31163 - German Literature 2

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, the student will have acquired in-depth knowledge about various aspects and problems regarding literary history. The student will have a sound knowledge of the individual authors and works, and will be able to evaluate the literary quality of the works that have been studied, analyzing the texts according to specific critical methodologies.

Course contents

Goethezeit e Exilliteratur. Dialectic of Enlightenment: Dialogue with history

 

Literature and art in general are historical phenomena, they depend on the historical context in which they are born. Knowing the context is therefore essential for their understanding. However, awareness of one's historicity can be more or less pronounced according to literary epochs. In this course two apparently distant epochs will be presented, questioning the reasons and the forms in which in each of them [with its own modalities] the search for a dialogue with history is strengthened. The Goethezeit, the period from 1765 to the death of Goethe, thus including the Sturm und Drang, Weimar Classicism and Romanticism, can be designated as the beginning of Modernism in Germany, while the period of exile, from 1933 to 1945, constitutes its end, according to the famous verdict of Adorno on Auschwitz as a definitive break in the history of human civilization.

 

• 1.)Sturm und Drang 1: Poems and ballads from Goethe and Schiller. Herder: Ideen zur Philosophie der Geschichte der Menschheit 1784–1791
• 2.)Sturm und Drang 2:Drama. Schiller:Die Räuber and Don Carlos; Goethe: Götz von Berlichingen .
• 3.)Weimarer Klassik 1: Das Balladenjahr 1797
• 4.)Weimarer Klassik 2: storical drama. Schiller: Maria Stuart, Die Jungfrau von Orleans, Wallenstein
• 5.)Weimarer Klassik 3: Goethe: Iphigenia auf Tauris; Faust. Der Tragödie erster Teil
• 6.)Frühromantik e Heidelberger Romantik. Tieck, Novalis and Brentano. Un outsider: Heinrich von Kleist
  
• 7.)E.T.A Hoffmann: fairy tale and history; Eichendorff and  hidden historicity
  
• 8.)Intermezzo: Vormärz/Jungdeutschland. Büchner, Heine and Karl Gutzkow
• 9.)Gli ultimi anni di Weimar. 1933: Il grande Esodo
• 10.) Brecht 1:poems from exile
  
• 11.) Brecht 2:theatre from 1933
• 12.) Exil der Frauen
• 13.) Thomas Mann
• 14.) Walter Benjamin e Adorno
• 15.) Franz Werfel: Stern der Ungeborenen

Readings/Bibliography

Readings/bibliography

1) Criticism:

• Kindl, Ulrike: Storia della letteratura tedesca, 2: Dal Settecento alla prima guerra mondiale, pp. 56-224;
• Carpi, Anna Maria /Dolei, Giuseppe/ Perrone Capano, Lucia (a cura di), L'esperienza dell'esilio nel Novecento tedesco, Artemide, Roma, 2009.
• Walter Benjamin: Über den Begriff der Geschichte (in tedesco o in italiano)
• Theodor W. Adorno/ Max Horkheimer: Dialettica dell'Illuminismo/ oppure riassunto su virtuale
  

Additional literature will be provided during the course.

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Programma in alternativa, i testi si trova sul virtuale:

per Kindl: De Angelis, Storia della letteratura

per Carpi/Dolei/Perrone: da scegliere tre di questi 4 file:

• Döblin, Antigone
• Brecht, Svendborger Gedichte, tesi in italiano
• Exil-Dante
• Faustus – Mephistopheles in Hollywood

2)Readings :

Tamar Radzyner, Nulla voglio dirti, a cura di Michael Dallapiazza e Giulia Fanetti, Portatori d'Acqua, Pesaro 2021.

In addition to the indicated critical literature, one must prepare: 1 theatrical work, two of narrative and another one of choice poetry (in translation or in the original language; not all the titles given here are present in our library in translation)

first group Goethezeit:

A: narrative

Ludwig Tieck: Franz Sternbalds Wanderungen. Eine altdeutsche Geschichte

Novalis: Heinrich von Ofterdingen

Adelbert von Chamisso: Peter Schlemihls wundersame Geschichte

E.T.A. Hoffmann: Klein Zaches genannt Zinnober; Lebensansichten des Katers Murr

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe: Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre

Heinrich von Kleist, Michael Kohlhaas; Die Marquise von O.

Joseph von Eichendorff: Aus dem Leben eines Taugenichts

Karl Gutzkow: Wally die Zweiflerin, 1835 (http://www.deutschestextarchiv.de/book/show/gutzkow_wally_1835) anche su Spiegel Gutenberg

B: teatro

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe: Götz von Berlichingen mit der eisernen Hand; Faust. Der Tragödie erster Teil (1808). Iphigenie auf Tauris. Egmont. Torquato Tasso

Heinrich von Kleist: Hermannsschlacht; Prinz Friedrich von Homburg

Friedrich Schiller: Die Räuber; Don Karlos; Maria Stuart; Die Jungfrau von Orleans; Wallenstein (prima parte della trilogia); Wilhelm Tell

 

C:Poetry

Novalis: Hymnen an die Nacht

Goethe, 10 poesie e ballate, da scegliere sulla base della antologia distributita all’inizio del corso(o in traduzione italiana da qualsiasi edizione)

Schiller, 5 poesie e ballate, da scegliere sulla base della antologia distributita all’inizio del corso (o in traduzione italiana da qualsiasi edizione)

Romanticismo, 10 poesie, da scegliere sulla base della antologia distributita all’inizio del corso (o in traduzione italiana da qualsiasi edizione)

Second group: Exile

A: narrative

Irmgard Keun: Dopo Mezzanotte. L’orma editore 2019

Anna Seghers: Das siebte Kreuz/ La settima croce

Klaus Mann: Mephisto. Roman einer Karriere

Franz Werfel: Das Lied von Bernadette; Stern der Ungeborenen

Stefan Zweig: Die Welt von gestern

Thomas Mann: Doktor Faustus

B:drama

Bertolt Brecht: Mutter Courage; Herr Puntila und sein Knecht Matti (Il Signor Puntila e il suo servo Matti); Furcht und Elend des dritten Reiches; Leben des Galilei

 

C: Poetry

Brecht: Svendborger Gedichte/poesie di Svendborg (ital. o ted.).

Else Lasker-Schüler, Mein blaues Klavier

Nelly Sachs, Al di là della polvere, prefazione di Hans Magnus Enzensberger, 1966./oppure antologia su virtuale

Hans Sahl, Wir sind die letzten

A list of further readings (Sekundärliteratur) will be given at the beginning of the lectures.

Programme for non-attending students:

Non-attending students must add one more text of each of the groups

Teaching methods

Seminar lessons

Assessment methods

The exam consists in an oral interview. During the interview the methodological and critical skills acquired by the student will be evaluated . The student will be invited to discuss the texts covered during the course and to move within the sources and bibliographical material in order to be able to identify in them the useful information that will enable to illustrate the similarities and cultural areas of the discipline. The achievement of an organic vision of the issues addressed during the classes and their critical use, which demonstrate ownership of a mastery of expression and specific language, will be assessed with marks of excellence. Mechanical and / or mnemonic knowledge of matter, synthesis and analysis of non-articulating and / or correct language but not always appropriate will lead to discrete assessments; training gaps and / or inappropriate language - although in a context of minimal knowledge of the material - will lead to votes that will not exceed the sufficiency. Training gaps, inappropriate language, lack of guidance within the reference materials offered during the course will lead to failed assessments.

Teaching tools

 

Office hours

See the website of Michael Gottlieb Dallapiazza