GE 109 Aspects of German Culture in the Age of Enlightenment
Module Outline
As the weeks proceed, the power point presentations and downloadable handouts indicated below will be hyperlinked and students will be able to access these texts following the lecture in question:
Download Tutorial Worksheets for term 1 here.
Term 1 |
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Wk 1 |
Lecture: |
Germany in the late 18th century: Introduction to social and cultural issues |
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No |
Tutorial |
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| Wk 2 | Lecture: |
Poetry, 1: 18th century anacreontic lyric |
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Tutorial: |
Klopstock, ‘Das Rosenband’ and Goethe, ‘Mit einem gemalten Band’ (tutorial handout): Goethe and the anacreontic tradition |
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| Wk 3 | Lecture: |
Goethe and the Sturm und Drang movement of the early 1770s |
| Tutorial: | ‘Willkommen und Abschied’ (Selected Poetry, pp.4-6): Goethe’s new kind of love lyric | |
| Wk 4 |
Lecture: |
Poetry, 2: Goethe’s Große Hymnen: ‘Ganymed’ and ‘Prometheus’ (Selected Poetry, pp.6-12) |
| Tutorial: | ‘Prometheus’ (Selected Poetry, pp.10-12): The Sturm und Drang - assertiveness and self-reliance | |
| Wk 5 |
Lecture: |
Poetry, 3: Folk poetry: ‘Heidenröslein’ (provided on handout) |
| Tutorial: | ‘Erlkönig’ (Selected Poetry, pp. 42-44): Working with the ‘Volkslied’ tradition | |
| Wk 6 | Reading week: | no lecture or tutorial |
| Wk 7 |
Lecture: |
Die Leiden des jungen Werther, 1: A European bestseller |
| Tutorial: | Die Leiden des jungen Werther: Analysis of the opening letters (4. Mai-26. Mai 1771): style, characterisation, themes | |
| Wk 8 |
Lecture: |
Die Leiden des jungen Werther, 2: Form in the epistolary novel |
| Tutorial: | Die Leiden des jungen Werther: Werther and nature / changing moods: comparison of the letters of 10. Mai, 21. Junius, 18. August 1771, and 12. Dezember 1772 | |
| Wk 9 |
Lecture: |
Die Leiden des jungen Werther, 3: Goethe’s critique of contemporary society No powerpoint for this lecture. |
| Tutorial: |
Die Leiden des jungen Werther: The Gesandtschaftsepisode: the ambiguity of Werther’s social position; does the tragedy of Werther have a social causation? No powerpoint for this lecture |
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| Wk 10 |
Lecture: |
Die Leiden des jungen Werther, 4: Modern views on love and death |
| Tutorial: | Die Leiden des jungen Werther: The suicide debate (letter of 12. August 1771): does the novel offer an apologia for suicide? | |
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Term 2 |
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| Wk 11 | Lecture: |
German drama in the 18th century: introduction |
| Tutorial: |
Lessing, Emilia Galotti, 1: “Bittschriften, nichts als Bittschriften”: the representation of the ‘Hof’ (a) The Prinz and his responsibilities (Act I, Scenes 1 & 8) (b) The conflicts of desire (Act I, Scenes 2-3 & 5) |
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| Wk 12 |
Lecture: |
Drama and society: the emergence of 'bürgerlich' values |
| Tutorial: | Lessing, Emilia Galotti, 2: “Gott! Gott! wenn dein Vater das wüßte!”: the representation of the ‘Familie’ (a) Marital tensions: Odoardo & Claudia: (Act II, Scenes 2 & 4-5) (b) Pockets of guilt: Claudia and Emilia (Act II, Scene 6) |
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| Wk 13 |
Lecture: |
New forms of theatre: Lessing, Aristotle and the quest for a new realism |
| Tutorial: | Lessing, Emilia Galotti, 3: “Wollen Sie mir freie Hand lassen, Prinz”: the role of Marinelli (a) The mechanisms of power (Act I, Scene 6) (b) What is a servant? (Act III, Scene 1, Act IV Scene 1) |
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| Wk 14 |
Lecture: | Lessing, Emilia Galotti: themes and structures, 1 Download handout for this lecture |
| Tutorial: | Lessing, Emilia Galotti, 4: “Wer über gewisse Dinge den Verstand nicht verlieret, der hat keinen zu verlieren’: Die Gräfin Orsina − an outsider at court? (a) Orsina’s critique of her world (Act IV, Scene 3 & Act IV, Scene 5) (b) Orsina the catalyst (Act IV, Scene 6) |
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| Wk 15 |
Lecture: | Lessing, Emilia Galotti: themes and structures, 2; introduction to Schiller, Kabale und Liebe Download handout for this lecture |
| Tutorial: | Lessing, Emilia Galotti, 5: “Eine Rose gebrochen, ehe der Sturm sie entblättert”: Why does Emilia die? (a) Virtue in peril: Odoardo & Emilia (Act V, Scenes 6-7) (b) Apportioning guilt (Act V, Scene 8) |
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| Wk 16 | Reading week: | no lecture |
| Wk 17 |
Lecture: | Schiller, Kabale und Liebe: themes and structures, 1 Download handout for this lecture |
| Tutorial: | Schiller, Kabale und Liebe, 1: “Ah! Ich vergaß, daß es noch außer ihm Menschen gibt”: love - a private world? (a) ‘Liebe’ as seen from the outside (Act I, Scenes 1-2) (b) ‘Liebe’ as seen from the inside (Act 1, Scenes 3 -4) |
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| Wk 18 |
Lecture: |
Schiller, Kabale und Liebe: themes and structures, 2 |
| Tutorial: | Schiller, Kabale und Liebe, 2: “Sage mir, Ferdinand: Wem tat ich dies alles?”: intrigue − the public sphere? (a) Fathers and sons (Act I, Sc 7) (b) Lady Milford − an outsider at court? (Act II, Scenes 1-3) |
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| Wk 19 |
Lecture: | Questions of gender in the ‘bürgerliches Trauerspiel’ |
| Tutorial: |
Schiller, Kabale und Liebe, 3: “Zwang erbittert die Schwärmer immer, aber bekehrt sie nie”: how does the plot against Ferdinand und Luise work? (social, psychological, or other causation?) |
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| Wk 20 |
Lecture: | Emilia Galotti, Kabale und Liebe and the ‘bürgerliches Trauerspiel’: points of convergence and difference |
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Schiller. Kabale und Liebe, 4: “Ist lieben denn Frevel, mein Vater?”: tragedy or the triumph of bourgeois virtue? |
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Term 3 |
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| Wk 21 |
Lecture: |
Revising Goethe's Poetry I |
| No tutorial | ||
| Wk 22 |
Lecture: |
Revising Goethe's Poetry II |
| Revision tutorial: | Werther I | |
| Wk 23 | Lecture: |
Revising Goethe's Poetry III |
| Revision tutorial: | Werther II | |
| Wk 24 |
Lecture:
Revision tutorial: |
Workshop Powerpoint for this session here. The Plays: Emilia Galotti and Kabale und Liebe |
