Main Content

Semester Classes

Regular Semester Classes

The International Undergraduate Study Program (IUSP) takes courses from the university's regular course catalogue. Usually, classes take place two hours per week.
Important: Each class, whether held in English or German, is being supported by tutorials (obligatory!) in English with four hours per week, especially for IUSP students. In the tutorials, students are working up the contents of the lecture, not only of the first eight weeks the IUSP participants are staying, but also the contents of the second half of the German semester. In addition, the tutors work more deeply on the topic with the students and deepen their knowledge.

The IUSP students give presentations and write essays on the topics according to the respective class and tutorial. Generally, marks are given for oral work (presentations, performance in class etc.) and written work (reports, bibliographies, homework, essays etc.).

Class Choice: We are adding classes as they come in from the professors, and will start publishing classes from December on for the Spring semester, and from July on for the Fall semester.* As soon as the list will be complete, we will notify all students, and ask for their class choice in an email. We will ask for their final decision after their arrival in Marburg. Only students with the language level B1.1 and above can enroll for classes held in German.

Note on Class Attendance
Please bear in mind that attendance is required in order to receive credit for IUSP classes. Failure to attend classes can result in grade cuts and/or a grade not being issued to you if you do not attend classes regularly. IUSP students do not have the option of simply sitting for the exam at the end of the semester without having attended classes. Health issues and other serious reasons for missing lectures are, of course, another matter. Please keep your teacher and/or the IUSP staff informed if you are unable to attend lectures.

*Please note:
Generally speaking, class descriptions are posted online later than what many colleges and universities outside of Germany are accustomed to. The reason for this lies in the differing academic calendars. The classes for the spring semester in Marburg are published in January; classes for the fall semester in Marburg are published in July. We recommend looking at classes from the previous academic year to get a feel for what classes will be offered in the corresponding semester of the current academic year. In most subject areas, similar courses are offered on a rotating basis one time each academic year. We do not offer the same classes every year/semester. Introductory-level courses, however, are generally repeated. Browsing through past catalogues can be helpful in giving you an idea of what courses may be offered and what courses may be counted towards your degree.
The descriptions in the class list are taken from our university course catalogue. It can be accessed, if of interest, through the word "Vorlesungsverzeichnis" in the menu of "Direkt-links" in the upper right corner of this page. By choosing the respective semester the original description can be found.

Class List Fall 2019

Subject Area: American Studies 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Carmen Birkle: Introduction to Anglophone Studies (held in English)Prof. Dr. Carmen Birkle: Introduction to Anglophone Studies (held in English)

  lecture

  Tuesday 10am-12pm

  Content: This lecture class, accompanied by student tutorials, will introduce students to concepts, methods, and theories relevant in American, Canadian, and British literary and cultural studies. The class will offer you the tools which you will need and can recur to throughout your studies in all your study programs. Key concerns will be questions of genre, literary epochs, reading methodologies, and the practical analysis of texts chosen for this class. Students will become aware of how norms and perspectives shape our understanding of cultural products and how interculturality and (inter)cultural competence have become key factors in a constantly changing world. The course will also serve as an introduction to the study programs (BA, LA, MA), to the organization of students’ learning environment, the understanding of good academic practice (e.g., how to avoid plagiarism and how to use the MLA guidelines for the preparation of research papers), and to the use of social media as omnipresent teaching and learning tools. The class will make use of the e-learning platform ILIAS and its chatroom for open discussions. All students are expected to use the services provided and the tutorials offered. 

  Required Reading:
  Meyer, Michael. English and American Literatures. 4th ed. Tübingen: Francke, 2011.
  Kate Chopin, The Awakening: An Authoritative Text, Biographical and Historical Contexts, Criticism. Norton Critical Editions. 1899. New York: Norton, 2017. (or 1994 if necessary).
  Tennessee Williams, A Streetcar Named Desire (1947) (any edition)
  Some additional short reading material (e.g., poems and short stories) will be available on ILIAS by the beginning of the semester.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Carmen Birkle: "Firewater" Revisited: Alcohol in American Literature and Culture (held in English)Prof. Dr. Carmen Birkle: "Firewater" Revisited: Alcohol in American Literature and Culture (held in English)

  seminar

  Please note: The IUSP has only 5 spots in this class!

  Tuesday 2pm - 4pm

  Content: Sinclair Lewis once wondered: “Can you name five American writers since Poe who did not die of alcoholism?” It is hardly known today that the alcohol consumption in the nineteenth-century U.S. bloomed and that even its Puritan history had witnessed frequent inclinations to strong drinking. Throughout the centuries, writers have not been exempt from these habits. But alcohol in literature and culture is not just about alcoholism. Drinking is present as part of many private and public social events; it accompanies major turning points in life, such as birthday or New Year’s Eve parties. At the same time, (severe) drinking is often also done in private, motivated by depression, despair, loneliness, illness, etc. Moreover, alcohol is also intimately connected to romantic moments in people’s lives. Simply put, alcohol is part of human life at all ages and for all genders. “Firewater,” the Native American label for strong alcohol given to them by the white colonizers, references both the beverage as such and the power that alcohol has to shape human behavior and emotions. In settler colonialism, alcohol became a weapon accompanied by myths, and it has impacted Native American life until today.
  In this seminar, we will look at historical (early settlements, Temperance Movements, Prohibition) and contemporary representations of alcohol in the U.S. and alcohol’s social significance in its nation-building process. We will look at rules in so-called dry states, at the drinking-age regulations as well as at ethnic and gender differences in the use of alcohol. Our focus will be literary and historical, but we will also occasionally include relevant biographical information on the selected authors. Although our particular emphasis will be on the early twentieth century, Native American fiction, and the historical moments of the Temperance Movement and the Prohibition, each student will independently choose one more contemporary narrative (fictional, non-fictional, film, other) and present it in class. 

  Required Reading:
  Short stories:
  Edgar Allan Poe, “The Cask of Amontillado” (1846)
  Katherine Anne Porter, “Old Mortality” (1937)
  F. Scott Fitzgerald, “Babylon Revisited” (1931)
  These stories will be available on ILIAS by the beginning of the semester.
  Plays:
  Hanay Geiogamah, Body Indian (1972) (will be available on ILIAS by the beginning of the semester).
  Tennessee Williams, A Streetcar Named Desire (1947) (to be acquired)
  Novels (to be acquired):
  Stephen Crane, Maggie: A Girl of the Streets (1893)
  Ernest Hemingway, The Sun Also Rises (1926)
  Leslie Marmon Silko, Ceremony (1977)

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Carmen Birkle: "I Robot": Artificial Intelligence and the Future of American Studies (held in English)Prof. Dr. Carmen Birkle: "I Robot": Artificial Intelligence and the Future of American Studies (held in English)

  seminar

  Please note: The IUSP has only 5 spots in this class!

  Tuesday 4pm - 6pm

  Content: Humanoid robots and, with them, artificial intelligence, have become an inevitable element in our world and are considered to be a sign of progress and often a necessity for life extension. However, not everyone is fully convinced of their positive contributions to human life: What if they become so intelligent that humans can no longer control them? What if they take control of us? AI is the result of a development that includes technology, automatization, and digitalization. These are some of the questions we will discuss in class by looking at fiction and film. We will start in the nineteenth century and the emergence of the railroad as depicted in Emily Dickinson’s poem “I Like to See It Lap the Miles” (1891) and short excerpts from Henry David Thoreau’s Walden (1854). We will then move on into the early twentieth century and analyze Elmer Rice’s play The Adding Machine (1923) and the later short story by Ray Bradbury “The Veldt” (1950). We will finally focus on two recent novels, Dave Eggers’s The Circle (2013) and Ernest Cline’s Ready Player One (2011), which both reveal ambivalent attitudes toward technology’s impact on human life both in/through the social media and virtual/artificial reality. Additionally, we will analyze in class the films I Robot (2004), Ex Machina (2015), and AI (2001).

  Required Reading (available on ILIAS by the beginning of the semester):
  Emily Dickinson, “I Like to See It Lap the Miles” (1891)
  Henry David Thoreau’s Walden (1854, excerpts).
  Elmer Rice, The Adding Machine (1923)
  Ray Bradbury, “The Veldt” (1950)
  Required Reading (to be acquired):
  Dave Eggers, The Circle (2013)
  Ernest Cline, Ready Player One (2011)

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Nino Giullano Zulier: Women in Prison: Space, Gender and Sexuality in a Queer Thirdspace (held in English)Nino Giullano Zulier: Women in Prison: Space, Gender and Sexuality in a Queer Thirdspace (held in English)

  block seminar

  November 8 & 9, 12pm - 6pm

  November 15, 12 - 6pm

  November 16, 12pm - 4.30pm

  Content: According to Queer and Feminist theorist Judith Butler, not only gender is a social concept, constructed by society, but also the biological sex should not be considered “natural.” Such a perspective on human gender ideology goes against the common attitudes of humans being “natural” beings. Correspondingly, identity construction in Gender and Queer Studies is a powerful concept in order to understand societal mechanisms and ideologies of a culture and, simultaneously, a way to question established norms and ideals.
  What about Sexuality? Sexuality is closely connected to the concepts of Gender and Sex. This blockseminar aims to investigate sexuality’s constructed and fluid character according to the variables of time, context, identity and spatiality. Women’s prisons will serve as case studies.
  What happens when society constructs a one-gender women’s only prison facility? How do conditions of power and gender roles react to such a new culture? Are women able to subvert femininity and sexuality norms and ideals? How does a one-gender prison affect their identity construction?
  In order to investigate such intriguing research questions, historical records of women’s prisons and the Netflix Original Show Orange Is the New Black serve as potential moments of enlightenment.

