German

University of California, Berkeley

This is an archived copy of the 2017-18 guide. To access the most recent version of the guide, please visit http://guide.berkeley.edu.

About the Program

Bachelor of Arts (BA)

The German undergraduate major program provides students with the knowledge, experience, language fluency, and analytical skills necessary to enter the academic world or the world of international law or global business. It offers a large selection of courses in literature, linguistics, philosophy, psychology, history, film, and business, along with opportunities to study abroad. The program provides students with the skills they will need to achieve their individual goals.

Students are challenged to gain fluency in the German language, read major works by Kafka, Freud, and Nietzsche (among many others) in their original language, and to venture abroad to German speaking countries to embrace new cultures. This gives students the cultural competence and necessary edge in today’s global marketplace.

If students choose to major or double major in German at Berkeley, they will enjoy an atmosphere that resembles that of an Ivy League setting, including the opportunity to study with world-famous professors and highly qualified graduate student instructors.

Declaring the Major

To declare the German major, please contact the Department of German. For details regarding the prerequisites, please see the Major Requirements tab on this page.

For students transferring from another institution, see Nadia Samadi, the undergraduate academic adviser.

Honors Program

Students with at least a 3.5 GPA in all upper division courses taken to fulfill the requirements of the major and a 3.3. GPA overall are eligible for admission into the honors program. Candidates for honors in German need to apply to the undergraduate faculty adviser for admission into this program, ideally early in the fall semester of their senior year.

Students in the honors program are required to complete satisfactorily, within their senior year, an honors thesis under faculty supervision. The paper, consisting of 35 pages or more, may grow out of any upper division course, independent study, or directed research and is evaluated with a letter grade. It is the responsibility of the student to ask a faculty member to supervise the thesis. Normally thesis work is spread over two semesters. For the first semester, the student should enroll in GERMAN 199: Supervised independent study with their thesis director (2 units; Pass/Fail). In the second semester, while writing the thesis, the student enrolls in GERMAN H196 (4 units with letter grade). If the work is to be completed in one semester, the student may enroll in H196 for 6 units. This requires the approval of the supervising faculty and the honors committee. The student is required to attend three workshops at the beginning of the fall semester. Honors students are also expected to present their research in a series of undergraduate research colloquia during the semester for feedback on work in progress. For information regarding these workshops and colloquia, please see the German Department's website.

Those who have completed the program will graduate with honors (3.65) high honors (3.75), or highest honors (3.85) in the major depending upon their final GPA in all upper division courses taken to fulfill the major requirements. The grade of the honors thesis is added to the GPA for this purpose. The decision to award high or highest honors rests with the departmental honors committee.

To enroll in the German Honors Program, please contact Nadia Samadi for the application.

Minor Program

The Department of German offers an undergraduate minor in German. For details regarding minor requirements, please see the Minor Requirements tab on this page.

Visit Department Website

Major Requirements

In addition to the University, campus, and college requirements, listed on the College Requirements tab, students must fulfill the below requirements specific to their major program.

General Guidelines

  1. All courses taken to fulfill the major requirements below must be taken for graded credit, other than courses listed which are offered on a Pass/No Pass basis only. Other exceptions to this requirement are noted as applicable.
  2. No more than one upper division course may be used to simultaneously fulfill requirements for a student's major and minor programs, with the exception of minors offered outside of the College of Letters & Science.
  3. A minimum grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 must be maintained in both upper and lower division courses used to fulfill the major requirements.

For information regarding residence requirements and unit requirements, please see the College Requirements tab.

Lower Division Prerequisites

GERMAN 1Elementary German 1 (or equivalent)5
GERMAN 2Elementary German 2 (or equivalent)5
GERMAN 3Intermediate German I (or equivalent)5
GERMAN 4Intermediate German II (or equivalent)5

Upper Division Requirements (minimum 30 units)

GERMAN 100Introduction to Reading Culture3
GERMAN 101Advanced German: Conversation, Composition and Style3
GERMAN 103Introduction to German Linguistics3
Select three additional upper division German literature courses (texts must be in German) 1
Select two upper division German courses (texts in English or German) 1
Select one of the following:
Two additional upper division German courses (texts in English or German) 1
Select two affiliated upper division courses from outside of the department, related to Germany or Europe 1
1

Courses must be taken in the literature and culture of at least two different centuries; consult the major adviser or undergraduate student affairs officer when in doubt about this requirement.

Minor Requirements

Students who have a strong interest in an area of study outside their major often decide to complete a minor program. These programs have set requirements and are noted officially on the transcript in the memoranda section, but they are not noted on diplomas.

General Guidelines

  1. All courses taken to fulfill the minor requirements below must be taken for graded credit.
  2. A minimum of three of the upper division courses taken to fulfill the minor requirements must be completed at UC Berkeley.
  3. A minimum grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 is required for courses used to fulfill the minor requirements.
  4. Courses used to fulfill the minor requirements may be applied toward the Seven-Course Breadth requirement, for Letters & Science students.
  5. No more than one upper division course may be used to simultaneously fulfill requirements for a student's major and minor programs.
  6. All minor requirements must be completed prior to the last day of finals during the semester in which you plan to graduate. If you cannot finish all courses required for the minor by that time, please see a College of Letters & Science adviser.
  7. All minor requirements must be completed within the unit ceiling. (For further information regarding the unit ceiling, please see the College Requirements tab.)

