German & Dutch Courses – Spring 2026

(4 credits)

• Lecture 001: MTWRF 8:50 – 9:40 am
• Lecture 002: MTWRF 11:00 – 11:50 am
• Lecture 003: MWR 3:30 – 4:50 pm

Instructor: Jeanne Schueller

Course Description: German 101/401 is an introductory course designed for beginners in German who have no previous knowledge of the German language. By the end of the first semester, you should be able to communicate effectively with others in German on a variety of topics, such as personal and public identity, family, education, career goals, and fitness. This class will expose you to authentic texts from a variety of sources in different genres and modes, for you to develop your reading, viewing, and listening skills and engage in critical thinking. Grammar and vocabulary will be introduced in context. Assessments focus on all skills (reading, writing, speaking, and listening). Throughout the semester, you will learn more about yourself and deepen your linguistic and culture knowledge of the German-speaking world. You will also improve your language-learning strategies. To be successful and achieve course learning outcomes, you will be expected to complete homework on time and participate in class. Attendance is required. This course cannot be audited. The textbook, Augenblicke: German through Film, Media, and Texts (2e), is available at the UW Book Store for around $45 and is used in first-, second-, third-, and fourth-semester German. Contact the course supervisor, Dr. Jeanne Schueller (jmschuel@wisc.edu), with any questions about the course or appropriate placement.

Prerequisites: None

This course is also offered to graduate students for 3 credits as GERMAN 401.

(4 credits)

• Lecture 001: MTWRF 9:55 – 10:45 am
• Lecture 002: MTWRF 12:05 – 12:55 pm
• Lecture 003: MTWRF 2:35 – 3:15 pm
• Lecture 004: MWR 3:30 – 4:50 pm

Instructor: Jeanne Scheuller

Course Description: German 102/402 is a continuation of German 101. Students need to have completed German 101 or achieve an appropriate score on the placement exam to enroll. By the end of the second semester, you should be able to communicate effectively with others in German on a variety of topics, such as soccer, technological innovations, and national identity. This class will expose you to authentic texts from a variety of sources in different genres and modes, for you to develop your reading, viewing, and listening skills and engage in critical thinking. Grammar and vocabulary will be introduced in context. Assessments focus on all skills (reading, writing, speaking, and listening). Throughout the semester, you will learn more about yourself and deepen your linguistic and culture knowledge of the German-speaking world. You will also improve your language-learning strategies. To be successful and achieve course learning outcomes, you will be expected to complete homework on time and participate in class. Attendance is required. This course cannot be audited. The textbook, Augenblicke: German through Film, Media, and Texts (2e), is available at the UW Book Store for around $45 and is used in first-, second-, third-, and fourth-semester German. Contact the course supervisor, Dr. Jeanne Schueller (jmschuel@wisc.edu), with any questions about the course or appropriate placement.

Prerequisites: GERMAN 101 or appropriate score on the placement exam.

This course is also offered to graduate students for 3 credits as GERMAN 402.

(4 credits)

• Lecture 001: MTWR 9:55 – 10:45 am

Instructor: Jolanda Taylor

Course Description: Continuation of GERMAN 111/GERMAN 311. All required course materials will be provided.

Prerequisites: GERMAN 111 or appropriate score on the placement exam. Open to First-Year Students.

(This course is also offered to graduate students for 3 credits as GERMAN 312.)

(4 credits)

• Lecture 001: MTWR 11:00 – 11:50 am
• Lecture 002: MW 3:30 – 5:10 pm

Instructor: Jeanne Schueller

Course Description: German 203/403 is a continuation of German 102. Students need to have completed German 102 or achieve an appropriate score on the placement exam to enroll. By the end of the third semester, you should be able to communicate effectively with others in German on a variety of topics, such as civic and social engagement, legends and myths, and traditions and celebrations. This class will expose you to authentic texts from a variety of sources in different genres and modes, for you to develop your reading, viewing, and listening skills and engage in critical thinking. Grammar and vocabulary will be introduced in context. Assessments focus on all skills (reading, writing, speaking, and listening). Throughout the semester, you will learn more about yourself and deepen your linguistic and culture knowledge of the German-speaking world. You will also improve your language-learning strategies. To be successful and achieve course learning outcomes, you will be expected to complete homework on time and participate in class. Attendance is required. This course cannot be audited. The textbook, Augenblicke: German through Film, Media, and Texts (2e), is available at the UW Book Store for around $45 and is used in first-, second-, third-, and fourth-semester German. Contact the course supervisor, Dr. Jeanne Schueller (jmschuel@wisc.edu), with any questions about the course or appropriate placement.