Subject Area: Archeology

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Winfried Held: Die Levante von der klassischen bis zur hellenistischen Epoche (held in German) Prof. Dr. Winfried Held: Die Levante von der klassischen bis zur hellenistischen Epoche (held in German) 

  lecture

  Thursday 10am - 12pm

  Content: to come

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Rita Amedick: Mehr als ein fruchtbarer Augenblick: Darstellungen von Zeit in der antiken Kunst (held in German)Prof. Dr. Rita Amedick: Mehr als ein fruchtbarer Augenblick: Darstellungen von Zeit in der antiken Kunst (held in German)

  lecture

  Tuesday 10am - 12pm

  Content: to come

Subject Area: Business Administration and Economics

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Sascha Mölls: Financial Accounting around the World - Empirical Evidence (held in English)Prof. Dr. Sascha Mölls: Financial Accounting around the World - Empirical Evidence (held in English)

  Seminar

  Day & Time: Considering the regular schedule of the IUSP-program, a first appointment with the participants will be arranged via email.

  Pre-requisites: Basic knowledge of financial accounting and/or corporate financing is helpful, but not required.Participants should, however, be interested in the economic analysis on firm and/or country level.

  Course description:
  In the last years countries around the world have either adopted the capital marketoriented International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) or adjusted their national standards accordingly. As the IFRS are deeply linked to a corporate governance system typical for the US or Great Britain companies are supposed to be primarily financed by equity and/or debt offered on well-developed capital markets, employed managers (and not the equity holders themselves) manage companies, decisions of and in firms are typically made with a strict reference to market parameters, ownership is characterized by high rates of free float and labor markets are characterized by a “hire and fire”-philosophy. Against this background the question arises if and in how far this model of corporate governance is suitable for other countries, in particular in Europa and Asia, as financing patterns and the institutional environment in those countries are different in many ways. Based on samples of the 100 biggest corporations from different countries, given annual reports as the main “database”
  and a prepared checklist for the analysis participants are supposed to analyze the financing patterns and the capital market environment empirically to derive and discuss
  implications for the standardsetting process. Thus the main question is: Are capital market-based accounting standards suitable for economies around the world?
  Participants can either work individually or in groups of up to three students. The results of the individual or joint work have to be presented at different stages of the project
  and a short final essay has to be handed in.

  Literature:
  Alexander, David/Nobes, Christopher [2013]: Financial Accounting – An International Introduction, 5th Edition, Pearson: Harlow.
  Penman, Stephen H. [2013]: Financial Statement Analysis and Security Valuation, 5th Edition, McGraw-Hill: New York.
  Weygandt, Jerry J./Kimmel, Paul D./Kieso, Donald E. [2013]: Financial Accounting – IFRS Edition, 2nd Edition, John Wiley & Sons: Hoboken.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Sascha Mölls: Empirical Comparative Corporate Governance - International Case Studies (held in English)Prof. Dr. Sascha Mölls: Empirical Comparative Corporate Governance - International Case Studies (held in English)

  Seminar

  Day & Time: Considering the regular schedule of the IUSP-program, a first appointment with the participants will be arranged via email.

  Pre-requisites: Due to the variety of topics specific skills / knowledge are / is not required in advance. Participants should, however, be interested in the economic analysis on firm and/or country level.

  Course description:
  Driven by the idea that national corporate governance systems differ due to several path dependencies such as different cultures, traditions etc. the seminar aims at exploring
  those differences by an empirical analysis of selected topics from the field of “comparative corporate governance”. Based on samples of the 100 biggest corporations from countries around the world, given annual reports as the main “database” and a prepared checklist for the analysis participants are supposed to do joint work in groups of up to three students. Topics include a wide variety of issues such as ownership and control, financing patterns, the use of capital market institutions, board structure, corporate social responsibility-mechanisms, corporate governance codices and manager compensation. The results of the joint work have to be presented at different stages of the project and a short final essay has to be handed in. Assistance will be given on a regular basis.

  Literature:
  Goergen, Marc [2012]: International Corporate Governance, Pearson: Harlow.
  Larcker, David/Tayan, Brian [2001]: Corporate Governance Matters, Pearson: Upper Saddle River.
  Mallin, Christine A. (Ed.) [2011]: Handbook on International Corporate Governance - Country Analyses, 2nd Edition, Edward Elgar: Cheltenham/Northampton.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Sascha Mölls: Institutional Activism, Share Repurchases and Hostile Take Overs in Europe (held in English)Prof. Dr. Sascha Mölls: Institutional Activism, Share Repurchases and Hostile Take Overs in Europe (held in English)

  Seminar

  Day & Time: Considering the regular schedule of the IUSP-program, a first appointment with the participants will be arranged via email.

  Pre-requisites: Participants should have some basic knowledge of corporate finance.

  Course description:
  Since the mid-1990s, capital market-orientation seems to be the guiding principle of legal reforms as well as of scientific research. The seminar aims to examine the capital
  market-orientation of large enterprises in Europe based on selected indicators (namely institutional activism, share repurchases and hostile takeovers). Participants
  are supposed to perform an empirical study as a content analysis relying on annual reports and related sources. An appropriate template for a structured analysis is provided
  for by the chair. Starting with a short theoretical introduction the results of the analysis have to be made up in a report (term paper) and are to be presented at different
  stages of the project in the seminar. Participants are supposed to do joint work in groups of up to three students. Assistance will be given on a regular basis.

  Literature:
  Black, B.S. [1992]: Agents watching Agents: The Promise of Institituional Investor Voice, in: UCLA Law Review, Vol. 39(4), p. 811-893.
  Black, B.S. [1992]: The Value of Institutional Investor Monitoring: The Empirical Evidence, in: UCLA Law Review, Vol. 39(4), p. 895-939.
  Larcker, D./Tayan, B. [2015]: Corporate Governance Matters, 2nd Edition, Pearson: Upper Saddle River.
  OECD [2011]: The Role of Institutional Investors in Promoting Good Corporate Governance, OECD Publishing.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Sascha Mölls: Corporate Valuation - An International Case Study (held in English)Prof. Dr. Sascha Mölls: Corporate Valuation - An International Case Study (held in English)

  Seminar

  Day & Time: Considering the regular schedule of the IUSP-program, a first appointment with the participants will be arranged via email.

  Pre-requisites: Participants should have some basic knowledge of corporate finance.

  Course description:
  The valuation of firms is one of the most difficult tasks in “practical business” as the valuation has to account for uncertainty concerning the future cash flows as well as
  the cost of capital. The course deals with the theorectical and practical problems of such a valuation process based on a real world case study from the global telecommunication
  industry. Topics include a variety of issues such as the derivation of a future firm strategy, the evaluation of management forecasts, the estimation of firm cash flows and the capital market-based determination of the cost of equity and debt. Participants are supposed to do joint work in groups of up to three students. The results of the joint work have to be presented at different stages of the project and a short final essay has to be handed in. Assistance will be given on a regular basis.

  Literature:
  Berk, J. / DeMarzo, P. [2013]: Corporate Finance, 3rd Ed., Pearson: Upper Saddle River.
  Copeland, T.E. / Weston, J.F. / Sastri, K. [2005]: Financial Theory and Corporate Policy, 4th Ed., Addison-Wesley: London.
  Holthausen, R.W./Zmijewski, M.E. [2014]: Corporate Valuation – Theory, Evidence & Practice, Cambridge Business Publishers: Cambridge.
  Titman, S./Martin, J.D. [2016]: Valuation, 3rd Ed., Pearson: Upper Saddle River

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Sascha Mölls:  Executive Compensation & Firm Performance - Concepts and Cases (held in English)Prof. Dr. Sascha Mölls:  Executive Compensation & Firm Performance - Concepts and Cases (held in English)

  Seminar

  Day & Time: Considering the regular schedule of the IUSP-program, a first appointment with the participants will be arranged via email.

  Pre-requisites: Due to the variety of topics specific skills / knowledge are / is not required in ad-vance. Participants should, however, be interested in the economic analysis on firm and/or country level.

  Course description:
  Driven by the idea that economic systems differ due to several path dependencies such as different cultures, traditions etc. the seminar aims at exploring differences in managerial remuneration and its consequences for firm performance. Based on samples of the 100 biggest corporations from countries around the world, given an-nual reports as the main “database” and a prepared checklist for the analysis partici-pants are supposed to do joint work in groups of up to three students. Topics include a wide variety of renumeration issues, particularly different compensation structures as well as different degrees of capital market-orientation. The results of the joint work have to be presented at different stages of the project and a short final essay has to be handed in. Assistance will be given on a regular basis.

  Literature:
  Larcker, David/Tayan, Brian [2015]: Corporate Governance Matters, 2nd Edition, Pearson: Upper Saddle River (Chapter 8).
  Mallin, Christine A. (Ed.) [2011]: Handbook on International Corporate Governance - Country Analyses, 2nd Edition, Edward Elgar: Cheltenham/Northampton.
  Murpyh, Kevin J. (1985): Corporate Performance and Managerial Remuneration, in: Journal of Accounting and Economics, Vol. 7, 11-42. 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Bernhard Nietert: Entscheidung, Finanzierung und Investition (held in German)Prof. Dr. Bernhard Nietert: Entscheidung, Finanzierung und Investition (held in German)

  lecture

  Monday 6pm - 8pm

  Content:

  -    Research Questions

  ·    How should I make decisions?

  ·    How can I separate good real investments and good funding opportunities from bad ones?

  ·    What is risk? How can I measure and manage it?

  -    Content

  1   Introduction

  1.1     Basics

  1.2     Basics of decision theory

  1.3     Types of investments and financing

  2   Investment evaluation under certainty

  2.1     Determination of cash flows under certainty

  2.2    A first approach to investment evaluation under certainty: problem and fundamentals

  2.3     Classical investment evaluation under certainty

  2.4     Modern investment evaluation under certainty

  3   Financing evaluation under certainty

  3.1     Introduction

  3.2     Financing that is directly related to investment

  3.3     Financing that is not related to investment

  4   Risk

  4.1     Getting to know risk

  4.2     Determination of cash flows under risk

  4.3     Management of risk  

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Dr. Ahmed Badreldin: Introduction to the Economies of the Middle East (held in English)Dr. Ahmed Badreldin: Introduction to the Economies of the Middle East (held in English)

  lecture

  Tuesday 2pm - 4pm

  Content: 

  This course is intended as an introduction to basic economic systems and concepts followed by a comprehensive overview of the economies of the region. The goal is to provide students with a solid basis and understanding of the economies of the region and equip them to analyze these in an objective critical manner.
    