Requirements

Lower Division Prerequisites
GERMAN 1Elementary German 1 (or equivalent)5
GERMAN 2Elementary German 2 (or equivalent)5
GERMAN 3Intermediate German I (or equivalent)5
GERMAN 4Intermediate German II (or equivalent)5
Upper Division (Five Courses)
GERMAN 100Introduction to Reading Culture3
GERMAN 101Advanced German: Conversation, Composition and Style3
GERMAN 103Introduction to German Linguistics3
Select one of the following options:
Two upper division German courses (texts in English or German)
One upper division German course (texts in English or German) and one affiliated upper-division course from outside the department, related to Germany or Europe

College Requirements

Undergraduate students in the College of Letters & Science must fulfill the following requirements in addition to those required by their major program.

For detailed lists of courses that fulfill college requirements, please review the College of Letters & Sciences page in this Guide.

Entry Level Writing

All students who will enter the University of California as freshmen must demonstrate their command of the English language by fulfilling the Entry Level Writing requirement. Fulfillment of this requirement is also a prerequisite to enrollment in all reading and composition courses at UC Berkeley. 

American History and American Institutions

The American History and Institutions requirements are based on the principle that a US resident graduated from an American university, should have an understanding of the history and governmental institutions of the United States.

American Cultures

American Cultures is the one requirement that all undergraduate students at Cal need to take and pass in order to graduate. The requirement offers an exciting intellectual environment centered on the study of race, ethnicity and culture of the United States. AC courses offer students opportunities to be part of research-led, highly accomplished teaching environments, grappling with the complexity of American Culture.

Quantitative Reasoning

The Quantitative Reasoning requirement is designed to ensure that students graduate with basic understanding and competency in math, statistics, or computer science. The requirement may be satisfied by exam or by taking an approved course.

Foreign Language

The Foreign Language requirement may be satisfied by demonstrating proficiency in reading comprehension, writing, and conversation in a foreign language equivalent to the second semester college level, either by passing an exam or by completing approved course work.

Reading and Composition

In order to provide a solid foundation in reading, writing, and critical thinking the College requires two semesters of lower division work in composition in sequence. Students must complete a first-level reading and composition course by the end of their second semester and a second-level course by the end of their fourth semester.

Breadth Requirements

The undergraduate breadth requirements provide Berkeley students with a rich and varied educational experience outside of their major program. As the foundation of a liberal arts education, breadth courses give students a view into the intellectual life of the University while introducing them to a multitude of perspectives and approaches to research and scholarship. Engaging students in new disciplines and with peers from other majors, the breadth experience strengthens interdisciplinary connections and context that prepares Berkeley graduates to understand and solve the complex issues of their day.

Unit Requirements

  • 120 total units, including at least 60 L&S units

  • Of the 120 units, 36 must be upper division units

  • Of the 36 upper division units, 6 must be taken in courses offered outside your major department

Residence Requirements

For units to be considered in "residence," you must be registered in courses on the Berkeley campus as a student in the College of Letters & Science. Most students automatically fulfill the residence requirement by attending classes here for four years. In general, there is no need to be concerned about this requirement, unless you go abroad for a semester or year or want to take courses at another institution or through UC Extension during your senior year. In these cases, you should make an appointment to meet an adviser to determine how you can meet the Senior Residence Requirement.

Note: Courses taken through UC Extension do not count toward residence.

Senior Residence Requirement

After you become a senior (with 90 semester units earned toward your BA degree), you must complete at least 24 of the remaining 30 units in residence in at least two semesters. To count as residence, a semester must consist of at least 6 passed units. Intercampus Visitor, EAP, and UC Berkeley-Washington Program (UCDC) units are excluded.

You may use a Berkeley Summer Session to satisfy one semester of the Senior Residence requirement, provided that you successfully complete 6 units of course work in the Summer Session and that you have been enrolled previously in the college.

Modified Senior Residence Requirement

Participants in the UC Education Abroad Program (EAP) or the UC Berkeley Washington Program (UCDC) may meet a Modified Senior Residence requirement by completing 24 (excluding EAP) of their final 60 semester units in residence. At least 12 of these 24 units must be completed after you have completed 90 units.

Upper Division Residence Requirement

You must complete in residence a minimum of 18 units of upper division courses (excluding EAP units), 12 of which must satisfy the requirements for your major.

Student Learning Goals

Mission

The Bachelor’s Degree Program offers a comprehensive education in German language, literature, and linguistics. The department’s course offerings and its curriculum cover a wide range of fields ranging from language, literature, and linguistics, to history, philosophy, psychology, film, and media. The key focus in these courses is on the history of German and Dutch languages, literatures, linguistic structures, cultures, and intellectual movements in a European and global context. The courses offered are intended to provide students with the ability to interpret linguistic, literary, and cultural phenomena in their social, historical and discourse dimensions, taking into account the multilingual environments and the global cultures in which German plays a role today. Based on the requirements and in close contact with their advisers, students choose a combination of literature, culture, and linguistics courses after they have accomplished the basic training in language and the core courses. While these courses serve the intellectual advancement and training in specialized areas, they also serve the improvement of basic skills in critical analysis and evaluation, argument development, and written and oral communication.

Learning Goals for the Major

The undergraduate program provides students with the knowledge, experience, language fluency, and analytical skills necessary to enter the academic and the professional world. Students learn in both written and oral form to identify, present, and construct arguments about different types of discourses, major cultural and historical forms and movements, the work of important authors, and the history of ideas. Students learn to analyze and interpret texts, films and other German cultural artifacts from various historical periods and various social backgrounds. A gateway course (GERMAN 100) allows them to apply their knowledge of the language to the analysis and interpretation of spoken and written texts, images, and other media.

