Time Schedule:
Brigitte Prutti
GERMAN 503
Seattle Campus
Seminar analyzing the esthetic movements and thought of contemporary German literature, the social and political problems dealt with in the works of representative authors, and major experimental concepts. Some previous exposure to German literature and civilization after 1945 is expected.
Class description
Contemporary German Literature: Mobilities and Origins
Twenty-one years after the fall of the Berlin wall German literature is strikingly diverse and readable. This course examines different forms of mobility and their complex articulation with questions of personal and cultural origins and identities in contemporary German-speaking fiction. Some of these questions are: What kinds of mobility are present in these texts? How do mobile subjects envision various kinds of origins? What do we mean by transnational writing and how does it affect our critical endeavors today? Our focus here will be on some recent novels, one collection of stories, and one prose poem along with pertinent analytical texts. Literary texts by Peter Handke, Immer noch Sturm [2010]; Daniel Kehlmann, Ruhm [2009]; Terézia Mora, Seltsame Materie [1999]; Doron Rabinovici, Andernorts [2010]; Saša Stanišić, Wie der Soldat das Grammofon repariert [2006]; Yoko Tawada, Schwager in Bordeaux [2008].
Student learning goals
General method of instruction
Graduate discussion format.
Recommended preparation
Class assignments and grading
Readings, oral reports, seminar paper.