  The course is designed to equip students with the necessary tools that would allow them to think and analyze economic problems witnessed in the MENA region in a systematic theory based approach.

  After attending the course, participants should be able to make educated comments on ongoing economic discussions in the region.
   
  100% of the Grade depends on your performance in the final written exam (60 minutes).

  Literature: 

  - A Political Economy of the Middle East (Fourth Edition) – Cammett, M., Diwan, I., Richards, A., and Waterbury, J.
  - Economic and Trade Policies in the Arab World – Elkhafif, M. A. T., Taghdisi-Rad, S., and Elagraa M.
  - The Middle East (Thirteenth Edition) – Edited by Ellen Lust.
  - The Middle East and North Africa 2015 (Sixty-First Edition) – Routledge – Europa Regional Surveys of the World
  - ILIAS Ordner: https://ilias.uni-marburg.de/goto.php?target=crs_1528268&client_id=UNIMR

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof.Dr. Torsten Wulf: Strategic Problemsolving and Communication (held in English)Prof.Dr. Torsten Wulf: Strategic Problemsolving and Communication (held in English)

  lecture

  Thursday 10am - 12pm

  Content:Main focus of this module is the mediation of methodological competences. Based on the fundemental understanding that problems have usually a novel character and that problemsolving and communication go hand in hand, we convey strategies to the students that help them to understand novel and complex problems, to solve them and to communicate the solutions effectively. 

  Course materials: 
  The necessary documents of the module are available on ILIAS at the semester's start.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Marc Steffen Rapp: Management Accounting (held in English)Prof. Dr. Marc Steffen Rapp: Management Accounting (held in English)

  lecture and exercise

  Thursday 8am - 10am AND Thursday 12pm - 2pm (lecture)

  Wednesday 4pm - 6pm (exercise)

  Content: After defining the content of "Management Accounting", the aims and purposes of the management accounting have to be discussed. Central instruments of management accounting will be presented and discussed against the background of the goal of the strategy implementation as well as the coordination problems to be solved.

Subject Area: English Studies 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Martin Kuester: Key Texts from the 20th and 21st Centuries (held in English)Prof. Dr. Martin Kuester: Key Texts from the 20th and 21st Centuries (held in English)

  lecture

  Monday 12pm - 2pm

  Content: In this lecture series, you will be given an overview of twentieth and early twenty-first century literature from Britain (and, to a certain extent, the Commonwealth), looking at central authors and texts and interpreting them in their historical and literary contexts. The lectures will start with the authors of literary Modernism; then we will have a look at the more or less realistic novels, plays, and poetry of mid-century, study the innovations of postmodernism and postcolonialism and finish with the latest developments around and after the turn of the century

  Literature: Any good anthology of 20th-century British literature such as The Longman Anthology of British Literature, Volume 2c: The Twentieth Century and Beyond, ed. David Damrosch and Kevin J H Dettmar.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Martin Kuester: Contemporary British Poetry (held in English)Prof. Dr. Martin Kuester: Contemporary British Poetry (held in English)

  seminar

  Please note: The IUSP has only 5 spots in this class!

  Monday 4pm - 6pm

  Content: In this class, we will take a look at trends and developments in English poetry published over the last two or three decades. We will read and interpret poems and try to find out what formal and thematic elements have become important for contemporary poets writing in English.

  Literature: Bine, James, and Clare Pollard. Voice Regconition: 21 Poets for the 21st Century. Highgreen, Tarset: Bloodaxe Books, 2009..
  The Forward Book of Poetry 2019. London: Bookmark, 2018.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Martin Kuester: The Empire Windrush (held in English)Prof. Dr. Martin Kuester: The Empire Windrush (held in English)

  seminar

  Please note: The IUSP has only 5 spots in this class!

  Tuesday 2pm - 4pm 

  Content: The Empire Windrush was one of the first ships that brought immigrants from the Caribbean to Briitain after the Second World War. For this reason, this group of immigrants is often referred to as the "Windrush Generation." We will discuss the experience of these immigrants as it is depicted in recent writing from Britain. We will read excerpts from Empire Windrush as well as the complete novel by Levy and analyze the ways in which they describe different aspects of the Windrush generation in Britain. You are expected not only to read the texts but also to do your own research on geographical, historical and political backgrounds and to present those in class.

  Literature: 

  Levy, Andrea. Small Island.  2004.

  Excerpts from:
  Empire Windrush: Fifty Years of Writing About Black Britain. Ed. Onyekachi Wambu. London: Phoenix, 1999.
  Mother Country: Real Stories of the Windrush Children. Ed. Charlie Brinkhurst-Cuff. London: Headline, 2018.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Martin Kuester: Canadian Crime Novels and/as Cultural Studies (held in English)Prof. Dr. Martin Kuester: Canadian Crime Novels and/as Cultural Studies (held in English)

  seminar

  Please note: The IUSP has only 5 spots in this class!

  Thursday 2pm - 4pm 

  Content: Crime novels may seem to be a surprising approach in the teaching of Canadian Studies, but they offer an innovative and, hopefully, entertainingway into a perhaps relatively unknown culture and society. In this class, we will read three novels and use them as ways of understanding how Canadian society works. We will read and discuss four novels set in different regions of Canada. We will read the novels and also analyze the ways in which they describe different Canadian regions, provinces and cities. What do we learn about Canada and Canadians in reading these novels? You are expected not only to read the texts but also to do some research on geographical, historical and political backgrounds and to present those in class.

  Literature: 

  Bowen, Gail. Burying Ariel. 2000.
  Penny, Louise.  Still Life. 2005.
  Rotenberg, Robert. Old City Hall. 2009.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Sonja Fielitz: Early Modern Literature and Culture: An Overview (held in English)Prof. Dr. Sonja Fielitz: Early Modern Literature and Culture: An Overview (held in English)

  lecture

  Wednesday 10am - 12am

  Content: The early modern period (c 1550-1660) is one of the most fruitful, productive and exciting epochs in European literary and cultural history. Life shifted away from medieval modes of organization and witnessed a pluralization of discourses in various fields, such as politics, economics, religion, and literature. Italian humanism spread northward to France, Germany, and England, where an extremely productive literary and theatrical life prospered. Powers became increasingly involved in global trade, which, in turn, greatly affected the human environment. The period also saw the foundation of the Anglican Church. 
  Early modern plays as well as poems and narrative texts such as essays reflect the dynamics but also the tensions of the time.
  After a brief introductory part on various aspects of early modern social and cultural life, the lecture will provide an overview of the three 'classical' literary genres, i.e., epic (Spenser), poetry (Spenser, Sidney, Shakespeare, Marvell) and drama (Marlowe, Shakespeare, Jonson, Webster, Ford, Middleton and Rowley, Shirley).

Subject Area: German Studies 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Marion Schmaus: ‚Werther‘-Diskurse: zwischen Pathographie und Kultbuch [von Goethes ‚Die Leiden des jungen Werther‘ bis zu modernen Rezeptionen] (held in German)Prof. Dr. Marion Schmaus: ‚Werther‘-Diskurse: zwischen Pathographie und Kultbuch [von Goethes ‚Die Leiden des jungen Werther‘ bis zu modernen Rezeptionen] (held in German)

  seminar

  Please note: The IUSP has only 6 spots in this class!

  Thursday 12pm - 2pm

  Content: Goethes Briefroman ‚Die Leiden des jungen Werther‘ erscheint 1774, macht mit einem Schlag den jungen Autor bekannt und wird zum Kultbuch einer Generation. Das Seminar will sich ausführlich dem Roman und seinen zeitgenössischen Folgen in Literatur und Lebenspraxis widmen: Werthers Spuren in Goethes Texten (‚Lila‘, ‚Briefe aus der Schweiz‘ etc.), Wertheriaden der Goethezeit sowie veränderte Lektüre- und Rezeptionspraktiken, u.a. das sogenannte ‚Werther-Fieber‘, sollen diskutiert werden. In einem zweiten Teil wird die ‚Werther‘-Rezeption in Auswahl und in verschiedenen Medien bis in die Gegenwart verfolgt. Massenets Oper ‚Werther‘ (1892), Thomas Manns ‚Lotte in Weimar‘ (1939), Plenzdorfs ‚Die neuen Leiden des jungen W.‘ (1972/73) oder ‚Werther‘-Verfilmungen (1976, 2008) können hier Beachtung finden. Das Seminar gibt Anlass, Grundfragen der Rezeptionsästhetik und Medienwirkung zu diskutieren. In der Reading Week ist eine Exkursion nach Wetzlar zum Lotte- und Jerusalemhaus geplant.

  Literature: 

  Goethe: Die Leiden des jungen Werthers (Suhrkamp BasisBibliothek); Martin Andree: Wenn Texte töten. Über Werther, Medienwirkung und Mediengewalt. Paderborn 2006.