Prerequisites: GERMAN 102 or appropriate score on the placement exam.

This course is also offered to graduate students for 3 credits as GERMAN 403.

(4 credits)

• Lecture 001: MTWR 9:55 – 10:45 am
• Lecture 002: MTWR 11:00 – 11:50 am
• Lecture 003: MW 3:30 – 5:10 pm

Instructor: Jeanne Schueller

Course Description: German 204/404 is a continuation of German 203. Students need to have completed German 203 or achieve an appropriate score on the placement exam to enroll. By the end of the fourth semester, you should be able to communicate effectively with others in German on a variety of topics, such as city and rural life, how film influences cultural perspectives, the concept of home, and migration, immigration, and integration. This class will expose you to authentic texts from a variety of sources in different genres and modes, for you to develop your reading, viewing, and listening skills and engage in critical thinking. Grammar and vocabulary will be introduced in context. Assessments focus on all skills (reading, writing, speaking, and listening). Throughout the semester, you will learn more about yourself and deepen your linguistic and culture knowledge of the German-speaking world. You will also improve your language-learning strategies. To be successful and achieve course learning outcomes, you will be expected to complete homework on time and participate in class. Attendance is required. This course cannot be audited. The textbook, Augenblicke: German through Film, Media, and Texts (2e), is available at the UW Book Store for around $45 and is used in first-, second-, third-, and fourth-semester German. Contact the course supervisor, Dr. Jeanne Schueller (jmschuel@wisc.edu), with any questions about the course or appropriate placement.

Prerequisites: GERMAN 203 or appropriate score on the placement exam.

This course is also offered to graduate students for 3 credits as GERMAN 404.

(4 credits)

• Lecture 001: MTWR 12:05 – 12:55 pm

Instructor: Jolanda Taylor

Course Description: Continuation of GERMAN 213/313. All required course materials will be provided.

Prerequisites: GERMAN 203 or appropriate score on the placement exam.

(This course is also offered to graduate students for 3 credits as GERMAN 314.)

(3 credits)

• Lecture 001: MWF 12:05 – 12:55 pm

Instructor: Sunny Yudkoff

Course Description: This course introduces students to the space of the hotel as a site of cross-cultural exchange and medical recuperation. The literature and films under examination focus on central European sites of rest and healing between the World Wars. Driving the syllabus are the hotels, health resorts, and sanatoria that came to serve as locations in which Jewish identity was negotiated against a complex backdrop of increasing integration and exclusion. The pinnacle of the course will be a reading and analysis of Thomas Mann’s classic 1924 novel, The Magic Mountain. We will survey material originally produced in Yiddish, Hebrew, German, French, and English, including creative and critical work by: Aharon Appelfeld, Wes Anderson, Michel Foucault, Siegfried Kracauer, Mani Leib, Thomas Mann, Kadya Molodowsky, Arthur Schnitzler, Adam Sachs, and Susan Sontag.

Cross listed with JS 240 and GNS 240.

Level: Elementary

Breadth: Literature

(3 credits)

• Lecture 012: TR 11:00 am – 12:15 pm

Instructor: Zach Ramon Fitzpatrick

Course Description: Germany plays a key role on the global stage, but its Asian diaspora has been rendered largely invisible, especially outside of the German-speaking world. This course will compare and contrast East, Southeast, and South Asian diasporic experiences in the United States and Germany in an effort to combat this invisibility while also highlighting crucial distinctions. We will engage with concepts like yellow peril, Orientalism, the “model minority” myth, internalized racism, colorism, erasure, empowerment, self-representation, and activism. We’ll also thematize specifically German discourses surrounding so-called guestworkers, “asiatisch gelesene” (literally, “those read as Asian”), and post-migrant society. Primary materials will include excerpts from theoretical readings, novels, films, TV episodes, news articles, and other media, exploring the Asian American and Asian German diasporas through the lenses of race/ethnicity, gender, sexuality, class, generation, and more.

The course will be in English with translations/subtitles for all German-language material. Knowledge of German is welcome, but not necessary.

German majors may take this as a “cognate course” for major requirements.

Prerequisites: None

(3 credits)

• Lecture 001: MWF 12:05 – 12:55 pm
• Lecture 002: MWF 1:20 – 2:10 pm

Instructors: Julie Larson-Guenette

Course Description: Drawing mainly on contemporary audio and video materials from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, students will explore linguistic and cultural variation of German by learning how native speakers vary their use of sound structures, vocabulary, and grammar according to speech situation.