Upper level courses refine their understanding of language, language learning and language use, as well as of German literature, history, and culture, and further develop their ability to produce German spoken and written texts. Students choose their courses from a variety of offerings, and such choices reflect the specific interest and learning goals of the individual student within the framework of the departmental curriculum, e.g., history of German literature or of the German language, Germanic linguistics, intellectual or political history, media and film, applied linguistics, multicultural Germany. Thus the department provides students with the possibility to acquire advanced knowledge and skills in a number of fields, e.g., literature from various historical periods, methods of linguistic analysis, Middle High and Old High German, German dialects and levels of usage, discourse analysis, analysis of film, poetics, translation, and semiotics.

Academic Opportunities

Study Abroad

Summer Language Courses at Free University Berlin (FUBiS)

Enjoy a unique opportunity to be immersed in the German language and culture and spend the summer in Berlin, the capital of Germany and a European metropolis. Choose between an intensive (5 days a week, 4.5 hours of instruction per day) or a semi-intensive format (3 days a week, 4.5 hours of instruction per day). Courses are offered at all levels (beginning, intermediate, advanced), and students will be individually placed at the appropriate level, depending on their background and a placement test.

The curriculum includes cultural excursions in Berlin and extracurricular programming (river cruise, visit of the Reichstag, movies). All language courses are taught by native speaking, experienced faculty, co-coordinated by UC Berkeley faculty. The courses are articulated with UC Berkeley German courses (G1-101) and students will earn between 4 and 7 ECTS credits (UC). Upon successful completion, students can continue their study at UC Berkeley’s next higher level.

For further information on this program, please see the program's website.

UC Education Abroad (UCEAP)

For further information regarding programs offered through UCEAP, please see the UCEAP website.

German Academic Exchange Service (DADD)

The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) generously supports summer language courses, research projects and study abroad stays in Germany. For current scholarship and program information, please see the DAAD website.

Departmental Awards and Scholarships

Major Citation

The Departmental Citation for outstanding academic achievement in the German major is awarded annually to a graduating senior. The selection is made by the Undergraduate Affairs Committee.

Bruno and Erna Ehlert Prize

Recipients of this annual prize carrying a financial award must be seniors majoring in German demonstrating outstanding academic accomplishment in the German major. The selection is made by the Undergraduate Affairs Committee.

Max Kade Summer Language Study Travel Fellowship

This award is given to undergraduate students who are either German majors or minors, or who are currently enrolled in courses offered by the German Department. The Max Kade Travel Fellowship ($1,000 each) will be awarded to support travel to Berlin for participation in a summer language course.

University Awards and Scholarships

For further information on university-wide awards and scholarships, please see the following links:
Financial Aid and Scholarships Office
Scholarship Connection
California Alumni Association Scholarships

Advising

Office of Undergraduate Advising

The German Office of Undergraduate Advising with the assistance of the professional advising team provides students help with a range of issues including course selection, academic decision-making, achieving and academic goals, and maximizing the Berkeley experience.

Major Adviser

Nadia Samadi
germanic@berkeley.edu
5311 Dwinelle Hall
510-642-7445
Advising hours: Monday through Friday, 8 to noon and 1 to 3 p.m.

Courses

German

GERMAN 1 Elementary German 1 5 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Summer 2018 First 6 Week Session, Spring 2018
All four foreign language skills (reading, writing, speaking, and listening) are addressed to help students acquire communicative competence in the German language while being sensitized to the links between language and culture. This course is for students with no prior knowledge of German.
Elementary German 1: Read More [+]

GERMAN 1E Accelerated Elementary German 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2009, Fall 2008, Spring 2008
Students review and continue to develop the basic elements of communicative competence in both spoken and written language while being sensitized to the links between language and culture. This course covers the same material as 1 in a condensed way and at an accelerated speed. Upon completion of this course, students will qualify for enrollment in 2.
Accelerated Elementary German: Read More [+]

GERMAN 1G Elementary German for Graduate Students 0.0 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2016, Fall 2015, Fall 2014
Elementary German for graduate students preparing for reading examinations.
Elementary German for Graduate Students: Read More [+]

GERMAN 2 Elementary German 2 5 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Summer 2018 Second 6 Week Session, Spring 2018
In this course, students will continue to develop communicative competence in the German language and expand their sensitivity towards the relationship between language and culture. While all language skills will be addressed, additional emphasis will be on the various styles of written and spoken German.
Elementary German 2: Read More [+]

GERMAN 2G Elementary German for Graduate Students 0.0 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2017, Fall 2016, Fall 2015
Elementary German for graduates preparing for reading examinations.
Elementary German for Graduate Students: Read More [+]

GERMAN 3 Intermediate German I 5 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Summer 2017 First 6 Week Session
While continuing to expand students' communicative competence in German, this content-driven course will provide insights into postwar German history and cultural trends. Primary focus will be on the development of literacy skills (critical reading and writing), vocabulary expansion, and a thorough review of structural concepts. You will be guided towards expressing yourself on more abstract topics, such as language and power in society, multiculturalism, rebellion and protest, and social justice, and towards drawing connections between texts and contexts, using a variety of text genres (journalistic, historical, short story, poetry, drama, advertising, film).
Intermediate German I: Read More [+]

GERMAN 4 Intermediate German II 5 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Summer 2017 Second 6 Week Session
In this fourth-semester German language course you will work on strengthening your interpretative abilities as well as your written and oral forms of expression. While continuing the development of communicative competence and literacy skills, students will discuss a variety of texts and films and try to find innovative ways in which to engage with familiar presuppositions about who we are, about what determines our values and actions, and about the function and power of language.
Intermediate German II: Read More [+]