  Andreas Blödorn: Lektüre als Fieberanfall – Empathie als Modell der (An-)Spannung. Mit einer neu gefassten ‚Diagnose‘ der „Leiden des jungen Werthers“. In: Ingo Irsigler, Christoph Jürgensen, Daniela Langer (Hrsg.): Zwischen Text und Leser. Studien zu Begriff, Geschichte und Funktion literarischer Spannung. München 2008, S. 165–188;

  Georg Jäger: Goethes Werther im gesellschaftlichen Kontext. Rezeptionsdokumente als Interpretationshilfen. http://www.goethezeitportal.de/digitale-bibliothek/forschungsbeitraege/autoren-kuenstler-denker/goethe-johann-wolfgang-von/georg-jaeger-goethes-werther-im-gesellschaftlichen-kontext.html#Narziss;

  Christian Klein: Kultbücher. Theoretische Zugänge und exemplarische Analysen. Göttingen 2014;

  Karl Hotz (Hrsg.): Goethes „Werther“ als Modell für kritisches Lesen. Materialien zur Rezeptionsgeschichte. Stuttgart 1974;

  Katja Mellmann: Das Buch als Freund – der Freund als Zeugnis. Zur Entstehung eines neuen Paradigmas für Literaturrezeption und persönliche Beziehungen, mit einer Hypothese zur Erstrezeption von Goethes „Werther“. In: Hans-Edwin Friedrich, Fotis Jannidis, Marianne Willems (Hrsg.): Bürgerlichkeit im 18. Jahrhundert. Tübingen 2006, S. 201–241;

  Karl N. Renner: „Laß das Büchlein deinen Freund seyn“. Goethes Roman „Die Leiden des jungen Werther“ und die Diätetik der Aufklärung. In: Zur Sozialgeschichte der deutschen Literatur von der Aufklärung bis zur Jahrhundertwende, hg. v. Günther Häntzschel, Tübingen 1985, S. 1–20;

  weitere Informationen und Literaturhinweise auf der Online-Lernplattform ILIAS.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Romy Traeber: "Glotzt du noch oder schreibst du schon?" - Fernsehen und Literatur im Wechselspiel (held in German)Romy Traeber: "Glotzt du noch oder schreibst du schon?" - Fernsehen und Literatur im Wechselspiel (held in German)

  seminar

  Monday 10am - 12pm

  Content: In seinem erstmals 1988 veröffentlichten Aufsatz Fernsehen als Gegenstand der Literatur und der Literaturwissenschaft vermutete der Literaturwissenschaftler Uwe Japp, dass „die Erfahrungen mit dem Medium Fernsehen für die Literaten und für die Literatur selbst nicht ohne Folgen geblieben sind“. Das Seminar will untersuchen, ob das Aufkommen und die Verbreitung des Fernsehens im deutschen Sprachraum Einfluss auf die Literaturproduktion nahm und die Berührung mit dem Medium auch sichtbare Spuren in den Schreibweisen der Autoren hinterlassen hat.

  Literatur: 

  Wir werden uns mit folgenden Texten befassen, die bereits vor Seminarbeginn besorgt werden sollten (in Klammern jeweils das Jahr der Erstveröffentlichung):

  Fritz Rudolf Fries: Der Fernsehkrieg und andere Erzählungen (1969), Elfriede Jelinek: wir sind lockvögel baby (1970), Angelika Mechtel: Friß Vogel (1972), Arno Reinfrank: Fernseh-Abend. Poesie der Fakten 2 (1975), Botho Strauß: Die Widmung (1977), Eckhard Henscheid: Beim Fressen beim Fernsehen fällt der Vater dem Kartoffel aus dem Maul (1981), Christian Kracht: Faserland (1995), Hans Magnus Enzensberger: Nieder mit Goethe! (1996) und Kurt Oesterle: Der Fernsehgast (2012) 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Romy Traeber: Ästhetische Verarbeitungen des KZ Buchenwald (held in German)Romy Traeber: Ästhetische Verarbeitungen des KZ Buchenwald (held in German)

  seminar

  Thursday 10am - 12pm

  Content: 1949, als man in Deutschland den 200. Geburtstag Goethes beging, verkündete der Germanist Richard Alewyn in seiner Kölner Goethe-Vorlesung: „Zwischen uns und Weimar liegt Buchenwald“. Diesem Diktum folgend wird die in den untersuchten Romanen durchaus als problematisch wahrgenommene Nähe der beiden Orte im Seminar ebenso eine Rolle spielen wie die Frage, warum gerade über Buchenwald eine solche Vielzahl hochwertiger und die Zeit überdauernder literarischer Texte entstanden sind. Welche Motive und ästhetischen Strategien finden sich in den Romanen, die über einen Zeitraum von 36 Jahren entstanden und von Autoren geschrieben wurden, deren Lebensgeschichten nur eine einzige Gemeinsamkeit aufweisen? Daran anknüpfend wird es auch um die Frage gehen, wo sich diese im Spannungsfeld Fiktion/Faktizität verorten lassen. 

  Achtung: Voraussichtlich in der Reading Week findet eine Exkursion in die Gedenkstätte Buchenwald statt. Die Teilnahme ist verpflichtend. Bitte beachten Sie dies bei Ihrer Semesterplanung!

  Literatur: 

  Wir werden uns mit folgenden Texten befassen, die bereits vor Seminarbeginn besorgt werden sollten (in Klammern jeweils das Jahr der Erstveröffentlichung):

  Eugon Kogon: Der SS-Staat. Das System der deutschen Konzentrationslager (1946), Bruno Apitz: Nackt unter Wölfen (1958), Jorge Semprún: Die große Reise (1963), Fred Wander: Der siebente Brunnen (1971), Imre Kertész: Roman eines Schicksallosen (1975), Jorge Semprún: Was für ein schöner Sonntag! (1980), Jorge Semprún: Schreiben oder Leben (1994)

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Doren Wohlleben: Literaturvermittlung am Beispiel der Büchner-Preis-Verleihung (mit Exkursion nach Darmstadt zur Büchner-Preis-Verleihung am 2.11.19) (held in German)Prof. Dr. Doren Wohlleben: Literaturvermittlung am Beispiel der Büchner-Preis-Verleihung (mit Exkursion nach Darmstadt zur Büchner-Preis-Verleihung am 2.11.19) (held in German)

  seminar

  Wednesday 6pm - 8pm

  Content: Auf der Basis eines immer noch wenig beachteten literaturvermittelnden Genres, den Büchner-Preis-Reden, erarbeiten wir rückläufig eine intermediale Literaturgeschichte von der Gegenwart bis in die Nachkriegsjahre. Dabei interessiert neben der kulturhistorischen Perspektive ganz besonders die rhetorische und performative Dimension der Preisreden: Wie inszeniert sich der Autor/die Autorin? Wie funktioniert die Preisverleihung gesellschaftspolitisch? Wie wird sie in diversen Medien präsentiert, referiert und literaturkritisch reflektiert? Ein gemeinsamer Besuch der Büchner-Preis-Übergabe am 2. November 2019 in Darmstadt ist Teil des Seminars und wird in einem halbtägigen Kompaktseminar (voraussichtlich am 1. November) auch (gattungs-) theoretisch vorbereitet. 

  Literature: 

  Alle Büchner-Preis-Reden seit 1951 können auf der Homepage der Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung eingesehen werden.

  Zur Geschichte des Georg-Büchner-Preises vgl. auch:
  Judith S. Ulmer: Geschichte des Georg-Büchner-Preises. Soziologie eines Rituals. Berlin/New York 2006 sowie die dortigen Literaturangaben.

  Ein Reader mit Primär- und Sekundärtexten wird in der zweiten Sitzung zum Selbstkostenpreis ausgehändigt und/oder bei ILIAS hochgeladen.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen David Brehm (M.A.): Kopieren, Abschreiben, Recyceln. Verfahren des Nicht-Kreativen in der Literatur (held in German)David Brehm (M.A.): Kopieren, Abschreiben, Recyceln. Verfahren des Nicht-Kreativen in der Literatur (held in German)

  seminar 

  Thursday 4pm - 6pm

  Content: 

  Kunst und Literatur gelten als Domänen des Besonderen, Einzigartigen, Originellen; Autorinnen und Autoren wenn nicht als Genies, so doch als in besonderer Weise kreative Wesen. Ebenso alt wie diese Vorstellungen sind aber auch die Umstände, die sie in Frage stellen – und heute sind sie vielleicht wirkmächtiger denn je. Zum einen muss sich eine Literatur angesichts stetig wachsender kultureller Überlieferungsmassen eingestehen, dass fast alles schon irgendwie dagewesen, dass jedes literarische Schreiben nur eine Art „höheres Abschreiben“ (Th. Mann) ist. Zum andern ist die Forderung „Sei kreativ!“ heute zu einem Imperativ geworden, der weit über das Gebiet der schönen Künste hinausreicht. Schöpferisch, innovativ, originell zu sein ist längst nicht mehr gleichbedeutend damit, im Sinne autonomieästhetischer Entwürfe „ganz Mensch“ zu werden (F. Schiller). Im Berufsleben (creative economy) wie im Privaten (Selbstverwirklichung) verwickeln uns Kreativitäts- und Einzigartigkeitsansprüche vielmehr zunehmend in Strukturen der Heteronomie.

  Literatur, zumal der Gegenwart, muss sich zu all dem ins Verhältnis setzen – und tut das nicht selten, indem sie überkommene Originalitätsideale über Bord wirft und Verfahren und Formate des ‚Nicht-Kreativen‘ erprobt: Formen des Mitschreibens, Abschreibens, Schreibenlassens, Protokollierens, Appropriierens, Kopierens und Plagiierens – sowohl in traditionellen Erzählmedien als auch im Digitalen.

  Wo sie dies tut, denkt Literatur nicht zuletzt über ihren eigenen Stellenwert, ihre Rolle in der Kreativitäts- und Überflussgesellschaft nach. Das berührt – erstens – theoretische Kernfragen unseres Faches: Was etwa wird aus Konzepten wie ‚Werk‘ und ‚Autorschaft‘, wenn ein Schriftsteller wie Kenneth Goldsmith sich dafür entscheidet, Wort für Wort die New York Times abzuschreiben – und das Ergebnis als Buch unter seinem Namen verkauft? Zweitens sind die sozial- und mediengeschichtlichen Kontexte nicht-kreativer Verfahren zu klären, ist etwa nach der Situation der verschiedenen ‚Reproduktionsagenten‘, der Sekretär*innen und Schreiber*innen ebenso wie der Automaten und Apparate zu fragen, zu denen sich ‚nicht-kreative Literatur‘ ins Verhältnis setzt, von denen sie sich abgrenzt oder denen sie nacheifert. Und drittens stellen sich dabei Fragen nach unserem Blick auf Original und Kopie, Tradition und Innovation, nach unserem Umgang mit Überfluss, Müll und Resten überhaupt. Voraussichtlich diskutiert werden Texte von H. Bajohr/G. Weichbrodt, W. Benjamin, G. Flaubert, K. Goldsmith, I. Keun, R. Pollesch u.v.a. 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Hania Siebenpfeiffer: Einführung in literaturwissenschaftliche Textanalysen und Arbeitstechniken (held in German)Prof. Dr. Hania Siebenpfeiffer: Einführung in literaturwissenschaftliche Textanalysen und Arbeitstechniken (held in German)

  seminar

  Tuesday 2pm - 4pm

  Content: Das Seminar führt anhand exemplarischer Analysen von Texten unterschiedlicher Epochen in literaturwissenschaftliche Arbeitsweisen ein. Erörtert werden zentrale Begriffe, Beschreibungsmodelle, literaturgeschichtliche Kontexte und grundlegende literaturtheoretische Problemfelder.

