writing longer pieces for a variety of audiences for example blogs, commentaries, opinion and creative pieces. You will reach level CEFR B2/C1.

Advanced Luxembourgish Language and Culture

This course provides students with the opportunity to further develop their proficiency in the Luxembourgish language and enhance their knowledge of Luxembourg. We focus on fine-tuning language skills that enable students to refine their communicative effectiveness in Luxembourgish. Work with authentic texts - including media discourse and literary texts - deepens students' understanding of Luxembourgish culture and society. Students engage in project work and can consult documents in French or German in addition to Luxembourgish.