GERMAN R5A Reading and Composition 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Fall 2016, Fall 2015
This course offers a survey of modern German literary, cultural, and intellectual currents, as well as an introduction to argumentation and analysis. Students will examine numerous issues and questions central to defining the complexity of modern German culture. R5A satisfies the first half of the Reading and Composition requirement, and R5B satisfies the second half.
Reading and Composition: Read More [+]

GERMAN R5B Reading and Composition 4 Units

Terms offered: Summer 2018 Second 6 Week Session, Spring 2018, Summer 2017 Second 6 Week Session
This course offers a survey of modern German literary, cultural, and intellectual currents, as well as an introduction to argumentation and analysis. Students will examine numerous issues and questions central to defining the complexity of modern German culture. R5A satisfies the first half of the Reading and Composition requirement, and R5B satisfies the second half.
Reading and Composition: Read More [+]

GERMAN 21 German Literature in a European Context 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2014
An introductory level exploration of a group of authors, works, themes, or literary movements from the history of German literature in a European context. Based on close readings of texts students will discuss ways in which literature has played (and continues to play) a crucial role in the relationship between different cultures, traditions, and languages. Readings and topics to vary from semester to semester.
German Literature in a European Context: Read More [+]

GERMAN 24 Freshman Seminar 1 Unit

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Spring 2017
The Freshman Seminar Program has been designed to provide new students with the opportunity to explore an intellectual topic with a faculty member in a small seminar setting. Freshman seminars are offered in all campus departments, and topics may vary from department to department and semester to semester. Enrollment limited to 15 freshmen.
Freshman Seminar: Read More [+]

GERMAN C25 Revolutionary Thinking: Marx, Nietzsche, Freud 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2018, Fall 2015, Spring 2013
We will explore the ways in which Marx, Nietzsche, and Freud--three of the most important thinkers in modern Western thought--can be read as responding to the Enlightenment and its notions of reason and progress. We will consider how each remakes a scientific understanding of truth, knowledge, and subjectivity, such that rationality, logic, and the powers of human cognition are shown to be distorted, limited, and subject to forces outside our individual control. All lectures and readings in English.
Revolutionary Thinking: Marx, Nietzsche, Freud: Read More [+]

GERMAN 39A Freshman Seminar 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2012, Fall 2008, Fall 2003
No knowledge of German required.
Freshman Seminar: Read More [+]

GERMAN 39H Freshman Seminar 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2013, Spring 2012, Spring 2010
No knowledge of German required.
Freshman Seminar: Read More [+]

GERMAN 39L Freshman Seminar 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2012
No knowledge of German required.
Freshman Seminar: Read More [+]

GERMAN 39P Freshman Seminar 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2016
No knowledge of German required.
Freshman Seminar: Read More [+]

GERMAN 40 German Conversation 2 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2016, Fall 2009, Spring 2009
Advanced German conversation course that includes discussions, debates, individual presentations, and one or two in-class movies in German. Most materials will be provided by the instructor but students will also be asked to use their own resources from printed or online media. Regular vocabulary quizzes will be part of the course grade. Taught in German.
German Conversation: Read More [+]

GERMAN 41 Exploring German Culture 1 Unit

Terms offered: Summer 2007 Second 6 Week Session
Students will explore historical and contemporary aspects of German culture through readings, discussions, guided excursions in Berlin and Weimar, and individual research projects. The course will engage students to develop a deeper understanding of the specific ways in which cultural issues are respected and reflected in the German language, which they study concurrently. Topics include multiculturalism and minority experience; Berlin as divided city and capital; city planning and public discourse, past and present in German architecture; Berlin in popular literature, film, and theatre; the art scene in Berlin; and the Weimar classical period. Taught in German and English.
Exploring German Culture: Read More [+]

GERMAN C75 What is Beauty? 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Fall 2011
What or who decides whether something is beautiful or not? What purpose do beauty and art serve? Where do originality, genius, and inspiration come from? What do art and beauty have to do with freedom and human progress? We will examine primarily western European and North American approaches to beauty as presented in works of philosophy, literary theory, and theories of art and aesthetics, exploring key theoretical questions as they evolve among several intellectual arenas over many centuries.
What is Beauty?: Read More [+]

GERMAN 98 Directed Group Study 1 - 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017
Group study of selected topics not covered by regularly scheduled courses. Topics may be initiated by students under the sponsorship and direction of a member of the German Department's faculty.
Directed Group Study: Read More [+]

GERMAN 99 Supervised Independent Study 1 - 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017
Independent study and research by arrangement with faculty.
Supervised Independent Study: Read More [+]

GERMAN 100 Introduction to Reading Culture 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Spring 2017
The course is intended to acquaint students with selected works from German cultural history and to familiarize them with various methods of interpretation and analysis. Required of all German majors.
Introduction to Reading Culture: Read More [+]

GERMAN 101 Advanced German: Conversation, Composition and Style 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Spring 2017
Focusing on five central themes, this advanced-level language course will help students to improve and expand on spoken and written language functions utilizing a variety of works from different genres in journalism, broadcasting, literature, fine arts, and the cinema. The final goal is to enable students to participate in the academic discourse--written and spoken--at a linguistic and stylistic level appropriate for an advanced student of German in upper division courses.
Advanced German: Conversation, Composition and Style: Read More [+]

GERMAN 102A Advanced Language Practice: German Performance 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2018, Spring 2017, Spring 2016
Analysis, discussion, adaptation, and public performance of authentic texts from German Kabarett, such as comedic skits, political and social satire, parody, humorous poetry. Text selection will vary each semester.
Advanced Language Practice: German Performance: Read More [+]