Learning Outcomes: By the end of the course, the aim is for students to:

• improve their comprehension and production of spoken German via exposure to the language in use in audio and video formats and through use of the International Phonetic Alphabet;
• develop communication strategies to increase oral fluency;
• promote their awareness of how spoken German varies according to speech situation and region mainly in terms of sound structures, vocabulary, and pragmatics of speech;
• enhance their understanding of contemporary German-speaking cultures in Europe and the central role that language plays in shaping these cultures.

Prerequisites: GERMAN 204 or appropriate score on placement exam or consent of the course supervisor. This course can be taken subsequent to, prior to, or concurrent with GERMAN 262, GERMAN 258, and GERMAN 285. Open to first-year students.

(3 credits)

• Lecture 001: MWF 9:55 – 10:45 am
• Lecture 002: MWF 1:20 – 2:10 pm

Course Description: This course is designed to acquaint you with German literary, cultural, and historical texts and provide an overview of cultural developments in German-speaking countries. An important goal of this course is to offer explicit instruction on reading strategies to help students improve their comprehension of a range of texts. In German 258, you will recognize different genres (text types) and identify applicable reading strategies; implement critical reading skills for reading and comprehending different genres and written registers; identify, define, and implement vocabulary related to the topics covered in class; situate a text within its cultural and historical contexts in the German-speaking world; demonstrate the ability to read autonomously; and select and interpret a text based on individual academic interests. Two books and a course pack are required and can be purchased at the UW Book Store. All other materials will be available on Canvas. Contact the course coordinator, Dr. Jeanne Schueller (jmschuel@wisc.edu), with any questions about the course or appropriate placement.

Prerequisites: GERMAN 204 or placement into GERMAN 249, 258, or 262. Open to first-year students.

Fulfills Literature Breadth

(3 credit)

• Lecture 001: TR 9:30 – 10:45 am

Instructor: Mary Hennessy

• Lecture 002: TR 1:00 – 2:15 pm

Instructor: Julia Goetze

Course Description: Fairytales, murder mysteries, film reviews, and … resumes? Welcome to Intermediate German Writing! In this class, students will expand and enhance their writing skills in German by exploring a variety of different text types and genres reflecting the diversity of the German-speaking world. Daily course participation will involve active in-class discussion as well as collaborative and individual writing activities. Learners will work with authentic texts, music, and film, and they will also engage with synonyms, regional variations, and register to develop the skills to express themselves effectively and creatively in German. Through the composition of a variety of text types, from the practical to the fanciful, course participants will expand their individual comfort zone and improve their own communication skills as well as comprehension of written texts. Materials and in-class discussions will be in German.

Prerequisites: German 204 or appropriate score on placement exam or consent of instructor. This course can be taken subsequent to, prior to, or concurrent with German 249 and German 258.

(Honors Optional)

(3 credits)

• Lecture 001: TR 4:00 – 5:15 pm

Instructor: Matthew Johnson

Course Description: Singing mice, torture machines, academic monkeys, bureaucracies run amok, and of course giant insects: Franz Kafka (1883-1924) is an author whose impact on world literature cannot be overestimated. He is perhaps the only German-language author whose name has become an adjective–and certainly the only one with an imaginary airport named after him by The Onion!  In this course, we will engage with Kafka’s puzzling, challenging, and frequently very funny works as well as the international body of authors, visual artists, musicians, and film-makers he has inspired, from My First Kafka to Orson Welles, Yoko Tawada to graphic novelists Peter Kuper and David Zane Mairowitz. Following Kafka’s wide-ranging interests, we’ll divide his works and the works of other “Kafkaesque” authors into 5 themes: work, law, colonialism, animals, and the absurd.

Because Kafka inspires such strong responses from thinkers, artists, and activists, the main assignments in this course ask you to “write,” “make,” and “do”—that is, write a paper on how the works have changed your thinking, make an artistic response to one of the works (film, music, painting, graphic novel, digital art…), and take an action to change one of the systems in which you find yourself, whether politically, in the institution of the university, or in broader social/cultural life. You’ll share each assignment with your fellow students and discuss what you chose and how you did it, bringing Kafka out of the classroom and into the world.