Subject Area: History 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Christian Kleinschmidt: Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft in Europa vom Spätmittelalter bis zur Frühindustrialisierung (held in German)Prof. Dr. Christian Kleinschmidt: Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft in Europa vom Spätmittelalter bis zur Frühindustrialisierung (held in German)

  lecture

  Wednesday 10am - 12pm

  Content: Aus wirtschafts- und gesellschaftshistorischer Perspektive war das vorindustrielle Zeitalter vor allem agrarisch geprägt. Gleichwohl bildeten sich in zahlreichen europäischen Regionen protoindustrielle Strukturen heraus, die u.a. durch gewerbliche (Massen-)Produktion sowie den überregionalen Absatz bzw. die Einbindung in ein sich etablierendes weltwirtschaftliches System gekennzeichnet waren. In diesem Zusammenhang wird in der historischen Forschung auf den „europäischen Sonderweg“ verwiesen. In der Vorlesung werden zentrale Aspekte der wirtschaftlichen und technischen Entwicklung in Europa sowie sozial- und gesellschaftshistorische Aspekte im Zeitraum zwischen „Protoindustrialisierung“ und Frühindustrialisierung vorgestellt.

  Literatur: 

  Braudel, Fernand: Sozialgeschichte des 15.-18. Jahrhunderts. Aufbruch zur Weltwirtschaft, München 1986;

  Crouzet, F.: A History of the European Economy, 1000-2000, Charlottesville, London 2001;

  Handbuch der europäischen Wirtschafts- und Sozialgeschichte Bd. 3 (hg. von H. Kellenbenz, Stuttgart 1986) und Bd. 4 (hg. von I. Mieck, Stuttgart 1993);

  Jones, Eric: The European Miracle. Environments, Economies and Geopolitics in the History of Europe and Asia, Cambridge u.a. 2003;

  Kleinschmidt, Christian: Wirtschaftsgeschichte der Neuzeit. Die Weltwirtschaft 1500-1850, München 2017;

  Landes, D.: Wohlstand und Armut der Nationen. Warum die einen reich und die anderen arm sind, Berlin 1998;

  Malanima, P.: Europäische Wirtschaftsgeschichte: 10. bis 19. Jahrhundert, Wien 2010;

  Ogilvie, S. C./Cerman, M.: European Proto-Industrialization, Cambridge 1996;

  Reinhard, Wolfgang: Die Unterwerfung der Welt. Globalgeschichte der Europäischen Expansion 1415-2015, München 2016;

  Vries, Jan de: The Industrious Revolution. Consumer Behaviour and the Household Economy, 1650 to the Present, Cambridge 2008;

  Vries, Peer: Ursprünge des modernen Wirtschaftswachstums. England, China und die Welt in der Frühen Neuzeit, Göttingen 2013;

  Van Zanden, Jan Luiten: The Long Road to the Industrial Revolution. The European Economy in a Global Perspective, 1000-1800, Leiden 2009.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Christian Kleinschmidt: Geschichte der Migration in Europa (held in German)Prof. Dr. Christian Kleinschmidt: Geschichte der Migration in Europa (held in German)

  seminar

  Thursday 2pm - 4pm

  Content: Das Thema Migration ist eine der meist diskutierten Fragen und Herausforderungen der Gegenwart. Das Hauptseminar widmet sich den Ursachen, Verläufen und Folgen von Migration, Flucht, Vertreibung, und Deportation in Europa aus wirtschafts-, sozial- und kulturhistorischer Perspektive und widmet sich Themenschwerpunkten wie Chancen und Problemen des Arbeitsmarktes, der Integration, der Konfliktaustragung etc. anhand ausgewählter Beispiele unterschiedlicher europäischer Regionen. 

  Die Veranstaltung beginnt in der zweiten Semesterwoche!

  Literatur: 

  Bade, Klaus J.: Europa in Bewegung. Migration vom späten 18. Jahrhundert bis zur Gegenwart, München 2000;

  Bade, Klaus J./Emmer, Pieter C./Lucassen, Leo/Oltmer, Jochen (Hg.): Enzyklopädie Migration in Europa. Vom 17. Jahrhundert bis zur Gegenwart, Paderborn u.a. 2007;

  Düvell, Franck: Europäische und internationale Migration. Einführung in historische, soziologische und politische Analysen, Hamburg 2006;

  Hahn, Sylvia: Historische Migrationsforschung, Frankfurt 2012;

  Lucassen, Leo: Gewinner und Verlierer: fünf Jahrhunderte Immigration - eine nüchterne Bilanz, Münster 2014;

  Luft, Stephan: Die Flüchtlingskrise. Ursachen, Konflikte, Folgen, München 2016;

  Meier-Braun, Karl-Heinz/Weber, Reinhold (Hg.): Migration und Integration in Deutschland. Begriffe – Fakten – Kontroversen, Stuttgart 2013;

  Oltmer, Jochen: Globale Migration. Geschichte und Gegenwart, München 2012;

  Oltmer, Jochen: Migration im 19. und 20. Jahrhundert, München 2010. 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Eckart Conze: Das nationalsozialistische Deutschland (1933-1945) (held in German)Prof. Dr. Eckart Conze: Das nationalsozialistische Deutschland (1933-1945) (held in German)

  lecture

  Friday 10am - 12pm

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Benedikt Stuchtey: Das britische Empire, 1776-1919 (held in German)Prof. Dr. Benedikt Stuchtey: Das britische Empire, 1776-1919 (held in German)

  seminar

  Tuesday 10am - 12pm

Subject Area: Peace and Conflict Studies 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Dr. Kerstin Zimmer: Die Subversivität des Alltags in Diktaturen: das Beispiel des real existierenden Sozialismus (held in German)Dr. Kerstin Zimmer: Die Subversivität des Alltags in Diktaturen: das Beispiel des real existierenden Sozialismus (held in German)

  seminar

  Tuesday 12pm - 2pm

  Content: Fast 30 Jahre nach dem Zusammenbruch des real existierenden Sozialismus verfügen viele Menschen über keine oder nur eine vage Vorstellung davon, wie der Alltag der Menschen in diesen Gesellschaften aussah. Manchen fällt es schwer, zwischen sozialistischer Ideologie und dem „realen Leben“ zu unterscheiden. Aber ebenso wie heute war auch früher die Vorstellung über das „Leben jenseits des Eisernen Vorhangs“ von ideologisch geprägten Auffassungen bestimmt.
  Während des Kalten Krieges betrachtete „der Westen“ die realsozialistischen Gesellschaften primär durch die Brille des Totalitarismus-Paradigmas. Wissenschaft, Politik und Medien stellten die Gesellschaften als von der Willkür der herrschenden kommunistischen Partei bestimmt dar. Im einzelnen gehörten dazu: die enorme Machtkonzentration in den Händen der Parteiführung; die Kontrolle der gesamten Gesellschaft durch den Partei-Staat, der alle Lebensbereiche infiltriert und eine monolithische Ideologie propagiert, welcher Bildung, Kultur und öffentliche Meinung unterworfen sind; die schwache Gesellschaft, deren Mitglieder sich vorwiegend konform verhalten. Allerdings waren auch damals detaillierte wissenschaftliche Kenntnisse kaum vorhanden, denn sozialwissenschaftliche Forschung zur Alltagswelt im Sozialismus war praktisch unmöglich. Das galt sowohl für westliche Wissenschaftler_innen, die selten Zugang erhielten als auch für die (unterentwickelte und instrumentalisierte) Soziologie in den Ländern selbst.
  Spätestens nach dem Ende des real existierenden Sozialismus wurde allerdings die Kluft zwischen dem ideologischen Anspruch der einzelnen sozialistischen Staaten und der sozialen Realität offenkundig. Sichtbar wurde, dass die Bevölkerung vor allem in der nachstalinistischen Phase vielfältige Strategien entwickelt hatte, um ihre Autonomie zu wahren und ein erträgliches Leben zu führen.
  Zentrales Kennzeichen aller Gesellschaften waren Aushandlungsprozesse zwischen Herrschern und Beherrschten. Und selbst diese Zweiteilung ist zweifelhaft, da breite gesellschaftliche Gruppen „Macht“ besaßen, wenn auch nicht im formalen Sinne. Das Leben im Realsozialismus war also weitaus widersprüchlicher als offizielle Rhetorik und westliche Auffassung vermuten ließen.
  Gleichwohl darf die Erkenntnis, dass sich das konkrete Leben im Sozialismus nicht auf Parteibeschlüsse reduzieren lässt, nicht zur Verkennung des transformativen Potenzials des realsozialistischen Staates führen. Trotz der Kluft zwischen Ideologie und sozialer Praxis schuf der Partei-Staat einen institutionellen Rahmen für die gesellschaftlichen Aushandlungen. Obschon die sozialen Praxen zumeist nicht den Wünschen der Parteiführung entsprachen, waren sie mannigfaltig mit dem sozialistischen System verbunden. Die einzelnen realsozialistischen Staaten unterschieden sich hinsichtlich der Freiheitsgrade.
  Das Seminar möchte Sie also einladen, eine intellektuelle Zeitreise in die realsozialistischen Gesellschaften Mittel-, Ost- und Südosteuropas zu unternehmen. Im Seminar werden wir uns mit einigen wichtigen Aspekten realsozialistischer Vergesellschaftung befassen, wobei die sozialen Praktiken der Menschen in der privaten und öffentlichen Sphäre im Vordergrund stehen.
  Zentral sind dabei die folgenden Fragen: Welchen Raum ließ der sozialistische Staat für das Privatleben und wie eigneten sich die Menschen diesen Raum an und erweiterten ihn? Wie trugen die Menschen durch ihr privates und öffentliches Leben sowohl zur Stabilisierung als auch zur Destabilisierung des sozialistischen Systems bei? 