GERMAN 102D Advanced Language Practice: Popular Culture in Germany 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Fall 2016, Fall 2015
Focusing on popular culture in German speaking countries, this advanced level language course will help students to improve and expand on spoken and written language functions utilizing a variety of works from different genres in journalism, broadcasting, literature, fine arts, music, and the cinema. Readings, screenings, discussion, and writing assignments will advance students' language skills and further develop their communicative competencies in German at a linguistic and stylistic level appropriate for an advanced student.
Advanced Language Practice: Popular Culture in Germany: Read More [+]

GERMAN 103 Introduction to German Linguistics 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2016
This course is designed to provide students with an overview of the major subfields of linguistics as they apply to the German language. It also serves as the gateway course for the further study of German linguistics at the undergraduate level. The first part of the course will focus on the synchronic description of contemporary German. The second part of the course will concern itself with variation in German. There are no prerequisties for this class and no prior experience with linguistics is presupposed. However, an advanced knowledge of German (at least German 4 level) is expected.
Introduction to German Linguistics: Read More [+]

GERMAN 104 Senior Colloquium 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2011, Fall 2005, Fall 1999
This course is intended for students who wish to improve their skills in reading, speaking, and writing German. We will work with texts that were particularly influential in Germany during the first decades of the 20th century, regardless of when they were written. Segments of philosophical writings (Schopenhauer, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, literary works (George, Rilke, Th. Mann) but also texts by scientists and journalists will be analyzed. Participants are expected to prepare several oral presentations and approximately one written assignment per week. No midterm or final examination.
Senior Colloquium: Read More [+]

GERMAN 105 Middle High German for Undergraduates 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Fall 2016, Fall 2015
Students will learn the fundamentals of Middle High German grammar and will read selections from major narrative works of the High Middle Ages. Selections from major works from the 13th century.
Middle High German for Undergraduates: Read More [+]

GERMAN C106 Literacy through Literature 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2014, Fall 2010, Spring 2009, Fall 2002
Exploration of the role that literature can play in the acquisition of literacy in a first and second language. Linguistic and psycholinguistic issues: orality and literacy, discourse text, schema theory, and reading research. Literary issues: stylistics and critical reading, reader response, structure of narratives. Educational issues: the literary text in the social context of its production and reception by intended and non-intended readers.
Literacy through Literature: Read More [+]

GERMAN 107 German for Reading Knowledge 3 Units

Terms offered: Summer 2018 8 Week Session, Summer 2017 8 Week Session, Summer 2016 8 Week Session
This course is designed to prepare graduate students for translation/reading exams in German. Students who do not need to pass such an exam, but who wish to improve their reading and translation skills in academic German, are also welcome.
German for Reading Knowledge: Read More [+]

GERMAN 108 Literary Translation 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2018, Spring 2017, Spring 2016
This course introduces students to the problems of literary translation from German to English.
Literary Translation: Read More [+]

GERMAN 110 The Literature of the Middle Ages 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2016, Spring 2015, Spring 2014
Introduction in modern German or English translation to major literary monuments of the Hohenstaufen period. Intended for undergraduates with no knowledge of Middle High German.
The Literature of the Middle Ages: Read More [+]

GERMAN 112 Early Modern Literature 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2009, Fall 2003, Spring 2001
Major texts from the 15th through the 17th century.
Early Modern Literature: Read More [+]

GERMAN C113 Western Mysticism: Religion, Art, and Literature 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2009, Spring 2007, Spring 2003
The course will focus on examples of mystical thought from the traditions of Christian and Jewish mysticism since the Middle Ages. In addition to the introduction of the students to basic texts and concepts we will discuss the effects of mystical thought on art and literature from the Middle Ages up to today.
Western Mysticism: Religion, Art, and Literature: Read More [+]

GERMAN 119 German Literary Theory 4 Units

Terms offered: Prior to 2007
This undergraduate seminar offers an introduction to literary theory, mainly but not exclusively in the German tradition. We will examine a variety of theoretical approaches including reception theory, psychoanalysis, memory studies, trauma theory, feminist theory, queer theory, New Historicism, translation, and deconstruction; and with respect to drama, poetry and the novel. Formal analysis will be emphasized.
German Literary Theory: Read More [+]

GERMAN 123 From 1800 to the Present 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2015, Fall 2014, Spring 2012
The social, political, and historical background to German literature since the French Revolution.
From 1800 to the Present: Read More [+]

GERMAN 131 Goethe 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2016, Spring 2015, Spring 2013
An introduction to Goethe's prose, drama, and poetry.
Goethe: Read More [+]

GERMAN 140 Romanticism 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2017, Fall 2009, Fall 2007
Literature, philosophy, and aesthetics of the Romantic period.
Romanticism: Read More [+]

GERMAN 147 German Drama and Opera 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2010
This course introduces students to the masterpieces of German drama and opera from the eighteenth to the twentieth century.
German Drama and Opera: Read More [+]

GERMAN 148 Topics in Narrative 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2016, Fall 2015, Fall 2013
Analysis of German narrative forms. Topic varies.
Topics in Narrative: Read More [+]

GERMAN 151 Eighteenth- to 21st-Century German Poetry 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2012, Fall 2008, Fall 2004
Representative texts from 18th- to 21st-century German poetry will be studied closely. Methodological questions regarding the interpretation of poetry in general will also be discussed.
Eighteenth- to 21st-Century German Poetry: Read More [+]

GERMAN 152 Modern Literature 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2018, Spring 2017, Spring 2016
Introduction to philosophical, ideological, and aesthetic trends at the turn of the century. Analyses of literary texts by Th. Mann, F. Kafka, S. George, R. M. Rilke, G. Benn, B. Brecht.
Modern Literature: Read More [+]