Authors/directors include: Sharon Dodua Otoo, Boots Riley, Yoko Tawada, Virginia Woolf, Hiyao Miyazaki, Haruki Murakami, Annette von Droste Hülshoff, Michael Götting, Jordan Peele, and W.G. Sebald.

Prerequisites: Satisfied Communications A requirement.

(Honors Optional) (Fulfills literature and humanities breadth requirements)

(3 credits)

• Lecture 001: TR 2:30 – 3:45 pm

Instructor: Sabine Moedersheim

Course Description: “Climate Fiction “ is an emerging genre of literature, graphic novels, and film exploring the consequences of climate change in the age of the “Anthropocene”, the epoch in which human impacts on the planet’s ecological systems reach a dangerous tipping point. The aim of this course is to discuss the human experience of climate change on a global scale through analyses of works by German authors such as Lutz Seiler, Yoko Tawada, Ilija Trojanow, Christa Wolf as well as writers from around the world, including Margaret Atwood, Octavia E. Butler, Amitav Ghosh, and others. We will explore dystopian, and apocalyptic stories but also works that imagine a more just future of resilience and social equality.

All materials will be in English translations or with English subtitles. Lectures and discussions will be in English. Prior knowledge of German is welcome but not required.

Prerequisites: Satisfied Communications A requirement

(Level: Intermediate. Breadth: Literature. L&S credit type: Counts as LAS credit (L&S). Cross listed: GERMAN 276, LITTRANS 276)

(3 credits)

• Lecture 002: MW 4:00 – 5:15 pm

Instructor: Oksana Stoychuk

Course Description: Exploration of diverse world literary traditions with an emphasis on German and German speaking cultures.

Prerequisites: Satisfied Communications A requirement

(3 credits)

• Lecture 001: MWF 1:20 – 2:10 pm

Instructor: Sunny Yudkoff

Course Description: American literature has never been written in one language. While English has become dominant in the United States, there has been a long tradition of American literary and cultural production in other languages. This class focuses on the Jewish immigrant experience in Yiddish—a fusion language that brings together German, Hebrew, English, Russian, Latin, and more. We will follow Yiddish culture from the beginning of the twentieth century until today as it has been alternatingly supported, neglected, and imbued with nostalgia. The questions driving our inquiry will be: What does it mean to translate America into Yiddish and what does it mean to translate Yiddish for America? Major terms to be discussed include: cultural translation, ethnicity, migration, “Melting Pot,” multilingualism, and assimilation. Themes include: Jewish-Christian difference, ethnic American humor, race and Jewish culture.

Prerequisites: None

(This course counts as a cognate course for the German major. This course fulfills the General Education requirement in Ethnic Studies.)

(6 credits)

• Lecture 001: MWF 9:55 – 11:50 am

Instructor: Melissa Sheedy

Course Description: Fairytales, murder mysteries, graphic novels, and pop music … Welcome to Intermediate Intensive (Honors) German! In this class, students will expand and enhance their reading and writing skills in German by exploring a variety of different text types and genres. Daily course participation will involve active in-class discussion as well as collaborative and individual writing activities. Learners will work with authentic texts, music, advertisements, and film reflecting the diversity of the German-speaking world, and they will engage with topics such as identity and culture, science and technology, and crime and punishment to develop the skills to express themselves creatively and effectively in German. In tandem with a focus on proficiency in writing, students will also work with and develop strategies to make reading in German enjoyable and valuable. Through the reading and composition of a variety of text types, from the practical to the fanciful, course participants will expand their individual comfort zones and improve their own communication skills as well as comprehension of written texts. Materials and discussions will be in German.

Prerequisites: GER 204 or GER 249

(3 credits)

• Lecture 001: MTWR 12:05 – 12:55 pm

Instructor: Jolanda Taylor

Course Description: Continuation of GERMAN 213/313. All required course materials will be provided.

Prerequisites: GERMAN 203 or appropriate score on the placement exam.

(This course is also offered to undergraduate students for 3 credits as GERMAN 214.)

(3 credits)

• Lecture 001: MW 4:00 – 5:15 pm

Instructor: Jeanne Schueller

Course Description: You’ve likely noticed that language learning is individual and that you and your peers are progressing uniquely through a combination of coursework, experiences abroad, interpersonal relationships, or media consumption. It is common for language learners even at advanced levels to use structures repetitively while speaking or writing in German, or struggle to produce grammatically accurate language on their own. If you are you ready to challenge yourself to bring your language production to the next level, this course will help you recognize and identify areas that you would like to improve and further develop, analyze structural elements of German, merge fluency with accuracy, and develop your ability to consciously reflect how you are using German in speaking and writing. Language of instruction is German.

