31163 - German Literature 2

Learning outcomes

Upon the successful completion of the course, students will have acquired a satisfactory knowledge of general issues and individual aspects concerning literary history. They will be able to understand and translate texts from the original. They will also have acquired the basic theoretical knowledge necessary for their critical interpretation, being able to comment on texts and apply specific methodologies for the analysis of literary texts.

Course contents

From Romanticism to Realism: Forms of German-speaking Literature in the Nineteenth Century

What do we talk about when we talk about German Romanticism? With this question in mind, we shall set out to provide some relevant material for discussing the emergence of the terms romantisch and Romantik from the vantage point of literary anthropology.

By way of close reading of exemplary pieces of prose, this course focuses on recurring issues of genre and gender in the early 19th century. We shall furthermore try to zero in on narrative strategies and stylistic choices derived from negotiations with rhetorical and literary traditions. Special attention shall be paid to the poetics of fragment, to the experience of Zerrissenheit and to a nuance of desire known as Sehnsucht.

This course is also intended as an invitation to explore the ways in which, towards the middle of the century, Romantic sensibility is transformed and mingles with Realism. What is meant by Literary Realism? When did this category come into being? And how does it relate to the legacy of Romantic imagery in the German-speaking area?

 

 

Readings/Bibliography

Literary Sources

Please see below (section "Assessment methods") for further notice.

 

• August Klingemann, Nachtwachen von Bonaventura, hg. von Jost Schillemeit, Göttingen, Wallstein, 2012, p. 9-137 and 237-252; It. transl. Le veglie di Bonaventura, introduzione e traduzione di Elena Agazzi, Milano, Garzanti, 1998.

• Karoline von Günderrode, Allerley Gedanken, in Ead., Der Schatten eines Traumes. Gedichte, Prosa, Briefe, Zeugnisse von Zeitgenossen, hg. und mit einem Essay von Christa Wolf, Darmstadt, Luchterhand, 1979, p. 129-131; It. transl. Pensieri sparsi, in L’ombra di un sogno. Prose, poesie, lettere di Karoline von Günderrode, Milano, La tartaruga, 1984, p. 80-82.

• Adelbert von Chamisso, Peter Schlemihls wundersame Geschichte, mit einem Kommentar von Thomas Betz und Lutz Hagestedt, Berlin, Suhrkamp, 2020; It. transl. Storia straordinaria di Peter Schlemihl, Introduzione di Enrico De Angelis, traduzione e note di Laura Bocci, Milano, Garzanti, 2008, p. 3-70.

• E.T.A. Hoffmann, Der Sandmann. Studienausgabe mit Paralleldruck der Handschrift und des Erstdrucks, hg. von Ulrich Hohoff, Stuttgart, Reclam, 2018; It. transl. L’uomo della sabbia, in E.T.A. Hoffmann, Notturni, traduzione e cura di Matteo Galli, Roma, L’orma editore, 2013, p. 3-50.

• Joseph von Eichendorff, Das Marmorbild / La statua di marmo, a cura e con note al testo di Iacopo Hammoud, Traduzioni di Alessandro Fambrini, Introduzione di Giovanna Cermelli, Postfazione di Francesco Rossi, testo tedesco a fronte, Bologna, Elara, 2021.

• Heinrich Heine, Reisebilder [Italien. 1828], in Id., Historisch-kritische Gesamtausgabe der Werke, Bd. VII/1, bearbeitet von Alfred Opitz, Hamburg, Hoffmann und Campe, 1986, p. 9-206; It. transl. Impressioni di viaggio. Italia, a cura di Alberto Destro, traduzione di Bruno Maffi, Milano, Biblioteca universale Rizzoli, 2002 (or later).

• Georg Büchner, Woyzeck, con testo a fronte, a cura di Giuliano Corti, Milano, Garzanti, 2007.

• Adalbert Stifter, Der Waldsteig, in Id., Gesammelte Werke in sechs Bänden, Bd. 2: Studien II, Wiesbaden, Im Insel Verlag, 1959; It. transl. by Margherita Belardetti, Il sentiero nel bosco, Milano, Adelphi, 1999 (or later).

• Theodor Storm, Die Regentrude, mit Illustrationen und einem Nachwort von Judith Schalansky, Berlin, Insel, 2021.
  

This list is open and in progress 

 

Critical Readings

 

• Michele Cometa, Perché le storie ci aiutano a vivere. La letteratura necessaria, Milano, Raffaello Cortina, 2017.

  
  

On crucial issues of periodization and literary history:

• Luca Crescenzi, Letteratura tedesca: secoli ed epoche, Roma, Carocci, 2005.
  
• Emilia Fiandra, «Il Romanticismo», in Marino Freschi (dir.), Storia della civiltà letteraria tedesca, vol. I: Dalle origini all'età classico-romantica, Torino, UTET, 1998, pp. 437-506.
• Francesco Rossi, L'età romantica. Letteratura tedesca tra Rivoluzione e Restaurazione, Roma, Carocci, 2023.
• Moira Paleari, «Il Realismo poetico», in Chiara M. Buglioni, Marco Castellari, Alessandra Goggio, Moira Paleari, Letteratura tedesca. Epoche, generi, intersezioni. Dal Medioevo al primo Novecento, Firenze, Le Monnier Università, 2019, pp. 355-387.

Teaching methods

The course takes place between February and May. It is based on lectures and seminars in Italian and German. Students are encouraged to participate actively in the discussions.

Course contents and exam mode of completion are the same for students who do not follow lessons, are on Erasmus exchange etc. They are furthermore advised to contact the teacher (guglielmo.gabbiadini@unibo.it) for mentoring service and further indications about exam preparation.

Assessment methods

Oral exam – open questions aimed at assessing:

• the knowledge of literary texts: in addition to class contents, each student is expected to read in full length (in German) at least two of the primary sources listed above, as well as the critical interpretations provided;
• the acquisition of the contents presented in class;
• the development of critical thinking skills.

Final grading on a 30-point scale (0-17=fail).

Teaching tools

Visual aids and recruitment materials.

Office hours

See the website of Guglielmo Gabbiadini