GERMAN 155 Kafka and Modernism 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2017, Spring 2015, Summer 2010 Second 6 Week Session
A careful study of Kafka's writings that will consider them in their social, historical, and cultural contexts and will focus on a number of significantly different interpretive approaches to his works.
Kafka and Modernism: Read More [+]

GERMAN 156 Literature in the Digital Age 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018
This course examines the effects of the digital age on literature. Emphasis will be on themes, poetics, and media of digital writing; as well as on shifting notions of the literary itself. Topics include forms of microblogging such as Twitter and Instagram; aesthetic experimentation and/on social media; notions of digital authorship; practices of reading and viewing; literary scholarship and digital media. Readings, discussions, and coursework in German.
Literature in the Digital Age: Read More [+]

GERMAN 157A German Intellectual History in a European Context: Historical Figures and Contemporary Reflections: Luther, Kant, Hegel 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2017, Fall 2014, Fall 2012
Introduction to the intellectual history of Germany from the age of the Reformation to the period of Idealism. We will focus on three major thinkers--Martin Luther, Immanuel Kant, and G.W.F. Hegel--on key issues in their thought, and on the reception and discussion of some of these issues in 20th century theory. Lectures and readings in English.
German Intellectual History in a European Context: Historical Figures and Contemporary Reflections: Luther, Kant, Hegel: Read More [+]

GERMAN 157B German Intellectual History in a European Context: Historical Figures and Contemporary Reflections: Marx, Nietzsche, Freud 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2011, Spring 2009, Fall 2007
The aim of the course is to explore the central theoretical and philosophical premises of three of the most influential thinkers in the German-speaking world and to examine in detail several works in which problems of history, ideology, values, and methodology are considered. Lecture and readings in English.
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GERMAN 157C German Intellectual History in a European Context: Historical Figures and Contemporary Reflections: Heidegger and Arendt 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2016, Fall 2013, Fall 2011
This course is an introduction to the work of Martin Heidegger and Hannah Arendt. We will begin with an investigation into Heidegger's conceptualiztions of language, time, and human dwelling. We will then move to an examination of Arendt's political philosophy, including her focus on the public/private distinction. Taught in English.
German Intellectual History in a European Context: Historical Figures and Contemporary Reflections: Heidegger and Arendt: Read More [+]