Prerequisites: German 249, 258, and 262; or 249 and 285; or consent of instructor.

(3 credits)

• Lecture 001: TR 4:00 – 5:15 pm

Instructor: Julia Goetze

Course Description: How does a democracy defend itself against extremism? Within the past decade, Germany has undergone major societal and political shifts that have captured international attention—from the 2025 snap election and conservative turn in government to the rise of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the reemergence of extremist plots within the military and citizen movements such as Reichsbürger.

This seminar explores how these developments challenge democratic values and institutions. We begin by analyzing Germany’s most recent elections to understand its political system, key parties, platforms, personnel, and campaign strategies. Students learn to compare political messaging, evaluate campaign effectiveness, and ground their opinions in factual evidence.

The second unit investigates right-wing extremism and terrorism over the past thirty years, focusing primarily on the AfD, the National Socialist Underground (NSU), the Identitäre Bewegung, and Reichsbürger, among others. Students define and distinguish concepts such as extremism, radicalism, and terror, and examine public responses to far-right violence. In this unit, we also consider left-wing extremism and explore how German media and politics frame extremism across the ideological spectrum.

The course’s overarching goal is to understand and evaluate how Germany’s democratic system confronts threats from within. Instruction is in German. Course materials include films, podcasts, political ads, infographics, op-eds, and social media posts to help students critically engage with Germany’s evolving democratic landscape.

Prerequisites: GER 249, 258, & 262; or GER 249 & 285

(3 credits)

• Lecture 002: TR 9:30 – 10:45 am

Instructor: Julie Larson-Guenette

Course Description: In this course we will broadly survey the rich tradition of letter writing in German-speaking Europe from the late 15^th to 20^th centuries. Letters from well-known historical figures will be featured in this course along with the opportunity to learn how to decipher and transcribe historical German script (e.g., Kurrent and Sütterlin). A substantial portion of the semester will be devoted to various letter collections from the time of the Second World War. Students will also engage in a service learning project involving letters written by a Jewish family attempting to flee Germany aboard the MS St. Louis in 1939.

Prerequisites: GER 258, 262, 249 or GER 285 and GER 249 or instructor consent

Grading and assessment will include active participation, bi-weekly graded assignments, vocabulary quizzes and a take-home final.

(3 credits)

• Lecture 003: R 4:00 – 6:30 pm

Instructor: Sabine Mödersheim

Course Description: “Mein Vaterland ist Ghana, meine Muttersprache ist deutsch, die Heimat trage ich in den Schuhen“ (May Ayim)
Afrodiasporische deutsche Kultur und Literatur hat eine lange Geschichte: Bereits seit dem Mittelalter und dem Beginn des Kolonialismus gibt es eine Schwarze Diaspora in Mitteleuropa. Literatur und Kultur wird von Schwarzen Autor*innen geschrieben und produziert, die selbst migriert sind, eine Migrationsgeschichte haben oder deren Familien seit Generationen in Deutschland leben. Die Kunst und Kultur der afrodiasporischen Diaspora in Deutschland setzt sich mit den komplexen, oft mehrschichtigen afrodeutschen Identitäten auseinander. In diesem Seminar werden wir die Vielfalt dieser Kultur kennenlernen und analysieren. Texte und Materialien von May Ayim, Ika Hügel, Hans Massaquoi, Theodor Michael, Olumide Popoola, Sharon Otoo, Philipp Khabo Koepsell und vielen anderen werden auf Canvas bereitgestellt.

Prerequisites for 372: (GERMAN 249, 258, and 262) or (GERMAN 249 and 285; Honors credit optional

Prerequisites for 676: Senior standing and GERMAN 337
Students enrolled in GER 676 will have additional requirements to fulfill the senior capstone criteria.

meets with Ger 676

(3 credits)

• Lecture 004: M 2:25 – 5:25 pm

Instructor: Melissa Sheedy

Course Description: From Aristoteles to Brecht to Hamilton, the magic of the theater has captivated audiences and inspired artists for centuries. In this interactive, performance-centered course on German-language theater, the classroom is your stage! You will read excerpts from plays, perform individual scenes, and engage creatively and adventurously with German. Together, we will play with genre and medium, explore sound and language, and laugh – a lot! You’ll delve into the history of German-language theater with an eye to race, gender, and queer theory and the politics of drag, all while building vocabulary and confidence in your German.