  Inhalt und Qualifikationsziele 

  Studierende können die Logik des Alltags im Realsozialismus nachvollziehen und die Wechselwirkungen zwischen offiziellem System und dem Alltagshandeln der Menschen verstehen. Auf konzeptioneller Ebene wird das Verstehen des Wechselspiels von Struktur & Akteur/Handlung gestärkt. Studierende sollen hinter die Kulissen und Selbstdarstellungen von „Diktaturen“ blicken; sich nicht durch Propaganda und/oder Ideologien blenden lassen.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Dr. Kerstin Zimmer: Welcome to Rosania! (held in English)Dr. Kerstin Zimmer: Welcome to Rosania! (held in English)

  Block seminar

  October 26 & 27, 9am - 6pm

  November 2 & 3, 9am - 6pm

  Welcome to Rosania! Rosania is a country in conflict and you are an actor involved in resolving the ongoing civil war. The lot decides on your role and function within the conflict context. By enacting your role and interacting with other conflict parties, you will learn about conflict resolution while actively take part in understanding the events in Rosania. Through your participation, Rosania could move to a peaceful society depending on choices faced and decisions made by you and the fellow actors. 

  In three different simulations, students assume the role of actors in a fictional conflict. The three simulations are based on the same initial conflict. However, there are lapses in time as well as changes of level between the simulations, so that conflicts are played through by drawing on different actors and at different phases. 
  To start, an internal conflict is simulated (1s t simulation) which then escalates into an international conflict (2n d simulation) which subsequently, after the conclusion of a peace treaty, has to be regulated at the local level (3 rd simulation).

  The aim of the seminar is to explore different methods of conflict resolution through a practical, applied approach. The participants have the opportunity to try out different mechanisms of conflict resolution to experience the complexity of conflicts and to improve their soft skills such as reflecting on their own point of view as well as their degree of empathy.

  Structure of the Seminar:
  The seminar is structured in blocks. It comprises of a preparatory meeting, three days of simulations and a final meeting. 

  Active participation in all simulations and preparatory meetings is required. 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Dr. Kerstin Zimmer: Phantomgrenzen in Mittel- und Osteuropa (held in German)Dr. Kerstin Zimmer: Phantomgrenzen in Mittel- und Osteuropa (held in German)

  seminar

  Thursday 12pm - 2pm

  Content: In den letzten Jahrhunderten wurden die (national-)staatlichen Grenzen in Mittel- und Osteuropa mehrfach verschoben, neu geschaffen oder beseitigt. Interessanterweise haben die „alten“ Grenzen aus habsburgischer, zaristischer und osmanischer Zeit bis heute Folgen und schlagen sich in unterschiedlichem Wahlverhalten, infrastruktureller Versorgung oder kulturellen Besonderheiten in einzelnen Regionen nieder.
  Im Seminar wollen wir uns mit den Folgen verschwundener Grenzen als soziologischer Tatsache beschäftigen. Wir befassen uns also mit strukturellen Erbschaften sowie politischen, wissenschaftlichen und gesellschaftlichen (Erinnerungs-)Diskursen.
  Dazu lesen wir zunächst konzeptionelle Texte zur Funktion und Wahrnehmung von Grenzen bevor wir uns mit einzelnen Fallstudien aus Mittel- und Osteuropa befassen. Der geographische Schwerpunkt wird auf Polen, Rumänien, der Ukraine und Deutschland liegen.

Subject Area: Political Science 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Dr. Wajid Tahir: Gender and Migration: Effects of Public Policies and Legislation (held in English)Dr. Wajid Tahir: Gender and Migration: Effects of Public Policies and Legislation (held in English)

  seminar

  Please note: The IUSP has only 8 spots in this class!

  Monday 10am - 12pm

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Sanjeev Thavarajah: International Law in the Contemporary World Arena (held in English)Sanjeev Thavarajah: International Law in the Contemporary World Arena (held in English)

  Block Seminar

  November 8 & 9, 11am - 7pm

  November 15 & 16, 11am - 7pm

  Content: 

  Module Overview
  The legal scholar Hedley Bull has defined the term International law as “(…) a body of rules which binds states and other agents in world politics in their relations with one another (…)”. The aforementioned definition displays the broad and complex nature of Public International Law. This seminar, therefore, aims to cover, inter alia, the following aspects of public international law: sources of international law, international law & national law, international personality, statehood & recognition, self-determination, jurisdiction & sovereignty, state immunity, diplomatic immunity, state responsibility and the environment, UN and the use of force, human rights and terrorism.

   

  Assessment Methods:

  The seminar will be assessed via presentation and course work.

   

  Presentations:

  Students are expected to contact the module leader with a presentation topic of their choice, to be selected from the list of topics below, by 23.55 on 18 October 2019. The below listed topics will be allocated on a first come, first serve basis. Each presentation shall last no more than an academic hour, which will then be followed by a Q&A session.

   

   

  Session and Topic

   Session 1

  Introduction to International Law in the Contemporary World Arena

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 1

  Openshaw & Wade: International Law: A Critical Introduction

  Part 2 Bull: The anarchical society: A study of order in world politics

   

  Session 2

  Sources of International Law

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 2

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 3

  Shaw: International Law

   

  Session 3

  Personality & Statehood

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 5 - (Part One)

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 5

  Shaw: International Law

   

  Session 4

  Recognition

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 5 - (Part Two)

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 9

  Shaw: International Law

  Worster: Sovereignty: Two Competing Theories of State Recognition

   

  Session 5

  Self-Determination

   

  Background reading

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 14-15 & 17-18, Smith: Textbook on international human rights

  Allen & Castellino: Reinforcing territorial regimes:

  Uti possidetis and the right

  Borgen: Kosovo's Declaration of Independence: Self-

  Determination, Secession and Recognition

   

  Session 6

  Jurisdiction

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 6

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 12

  Shaw: International Law

   

  Session 7

  State Immunity

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 7 - (Part One)

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 13

  Shaw: International Law

   

  Session 8

  Diplomatic Immunity

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 7 - (Part Two)

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 13

  Shaw: International Law

  Part 2 Bull: The anarchical society: A study of order in world politics

   

  Session 9

  International Law & National Law

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 4

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 4

  Shaw: International Law

   

  Session 10

  State Responsibility and the Environment

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 9

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 15

  Shaw: International Law

  Christiansen: Climate

   

  Session 11

  UN and the Use of Force (Unilateral)

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 11 (Part One)

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 8

  Openshaw & Wade: International Law: A Critical Introduction

  Chapter 20

  Shaw: International Law

  Part 2 Bull: The anarchical society: A study of order in world politics

    

  Session 12

  UN and the Use of Force (Collective)

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 11(Part Two)

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 20

  Shaw: International Law

  Chapter 8

  Openshaw & Wade: International Law: A Critical Introduction

   

  Session 13

  Human Rights: International Level

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 12

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 6

  Shaw: International Law

  Chapter 3-5 Smith: Textbook on international human rights

  Smith: Texts & materials on international human rights

  Chapter 6

  Openshaw & Wade: International Law: A Critical Introduction

   

  Session 14

  Human Rights: Regional Level

  (European Convention on Human Rights, African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights & American Convention on Human Rights)

   

  Background reading

  Chapter 12

  Dixon: Textbook on International Law

  Chapter 6-9 Smith: Textbook on international human rights

  Smith: Texts & materials on international human rights

  Chapter 6

  Openshaw & Wade: International Law: A Critical Introduction

  Chapter 7

  Shaw: International Law

   

  Session 15

  Terrorism

   

  Background reading

  Terrorism Sanctions and International Human Rights Law

  Chapter 20

  Shaw: International Law

  Macken: Counter-terrorism and the detention of suspected terrorists:

  Preventive detention and international human rights law

  Monshipouri: Terrorism, security, and human rights:

  Harnessing the rule of law

   

  Literature  

  Essential (Books/Journals/Specific chapters/Journal Articles)
  Dixon, M, (2013): Textbook on International Law, 7th Ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

  Shaw, M. (2017): International Law, 8th Ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

  Thavarajah, S. S. K. (2014): EU Counter-Terrorism Sanctions and International Human Rights Law: A Comparative Analysis of Due Process Rights. Saarbrücken: AV Akademikerverlag.  

  Recommended
  Allen, Steve, Castellino, Joshua (2003): Reinforcing territorial regimes:

  Uti possidetis and the right to self-determination in modern international law. In: Amicus Curiae. Issue 48, July/August 2003.

  Armstrong D., Farrell T., Lambert H. (2012): International Law and International Relations 2nd Ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

  Borgen, Christopher (2008): Kosovo's Declaration of Independence: Self-

  Determination, Secession and Recognition. In: ASIL insights Volume: 12. Issue: 2,- URL: https://www.asil.org/insights/volume/12/issue/2/kosovos-declaration-independence-self-determination-secession>, (date of access: 20.09.2017).

  Bull, Hedley (2002): The anarchical society : A study of order in world politics. 3rd Ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

  Christiansen, Silke Marie (2016): Climate conflicts a case of international environmental and humanitarian law. Cham: Springer International Publishing.

  Fellmeth, Aaron, Xavier ( 2016): Paradigms of international human rights law. New York: Oxford University Press.

  Macken,Claire (2011): Counter-terrorism and the detention of suspected terrorists:

  Preventive detention and international human rights law. London: Routledge.

  Monshipouri, Mahmood (2012): Terrorism, security, and human rights:

  Harnessing the rule of law. Boulder: Rienner.

  Openshaw K., Wade M. (2013): International Law: A Critical Introduction. Oxford: Hart Publishing.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Sanjeev Thavarajah: The African Human Rights System (held in English)Sanjeev Thavarajah: The African Human Rights System (held in English)

  Block Seminar

  October 25 & 26, 11am - 7pm

  November 1 & 2, 11am - 7pm

  Content: 

  Module Overview
  The aim of the course is to provide a detailed examination of the structures in the African regional systems for the promotion and protection of human rights. We will consider the role of the Organisation of African Unity/African Union. The module shall focus, in particular, on the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the work of its Commission and the work of the judicial institutions. It will further provide a critical overview of the development of relevant African human rights norms. We shall also look at limitations, individual duties, civil and political rights as well as socio-economic rights.