GERMAN 157D German Intellectual History in a European Context: Historical Figures and Contemporary Reflections: Adorno, Benjamin, Habermas 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2014
This course examines the writings of the Frankfurt School of Critical Theory, a major branch of western Marxism. Focusing on confrontations with modernity, the lectures will deal with three seminal thinkers: Walter Benjamin, known for his genial insights into the culture of modernism; Theodor Adorno, the versatile philosopher and aesthetic theorist of the avant garde; and Jurgen Habermas, the most influential German intellectual after World War II.
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GERMAN 160A Politics and Culture in 20th-Century Germany: A Century of Extremes 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2013, Spring 2011, Fall 2009
The story of Germany in the 20th century is a dramatic one, comprising two world wars, genocide, Allied occupation, a division into two states on opposing sides of the Cold War, and recently an unexpected unification. This course offers an introduction to the history and culture of contemporary Germany. It aims at a systematic account of German history in the 20th century, and it intends to provide a better understanding of today's German culture and politics. In addition to following a chronological approach, we will frequently stop to explore issues that are crucial to providing insights into current developments.
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GERMAN 160B Politics and Culture in 20th-Century Germany: Fascism and Propaganda 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2018, Fall 2016, Fall 2015
This course will focus on the theory and practice of propaganda during the 12 years of the Third Reich. It takes a close look at the ideology the Nazis tried to transmit, the techniques, organization, and effectiveness of their propaganda. Challenging the idea of the total power of propaganda, it looks for the limits of persuasion and possible other reasons for which Germans might have decided to follow Hitler. Sources will include the press, radio, film, photography, political posters, and a few literary works of the time.
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GERMAN 160C Politics and Culture in 20th-Century Germany: A Divided Nation. Politics and Culture in Germany 1945-1990 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2016
This course offers an introduction to the history and culture of divided Germany in the era of the Cold War. It will look at the different ways the two states dealt with the country's pre-1945 history, the relations to the Allied Powers, and the major cultural shifts which eventually created a watershed in the history of German mentalities. We will look at various kinds of sources, including literature and film. Major national debates will be touched upon, such as breaks and continuities within the national elites, re-armament and pacifism, the student movement, opposition and conformity under Socialism, and the rise of environmentalism. We will also discuss the problems and opportunities of re-unification.
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GERMAN 160D Politics and Culture in 20th-Century Germany: Multicultural Germany 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2015, Spring 2014, Spring 2012
This course will deal with the culture and politics of minorities in contemporary Germany. We will discuss how ethnic identities are perceived, constructed, and marketed. We also engage critically with such concepts as migration, assimilation, citizenship, diaspora, hybridity, and authenticity, as well as rhetorical strategies of "speaking back." We will focus on exemplary texts and films from Germany, but include comparisons with minority experiences in other countries.
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GERMAN 160K Politics and Culture in 20th-Century Germany: The Weimar Republic: Politics and Culture in Germany 1918-1933 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2016, Fall 2013, Fall 2012
The history of Germany's first parliamentary democracy is a dramatic one, dominated by economic woes, political violence, and a general perception of crisis and decline. The ill-fated republic bore the burden of a devastating war and suffered from an increasing lack of popular support. Democratic procedures were constantly undermined by radical and reactionary forces. Cultural pessimism was nurtured by the overwhelming experience of historical contingency, i.e., a fundamental lack of confidence in the predictability of modern life.
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GERMAN 160L European Cultures 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2014
This course reflects on European cultures from a transnational perspective. It will explore tensions between traditional identity concepts based on the nation state model and other ways to define identity based on border crossings and intercultural connections. Special attention will be paid to Europe's multilingualism and its colonial legacy in the form of migration, diaspora, hybridity, and other social phenomena that challenge traditional boarders between cultures, languages, and people. We will discuss exemplary texts and films from German-speaking areas in Europe and beyond. The course syllabus will vary depending on the regional and thematic emphasis. All reading and discussion will be in English.
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GERMAN 170 History of the German Language 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2009, Fall 2008, Fall 2007
Designed for undergraduate and graduate students interested in the history of the language of the newly united Germanys, which transverses a rich linguistic legacy from the , through Luther and Grimm, to Grass and . Discussion, via linguistic principles, of language processes in the genetic development of the German language, as well as its interchange over time with closely and remotely related languages such as English and Russian.
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GERMAN 172 German Dialects 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2011
This course examines geographical and social variation within the German language. Among other things we will consider the differences between language and dialect, the division of German dialects and the history of German dialect study, various linguistic features (phonological, morphological, syntactic, and lexical) characteristic of the major German dialect areas, and issues involving the use of dialect versus standard language in contemporary society. Besides regular readings and written assignments, grades will be based on active participation and a paper or exam.
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GERMAN 173 The Phonetics and Phonology of Modern German 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2016, Spring 2013, Spring 2011
A course designed for undergraduates and graduates on the structure of modern German covering the fundamentals of German phonetics and phonology, with comparison to English. Some discussion of German dialect phonology.
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GERMAN 174 The Morphology and Syntax of Modern German 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2017, Spring 2015, Spring 2012
A course designed for undergraduates and graduates on the grammatical structure of modern German covering the fundamentals of German morphology, syntax and semantics, with comparison to English.
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GERMAN 175B Undergraduate Seminars: 20th-Century Poetry 3 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2015, Spring 2012, Spring 2008
Analysis of various poetry from the beginning of the century to today, including works by Trakl, Benn, Bachmann, Sachs, Celan, and Brinkmann. A 20-page research paper will be part of the requirements for this course.
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GERMAN 177 The Cultural History of Switzerland in Literature and Film 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2008
On the basis of literary texts (in translation) and films, we will examine major topics pertaining to the cultural identity of Switzerland. Special attention will be paid to the cultural history of Switerzland in a European context. Themes in discussion will be Swiss multiculturalism and multilingualism, the importance of the Alps for national self-identification, the origin and development of the Swiss model of direct democracy, and the Swiss policy of neutrality.
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GERMAN 178 Semiotics 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2014, Spring 2012
This course introduces principal figures from the basic disciplines of philosophy, biology, and linguistics who are particularly influential in current trends in semiotic method. It undertakes to lay the foundation of a semiotic method distinct from monolithic traditional structuralism, so, e.g, it concentrates on anti-Saussurean thought. In presenting semiotic universals, the course pursues the formulation and the application of a theoretical construct valid for any and all semiotic modalities ranging from the literary text, to the language act as text, and to the human being as text.
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GERMAN 179 Special Topics in German 3 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2018, Fall 2016, Fall 2015
Topics will vary from semester to semester. See departmental announcement for offerings. Additional screening time may be required for film topics.
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GERMAN 182 German Cinema in Exile 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2014, Fall 2010, Fall 2000
The course will deal with the topic from various angles; a representative selection of American films noirs from the United States and some films (as forerunners) from the Weimar Republic will be shown and discussed in terms of their visuals and narratives. There will also be literary texts and cultural documents (articles on crime in the United States; on the working conditions in Hollywood) pertaining to the topic. Films have English subtitles.
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GERMAN 186 Transnational Cinemas 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2017, Spring 2016, Fall 2014
This course will explore how experiences of migration, dislocation, or exile are visualized in cinema, and how processes of internationalization in film production and distribution intersect with the projection of a transnational global imagery. Some examples of transnational cinematic connections will be analyzed in historical perspective as well as contemporary examples of "migrant cinema." We will investigate how these films engage with debates about multiculturalism and assimilation/segregation of minorities, as scenarios of itinerancy and mobility are often intertwined with representations of ethnicity and gender.
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GERMAN H196 Honors Studies in German 2 - 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017
Supervised independent study and research course for honor students who are writing their theses for completion of the requirements for the Honors Program.
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GERMAN H196A Honors Studies in German 2 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2015
Two-semester supervised independent study and research course in which honor students research their theses topic the first semester (H196A) and write their theses the second semester (H196B) for completion of the requirements for the honors program.
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GERMAN H196B Honors Studies in German 2 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2015
Two-semester supervised independent study and research course in which honor students research their theses topic the first semester (H196A) and write their theses the second semester (H196B) for completion of the requirements for the honors program.
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GERMAN 198 Directed Group Study 2 - 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017
Group study of selected topics which will vary from year to year.
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GERMAN 199 Supervised Independent Study and Research 1 or 2 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017
Supervised independent study and research.
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Faculty and Instructors

+ Indicates this faculty member is the recipient of the Distinguished Teaching Award.