This course will also feature two special guests, Berlin-based director Jürgen Kuttner and theater specialist Helga Angarano, who will work with students to adapt, rehearse, and perform part of Bertolt Brecht’s short story “Die unwürdige Greisin” (“The Unseemly Old Lady”). Kuttner and Angarano’s visit will take place during three weeks in April, with the performance scheduled for Friday, April 24^th.

Assessment in this class will be based entirely on participation, small group and individual projects, and effort and engagement (no exams).

No acting or theater background is needed for this course: all you need is a willingness to take risks, engage creatively with language and text, and explore your theatrical side!

Prerequisites: (German 249, 258, and 262) or (German 249 and 285)

(3 credits)

• Lecture 001: TR 2:30 – 3:45 pm

Instructor: Hannah Eldridge

Course Description: Ideas and theories of literary movements exemplified in selected primary and secondary literature. This reading-intensive M.A. seminar exposes students to major authors, epochs, movements, and trends in German-language literature from ca. 1750 to the present. It presents novels, short stories, dramas, poems, films, and other text types in their historical contexts and addresses questions of literary historiography and canon formation.

Prerequisites: Graduate student or two of the following course: GERMAN 302, 303, 305, 375/385

(3 credits)

• Seminar 001: T 4:00 – 6:30 pm

Instructor: Zach Ramon Fitzpatrick

Course Description: Eric Rentschler infamously dismissed post-unification German films as a “cinema of consensus” (2000), but what trends and movements have characterized German and German-language cinema of the last quarter century? In this course, we will navigate films of the twenty-first century variously labeled so-called heritage cinema, Berlin School, Austrian “feel-bad cinema,” post-migrant cinema, and more. Through film viewings, theoretical readings, discussion, Canvas posts, oral presentations, and paper writing, students will develop analytical skills in film studies. Students will be exposed to a range of theoretical and methodological approaches to films, with attention to material conditions, production contexts, and representations of race/ethnicity, gender, sexuality, class, and more.

While a working knowledge of German is required, course discussions will be in English; no prior knowledge of film studies is required.

Prerequisites: Graduate/professional standing

(3 credits)

• Seminar 001: R 4:00 – 6:30 pm

Instructor: Mary Hennessy

Course Description: This course will consider theoretical and artistic approaches to the intersections of labor, political economy, and cultural (re)production. We will address such questions as the following: How can we put theories of work into conversation with cultural texts? What is the relationship between labor and aesthetic or narrative forms? How is work deployed and defined vis-à-vis new media and communication technologies? How does work intersect with class, race, gender, sexuality, disability, citizenship, and nation? What modes have filmmakers used to visualize labor? What is the aesthetic corollary to the strike—the refusal or withdrawal of labor? And what can poetry and other forms of artistic expression do in the face of immiseration and exploitation?   

Readings and discussion will be in English. Course assignments will include weekly discussion posts, a book review (on a book chosen in consultation with the instructor), oral presentations, and a final paper. Potential authors include Karl Marx, Walter Benjamin, Siegfried Kracauer, Bertolt Brecht, Lu Märten, Hannah Arendt, Silvia Federici, Frederic Jameson, Kathi Weeks, and more.   

Prerequisites: Graduate/professional standing

Also listed as French 804, History 804, Poli Sci 804, and Soc 804  

Course Designation: Grad 50% – Counts toward 50% graduate coursework requirement

(3 credits)

• Seminar 001: TR 1:00 – 2:15 pm

Instructor: Mark Louden

Course Description: Anyone who has spent time in a German-speaking country knows that the German language is not monolithic. How the language is structured and put to use are determined by many extra-linguistic – social – parameters, a number of which we will consider in this course. While the specific data we will learn about come from the German-speaking world, we will evaluate their significance for larger questions of sociolinguistic theory. We will begin by exploring fundamental concepts related to general sociolinguistic theory and how they apply to the study of German. We will then move on to specific questions related to how German varies among individual users of the language and the groups to which they belong. Two important dichotomies we will pay special attention to include oral versus written language, and what is known as “language of proximity” (Nähesprache) versus “language of distance” (Distanzsprache). These concepts will be applied to varieties of German defined by their functions (e.g., in media), the social status of their users (e.g., Kiezdeutsch), and geography (e.g., dialects and regiolects). Finally, we will consider how language questions are addressed in popular discourse in German-speaking Europe today, especially gender.

Prerequisites: Graduate standing or with consent of the instructor