Students will gain knowledge about the political, cultural and literary developments in Germany, and more particularly in the two German states (1949–1990).
They will learn to use a conceptual framework grounded in the sociology of language that will enable them to understand and interpret the complex relationships between language, literature and power.
As students will be expected to actively shape the content of the course in collaboration with the teachers, they will acquire a range of cross-curricular skills (e.g. the ability to synthesise material from different sources and disciplines; mastery of written and oral presentation skills, ...).
The collective reading and discussion of texts will contribute to the development of students’ passive and active command of German.The practical activities associated with the course are designed to help students attain the level of a B1 user (Bloc 2 students) and a B2 user (Bloc 3 students), according to the criteria of the CEFR.
Based on a carefully selected corpus of texts and applying perspective on the sociology of language inspired by Bourdieu and others, this course aims to enable students to understand the complex relationships between language and political power in post-war German society, as well as the ways in which actors in the literary field position themselves within this space of tension and contribute to its dynamics.
Particular attention will be paid to three periods: the immediate post-war period and the first years of the existence of the two German states; the period of the student revolt in West Germany; and the period preceding and following Wolf Biermann’s Ausbürgerung in East Germany in 1976.
Students will become familiar with a range of concepts from the sociology of language and the sociology of literature, such as linguistic and symbolic capital, linguistic legitimacy, symbolic power, ... . These concepts will serve as heuristic tools for analysing the mechanisms through which certain linguistic uses and literary practices, in a given social context, acquire greater value and legitimacy than others.
Rather than viewing power as exerting a direct influence on language as a system, the course will therefore adopt a critical perspective on the social conditions under which certain linguistic uses are valued, legitimised, marginalised or discredited.
The course examines the relationships between language, political power and literature in post-war Germany from the perspective of the sociology of language. It covers the immediate post-war period and the establishment of the two German states, the student revolt in West Germany, as well as the period preceding and following Wolf Biermann’s Ausbürgerung in East Germany in 1976.
The exercises form an integrated part of the course as a whole. They will provide students with an opportunity to explore certain aspects of the topics addressed in the course in greater depth and to contribute to the development of the course content themselves.
In addition, the exercises will be organised in such a way as to provide students with individual guidance. In particular, teaching assistants and the professor will support students in their bibliographical research and in structuring and correcting their various assignments, both written and oral.
German linguistics [LALLB101]
The course and exercises will primarily involve the reading, analysis and discussion of texts. Particular emphasis will be placed on interaction between teachers and students. This interaction will be taken into account in the assessment.
Active student participation (continuous assessment): 25% of the final grade
Oral presentations: 25% of the final grade
Open-book written examination (without the use of digital tools): 50% of the final grade
The assessment procedures and criteria are described in a separate document available on WebCampus, which will be discussed in class by the professor.
The course website contains PowerPoint presentations, academic texts and other materials designed to help students navigate the course with ease.
| Training | Block | Credits | Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor in Modern Languages and Literatures: German, Dutch and English | 2 | 5 | No |
| Bachelor in Modern Languages and Literatures: German, Dutch and English | 3 | 5 | No |