Faculty

Jeroen Dewulf, Associate Professor. Dutch studies, transatlantic slavery, German literature, European Studies, post-colonial studies, hybridity.
Research Profile

Karen Feldman, Associate Professor. Critical theory, aesthetics, literary theory, Kant, Nietzsche, Heidegger, Arendt, Benjamin, 18th-20th century German thought, Hegel, Adorno.
Research Profile

Deniz Gokturk, Associate Professor. German literature, German cinema, transnational cinemas, German-Turkish-European-American intersections in cinema, performance and spectatorship and reception, intertextuality and intermediality and translation, the politics and poetics of migration and globalization, urban imaginaries and mediations of place, theories of diversity and nationalism, comedy and community, modern rituals of regulating identity and authority and mobility.
Research Profile

Anton Kaes, Professor. Film studies, modern literature, literary and cultural theory, cinema, interdisciplinary and comparative aspects of Weimar culture, contemporary literature and film, literary theory, theory of cultural studies, film history, film theory, history of cinema.
Research Profile

Winfried Kudszus, Professor. Psychoanalysis, semiotics, culture, literature, philosophy, psychology.
Research Profile

Niklaus Largier, Professor. Religion, literature, German, history of medieval and early modern German literature, theology, mysticism, secularism, senses, sensuality, history of emotions, passions, asceticism, flagellation, sexuality.
Research Profile

Irmengard Rauch, Professor. Semiotics, Germanic linguistics, linguistic archeology, paralanguage, Old Saxon, Old Frisian, linguistic fieldwork, socio-cultural and cognitive approaches to language variation and language change, contrastive analysis and linguistic methodology, Gothic, Modern High German and its dialects, Old/Middle High/Early New High German.
Research Profile

Thomas F. Shannon, Professor. Linguistics, control, German, Dutch, syntax, phonology, naturalness, syllable structure, complementation, ergative phenomena, passivization, perfect auxiliary selection, word order, processing factors syntactic phenomena, cognitive, functional grammar, corpus.
Research Profile

Chenxi Tang, Associate Professor. European intellectual history, German literature from the eighteenth to the early twentieth century, political and legal thought, cultural theory, early modern European literature, Europe and China.
Research Profile

Elaine C. Tennant, Professor. German, Habsburg court society in the early modern period, the development of the German language at the end of the middle ages, the Middle High German narrative tradition, literary and cultural traditions of the holy roman empire, European reactions.
Research Profile

Affiliated Faculty

Judith Butler, Professor. Critical theory, gender and sexuality studies, comparative literature, 19th and 20th century continental philosophy, social and political thought, philosophy and literature.
Research Profile

Pheng Cheah, Professor. Nationalism, rhetoric, legal philosophy, feminism, 18th-20th century continental philosophy & contemporary critical theory, postcolonial theory & anglophone postcolonial literatures, cosmopolitanism & globalization, social & political thought.
Research Profile

John Connelly, Professor.

John M. Efron, Professor. Cultural and social history of German Jewry.
Research Profile

Beate Fricke, Associate Professor. Medieval art and architecture, idolatry, iconoclasm, history of allegory, formation of communities, incest, anthropophagy, animation, emergence of life and procreation, theories and practices in use of images and relics, visual and material culture, Carolingian Art, Gothic Art, Ottonian Art.
Research Profile

Hannah Ginsborg, Professor. Philosophy, Kant and on Kantian themes in contemporary epistemology and philosophy of mind.
Research Profile

Mel Gordon, Professor.

Stefan-Ludwig Hoffmann, Associate Professor. Modern German and European History, Conceptual History, Transnational History, urban studies.
Research Profile

Martin E. Jay, Professor. Rhetoric, history, Marxist theory, European intellectual history, 19th 20th century, visual discourse and culture.
Research Profile

John Lindow, Professor Emeritus. Old Norse-Icelandic literature, Scandinavian folklore, Finno-Ugric folklore, Pre-Christian religion of the North, Scandinavian mythology.
Research Profile

Linda H. Rugg, Professor. Scandinavian, Swedish literature and culture 1870 to the present, August Strindberg, Ingmar Bergman, visual autobiography, literature and the visual arts, ecology and culture, film, whiteness studies.
Research Profile

Hans Sluga, Professor. Political philosophy, recent European philosophy, history of analytic philosophy, Frege, Wittgenstein, Foucault.
Research Profile

Gary B. Holland, Professor Emeritus. Historical linguistics, Indo-European linguistics, poetics, early Indo-European languages, linguistic typology, historical syntax, history of linguistics.
Research Profile

Lecturers

Yael Chaver, Lecturer.

Nikolaus Euba, Lecturer.

Harriett Virginia Ann Jernigan, Lecturer.

Esmee Van Der Hoeven, Lecturer.

Visiting Faculty

Charlton Payne, Visiting Researcher.

Emeritus Faculty

Bluma Goldstein, Professor Emeritus.

Gerd Hillen, Professor Emeritus.

+ Claire Kramsch, Professor Emeritus. Language, culture, pragmatics, society, education, applied linguistics, aesthetics, literacy, second language acquisition, language pedagogy, language in discourse, hermeneutic approaches to language learning.
Research Profile

Joseph Mileck, Professor Emeritus.

Klaus Mueller, Professor Emeritus.

Hinrich C. Seeba, Professor Emeritus. 18th 20th century German literature & culture, intellectual & institutional, enlightenment, Napoleonic era, vormarz, concepts & images history, role language nationalism, contemporary trends German literature, representations urban space.
Research Profile

Johan P. Snapper, Professor Emeritus. Dutch studies.
Research Profile

Frederic C. Tubach, Professor Emeritus.

Contact Information

Department of German

5319 Dwinelle Hall

Phone: 510-643-2004

Fax: 510-642-3243

germanic@berkeley.edu

Visit Department Website

Department Chair

Deniz Gökturk, PhD

5416 Dwinelle Hall

Phone: 510-642-2001

dgokturk@berkeley.edu

Undergraduate Academic Student Adviser

Nadia Samadi, BA

5311 Dwinelle Hall

Phone: 510-642-7445

germanic@berkeley.edu

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