  Assessment Methods:

  The seminar will be assessed via presentation and course work.

  Presentations:

  Students are expected to contact the module leader with a presentation topic of their choice, to be chosen from the list of topics below, by 23.55 on 19 October 2019. The below listed topics will be allocated on a first come, first serve basis. 

  Session 1

  Introduction to notion of human rights in Africa

  Background reading

  Cobbah, J ‘African Values and the Human Rights Debate: An African Perspective’, 9(3) Human Rights Quarterly (1987) 309-331

  Howard, R., ‘Evaluating Human Rights in Africa: Some Problems of Implicit Comparisons’, 6(2) Human Rights Quarterly (1984) 160-179

  Ibhawoh, B, ‘Between Culture and Constitution: Evaluating the Cultural Legitimacy of Human Rights in the African State’, 22(3) HRQ (2000) 838-860

   

  Session 2

  The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights

  Background reading

  Social and Economic Rights Action Center and the Center for Economic and Social Rights v Nigeria, Fifteenth Activity Report of the African Commission, http://www.achpr.org/english/_doc_target/documentation.html?../activity_reports/activity15_en.pdf

  Mutua, M, ‘The Banjul Charter and the African Cultural Fingerprint: an Evaluation of the Language of Duties’, 35 Va. J. Int'l L. (1995) 339-80

  Kiwanuka, RN, ‘Note, The Meaning of “People” in the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights’, 82 AJIL (1988) 80-101

  Murray and Wheatley, ‘Group Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’

   

  Session 3

  Main mechanism for the promotion and protection of human rights in Africa: the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights

  Background reading

  Mugwanya, GW, ‘Examination of State Reports by the African Commission: A Critical Appraisal’, 1(2) African Human Rights Law Journal (2001) 268-284

  Viljoen, F, ‘The Special Rapporteur on Prisons and Conditions of Detention in Africa: Achievements and Possibilities’ 27(1) Human Rights Quarterly (2005) 125-171

   

  Session 4

  Submission of communications to the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights

  Background reading

  www.achpr.org, see Documentation, Annual Reports, see Annexures in relevant Annual Reports, and from Heyns & Killander (eds) Compendium of Key Human Rights Documents of the African Union (2006)

  Communication 147/95 (joined with 149/96), Jawara v The Gambia (13th Activity Report)

  Communication 255/2002, Prince v South Africa, (Compendium, pp. 239 – 243)

  Odinkalu and Christensen, ‘The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights: The Development of its Non-State Communication Procedures’, 20(2) HRQ (1998) 235

   

  Session 5

  Minority rights: indigenous peoples’ rights in Africa

  Background reading

  Communication 75/92, Katangese Peoples’ Congress v Zaire, Eighth Annual Report, http://www.up.ac.za/chr/ahrdb/ahrdb.html

  Resolution on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples’ Communities,

   

  Session 6

  Rights of sexual minorities in Africa

  Background reading

  Murray, R and Viljoen, F, ‘Towards non-discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation: The normative basis and procedural possibilities before the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the African Union’ (2007) 29/1 Human Rights Quarterly 86-111

  Uganda Anti-Homosexuality Bill http://www.chr.up.ac.za/images/files/news/press/press_release_uganda_anti_homosexuality_bill_22october_2009_act.pdf

   

  Session 7

  Women’s rights in Africa

  Background reading

  Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa, as adopted July 2003: http://www.achpr.org/english/_info/women_en.html

  Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW): http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu3/b/e1cedaw.html

  Oloka-Onyango, J and Tamale, S ”The Personal is Political”, or Why Women's Rights are Indeed Human Rights: An African

   

  Session 8

  Children’s rights in Africa

  Background reading

  African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child

  UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

  Chirwa, D, ‘The merits and demerits of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child’ (2002) 10 International Journal of Children’s Rights 157

    

  Session 9

  The African Human Rights Court

  Background reading

   Resolution on the Importance of Implementation of the Recommendations of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, see http://www.achpr.org/english/resolutions/resolution102_en.html

     

  Session 10

  Implementation and enforcement of the African human rights system

  Background reading

  Protocol on the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, see

  http://www.achpr.org/html/basicinstruments.html#3

  Protocol and Statute of the African Court of Justice and Human Rights, see http://www.hurisa.org.za/Advocacy/AfricanCourt/Single_Legal_Instument.pdf

  Ouguergouz, F, ‘The Establishment of an African Court of Human and Peoples’ Rights: A Judicial Premiere for the African Union’ (2005) African Yearbook of International Law 79

  Pityana, NB, ‘Hurdles and Pitfalls in International Human Rights Law: The Ratification Process of the African Charter on the Establishment of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights’ (2003) 28 SAYIL 110

   

  Session 11

  Kampala Convention

  Background reading

  IDP Convention (Kampala Convention) (2009)

  http://www.africa-union.org/root/AR/index/Convention%20on%20IDPs%20_Eng_%20-%20Final.pdf

   

  Session 12

  AFRICAN CHARTER ON DEMOCRACY, ELECTIONS AND GOVERNANCE

  Background reading

  African Charter on Democracy, Elections, Governance (2007)

  http://www.chr.up.ac.za/images/files/documents/ahrdd/treaties/Draft_African_Charter_Democracy_Elections_Governance.pdf

  Stacy-Ann Elvy: Towards a New Democratic Africa: The African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance, Emory International Law Review. http://law.emory.edu/eilr/content/volume-27/issue-1/articles/towards-new-democratic-africa.html

   

  Session 13

  Civil and Political Rights

  Background reading

  NEGA EWUNETIE AND ADMASU ALEMAYEHU (2012): The Civil and Political Rights in African Charter. In: http://www.abyssinialaw.com/study-on-line/item/363-the-civil-and-political-rights-in-african-charter

    

  Session 14

  Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

   

  Background reading

  Sibonile Khoza (2002): Promoting economic, social and cultural rights in Africa: The African Commission holds a seminar in Pretoria. In:http://www.corteidh.or.cr/tablas/R21565.pdf

    

  Session 15

  Peoples' Rights and Group Rights

   

  Background reading

  AFRICAN COMMISSION ON HUMAN AND PEOPLES’ RIGHTS: PRINCIPLES AND GUIDELINES ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS IN THE AFRICAN CHARTER ON HUMAN AND PEOPLES’ RIGHTS. In: http://www.achpr.org/files/instruments/economic-social-cultural/achpr_instr_guide_draft_esc_rights_eng.pdf

    

  Literature
  Essential (Books/Journals/Specific chapters/Journal Articles)
  Cobbah, J ‘African Values and the Human Rights Debate: An African Perspective’, 9(3) Human Rights Quarterly (1987) 309-331

  Howard, R., ‘Evaluating Human Rights in Africa: Some Problems of Implicit Comparisons’, 6(2) Human Rights Quarterly (1984) 160-179

  Ibhawoh, B, ‘Between Culture and Constitution: Evaluating the Cultural Legitimacy of Human Rights in the African State’, 22(3) HRQ (2000) 838-860

  Magliveras and Naldi, G, ‘The African Union. A New Dawn for Africa?’, 51(2) The International and Comparative Law Quarterly (2002) 415-425

  Viljoen, F, International human rights law in Africa, Oxford University Press, 2007, Chapter 5

  Recommended
  Ankumah, E, The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Practices and Procedures, Martinus Nijhoff, The Hague, 1996, Chapters 1, 2 and 5

  Anyangwe, C, ‘Obligations of states parties to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights’, 10 RADIC (1998) 625

  Evans, M and Murray R, The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. The System in Practice, Cambridge University Press, 2002, Chapters 5 and 6

  Okere, OB, ‘The Protection of Human Rights in Africa and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights: A Comparative Analysis with the European and American Systems’ 6 Human Rights Quarterly (1984) 141-159

  Umozurike, UO, The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Martinus Nijhoff, The Hague, 1998

  Bedjaoui M, ‘The Right to Development and the jus cogens’, 2(2) Lesotho Law Journal (1986) 93-129

  Dersso, SA, ‘The Jurisprudence of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights with Respect to Peoples’ Rights’ (2006) 6 AHRLJ 358

Subject Area: Psychology 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Carmen Lienen: Social Psychology and Politics (held in English)Carmen Lienen: Social Psychology and Politics (held in English)

  seminar

  Please note: The IUSP has only 5 spots in this class!

  Friday 12pm - 2pm

  Content: 

  What is the connection between psychology and politics in everyday encounters? Which relevance do politics have in intergroup relations and systems of knowledge about belonging, nationalism and cultural groups? What are the psychological processes involved in social and political change? These and other questions will be discussed in the seminar Social Psychology and Politics, with reference to current political events. Theories of social representations, identity, prejudice, contact and post-colonialism as well as their practical applications will be critically explored. The aim of the seminar is to show students the relevance of social psychology outside the university context as well as the interplay between theory and practice.

   After completing this seminar, students will be familiar with theories in social psychology and able to apply their gained knowledge to political issues. Beyond that, students will have developed skills in scientific reading and presentation.

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Christopher Cohrs: Psychology of Peace & Conflict (held in English)Prof. Dr. Christopher Cohrs: Psychology of Peace & Conflict (held in English)

  lecture

  Thursday 10am - 12pm

  Tutorial: Psychology of Peace & Conflict: Research Methods (Thursday 12pm - 2pm)

  Content: Based on Galtung's concepts of personal, structural and cultural violence as well as models of cycles of violence, the lecture gives an overview of the psychological factors and processes involved in peace, conflict, and violence at the interpersonal, intergroup, and international levels. It covers concepts, theories, empirical findings, as well as intervention programs. Some example topics include social identity, prejudice, enemy images, group-based emotions, collective memory, aggression, retribution, social dominance, relative deprivation, political protest, terrorism, intergroup contact, interactive problem-solving, intergroup reconciliation, forgiveness. 

  Introductory readings:
  - Christie, D. J., Tint, B. S., Wagner, R. V., & Winter, D. D. (2008). Peace psychology for a peaceful world. American Psychologist, 63(6), 540-552.
  - Cohrs, J. C., & Boehnke, K. (2008). Social psychology and peace: An introductory overview. Social Psychology, 39(1), 4–11.

Subject Area: Religious Studies

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Gerrit Lange: Religion und Emotion (held in German and English)Gerrit Lange: Religion und Emotion (held in German and English)

  seminar

  Monday 2pm - 4pm

  Content: 

  Dieses Lektüreseminar zu Religions- und Emotionstheorien wird zweisprachig stattfinden. This reading class on theories of religion and emotion will be taught in English and German: Deutsche Texte werden auf Deutsch gelesen, and we will discuss English texts in English. Switching languages according to individual needs and moods will be possible, problemlos können wir, je nach Bedarf, zwischen den Sprachen hin und her wechseln.
  Und nun zu den Inhalten; what is this seminar about? (Scroll down for an English abstract)

  Gefühle, Emotionen und Affekte haben stets eine wichtige Rolle in Religionsdefinitionen und -theorien gespielt. Manche davon gelten als veraltet; nicht länger können wir Religion auf die „Gefühle, Akte und Erfahrungen einzelner Menschen in Beziehung zum Göttlichen“ (James 1902) reduzieren oder darin „etwas“ erkennen, das zu einer „an sich“ religiösen Veranlagung in den Menschen „spricht“.
  Das Spektrum religiöser Gefühle enthält mehr Nuancen als bloß das „Faszinierende“ und das „Erschütternde“ (Otto 1917), auch rituelle Akte sind mehr als „ein freier Ausbruch von Emotionen in Worten und Taten“ (Malinowski 1925). Und doch geht es dabei stets um Gefühle, um ihre Mitteilung, Performanz und Dramaturgie, um durch Mittel wie Licht, Schatten, Feuer, Musik, Rhythmen, Stille oder expressive Bewegungen erzeugte „Stimmungen“, sowie um die Intentionen und Motive mitwirkender menschlicher und nichtmenschlicher Wesen. Wie relevant sind diese „moods and motivations“ (Geertz 1973) für das Konzeptualisieren von „Ritual“ und „Religion“? Was sind Emotionen überhaupt, und wie lassen sie sich in der Feldforschung "einfangen", etwa mit einer Kamera?

  Emotion has figured prominently within definitions and theories of religion. Some are obsolete; religion cannot be reduced any longer to “the feelings, acts and experiences of individual men […] in relation to whatever they may consider the divine” (James 1902, Varieties of Religious Experience), nor can it be essentialized as “something” speaking to human emotional experience, as Otto, Heiler or Mensching put it. The spectre of religious emotions contains many more nuances than just the fascinosum and tremendum. Ethnographers no longer regard ritual acts as “a free outburst of emotion in words and deeds” (Malinowski 1925, Sorcery as Mimetic Representation), but rather praise their capacity to “bring past emotions into the present and make them relevant for the future, [to] secure emotional continuity and permanence for the community” (Michaels 2016, Homo Ritualis). Can we still conceptualize religion by the “moods and motivations”, which, according to Geertz (Religion as a Cultural System, 1973), are established by religion as a “system of symbols”? In my own PhD project, based on fieldwork in the central Himalayas on the ritual embodiments of a Hindu Goddess during her festival, the expression of emotion in gestures and narrative accounts indeed constitutes most of the religious communication with and about the Goddess, who is conceived of as a village and family member. How can I understand these feelings, account on them in my writing or “capture” them with a camera?

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Anna Matter: Religiöse Utopien und Dystopien (held in German)Anna Matter: Religiöse Utopien und Dystopien (held in German)

  seminar

  Tuesday 10am - 12pm

  Content: 

  Ausgehend von Protestbewegungen wie Fridays for Future wird in dem Seminar untersucht, wie Menschen sich ihre Zukunft vorstellen und was sie unternehmen, um diese Zukunft zu erreichen oder auch zu verhindern. Aus religionswissenschaftlicher Perspektive werden dabei insbesondere sog. Neue Religiöse Bewegungen (z.B. Scientology oder New Age Bewegung) seit den 1950ern bis in die Gegenwart in den Blick genommen.
  Welche Vorstellungen von Zukunft entstehen gerade in diesen religiösen Gruppen? Wie verändern sich Vorstellungen der Zukunft? Welche Bedeutung haben diese Vorstellungen in der entsprechenden Gegenwart? Wie weit gehen Menschen, um utopische und auch dystopische Weltvorstellungen umzusetzen?
  Das Seminar bietet nicht nur eine Einführung in den Bereich der Neuen Religiösen Bewegungen, sondern auch in (spät-)moderne Transformationsprozessen von Religion(en) in Europa und den USA. Des Weiteren soll diskutiert werden, wie derartige religiöse Phänomene aus einer religionswissenschaftlichen Perspektive erforscht werden können. 

  Literatur:

  Lüddeckens, Dorothea / Walthert, Rafael (Hrsg.): Fluide Religionen. Bielefeld: transcript, 2010.

  Murken, Sebastian: Neue religiöse Bewegungen. In: Antes, Peter (Hrsg.): Vielfalt der Religionen. Hannover, 2002. S. 285-313.

  Stausberg, Michael (Hrsg.): Religionswissenschaft. Berlin [u.a.]: de Gruyter, 2012.

Subject Area: Social and Cultural Anthropology 

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Prof. Dr. Siegfried Becker: Adelsmacht und Bürgerwille. Etikette und Demokratisierung im 18. und 19. Jahrhundert (held in German)Prof. Dr. Siegfried Becker: Adelsmacht und Bürgerwille. Etikette und Demokratisierung im 18. und 19. Jahrhundert (held in German)

  seminar

  Monday 12pm - 2pm

  Content: 

  Adel und Bürgertum – zwei Stände des ‚geselligen Jahrhunderts‘, die auf den ersten Blick nichts gemeinsam zu haben scheinen. Doch in den bürgerlichen Bildungsbestrebungen des 18. Jahrhunderts drückten sich auch Bemühungen um gesellschaftliche und politische Partizipation, mithin Machtdiskurse aus, die mit der Krise des europäischen Adels 1789 zur Erosion ständischer Ordnung und zu einer gesellschaftlichen Dynamik führten. Riten und Symbole höfischer Etikette wurden in Frage gestellt und doch gar nicht selten rezipiert, dienten bürgerlicher Repräsentation im Prozess der Industrialisierung und neuer ständischer Distinktion gegenüber der Landbevölkerung.

  Wir wollen uns im Seminar mit den Formen auratischer Herrschaft des Adels, mit kollektiven Wertevorstellungen, sozialen Praktiken und öffentlicher Selbstinszenierung beschäftigen, die im Verlauf des 19. Jahrhunderts auch zur Herausbildung bürgerlicher Identität und bürgerlichen Karrierebewusstseins beitrugen.

  Literatur:

  Gieske, Sabine: Perspektivwechsel: Plädoyer für eine Kulturgeschichte des Adels. In: Becker, Siegfried, u.a. (Hrsg.): Volkskundliche Tableaus. Eine Festschrift für Martin Scharfe zum 65. Geburtstag von Weggefährten, Freunden und Schülern. Münster u.a. 2001, S. 347-356

  Bausinger, Hermann: Bürgerlichkeit und Kultur. In: Kocka, Jürgen (Hrsg.): Bürger und Bürgerlichkeit im 19. Jahrhundert. Göttingen 1987, S. 121–142

  Jahn, Bernhard; Rahn, Thomas; Schnitzer, Claudia (Hrsg.): Zeremoniell in der Krise. Störung und Nostalgie. Festschrift für Jörg Jochen Berns. Marburg 1998

  Mayer, Arno J.: Adelsmacht und Bürgertum. Die Krise der europäischen Gesellschaft 1848 – 1914. München 1988

  Wasson, Ellis: Aristocracy and the modern world. Houndsmill u.a. 2006

  Conze, Eckart: Aristokratismus und Moderne. Adel als politisches und kulturelles Konzept 1890-1945. Köln u.a. 2013

  Conze, Eckart: Adel und Moderne. Deutschland im europäischen Vergleich im 19. Und 20. Jahrhundert. Köln u.a. 2004

  Weber-Kellermann, Ingeborg: Vom Handwerkersohn zum Millionär. Eine Berliner Karriere des 19. Jahrhunderts. München 1990

• Inhalt ausklappen Inhalt einklappen Bernard Poulelaouen: Photography and video-making for anthropological fieldwork (held in English)Bernard Poulelaouen: Photography and video-making for anthropological fieldwork (held in English)

  seminar

  Tuesday 10am - 12pm

  Content: 

  The Seminar offers a deep reflexion and a practice in the use of film and visual medias in the social anthropology (practical training for fieldwork, combining this with discussions on the theoretical issues).
  The seminar is an invitation to the approach on how the subjectivity of the film maker can influence the audience. Framing, camera angles, treatment of the colours… the problems of a subjectif objective…

  Build on the existing visual literacy of the students, the course will use a variety of visual media, including photographic stills mounted for overhead projection, and short extracts of film footage. Tutorial discussions also will focuse on particular visual objects.

  Teaching in such topic suggest a hands-on with cameras, sound devices, editing softwares. The course will offer a chance to the students for making their own footage, do in-camera editing and discussing their results together in a very interactive way.

  Exploring the visual approach from Robert Flaherty (Nanook of the North) or Jean Rouch (from the « cinema vérité »), Alan Lomax (The land where the blues began) and many others will be the key for enlarging our point of vue on visual anthropology.

  Literatur  

   „Innovation in ethnographic film: from innocence to self-consciousness, 1955-1985“ Peter Loizos. University of Chicago Press. 1993.

  „Observational cinema“. Anna Grimshaw and Amanda Ravtez. Indiana University Press. 2009.

  „Cinematography, theory and practice“. 3rd edition, by Blain Brown. Focal Press Book. 2016.

Class Lists from Previous Semesters

Spring 2019

Fall 2018

Spring 2018

Fall 2017

German Conversation Classes

The main goal of our Conversation Classes is to improve students' ability to communicate and interact in German. The classes focus on teaching students conversational techniques and strategies, improving students’ listening abilities, and strengthening students’ grasp of German grammar and vocabulary. The conversation classes will have the same language levels as the intensive German language classes.