Berlin and the Culture of Democracy (230-0-1)

Instructors

Anna Parkinson
847/467-5173
1880 Campus Drive, Kresge Hall, Rm 3321, Evanston
Office Hours: By appointment

Meeting Info

Harris Hall L28: Mon, Wed 2:00PM - 3:20PM

Overview of class

This class considers the history and culture of Berlin from 1900 to the present. Through a wide range of media (literature, film, photography, historical documents) we can see a series of transformative moments in German cultural history through the prism of Berlin. Students will engage with the varied historical, socio-political, and artistic changes in German culture throughout the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, including: the vibrant and provocative culture of the 1920s and early 1930s, with a focus on changing forms of gender identity (the "New Woman") and sexual and political subcultures; the everyday and extraordinary history of German-Jews in Germany both before and after the Jewish genocide carried out by the Nazi regime;. the devastated city of postwar Berlin, the city's subsequent division during the Cold War (including the building of the Berlin Wall in 1961. In the final weeks we consider the momentous fall of the Berlin Wall (1989) and the creation of the Berlin Republic. We will familiarize ourselves with the changing face of national culture in light of the migration of the so-called Turkish "guest workers" from the post-War years and the subsequent emergence of Berlin a a global city. This course highlights the ways in which cosmopolitan Berlin remains a magnetic international destination with a biography and personality all its own.

Learning Objectives

• Explore and evaluate twentieth-century German (central European) history, beginning with the years immediately preceding WWI and ending with contemporary Berlin
• Analyze shifting representations of gender and sexuality in the urban context of twentieth-century Berlin
• Articulate a critical approach to the history of minority communities in Berlin, especially through examining Jewish- and Turkish-German culture
• Define broad tendencies and changes in literary and film culture from the turn of the twentieth century to recent postmodernism
• Experience and evaluate the changing media landscape with the development of modern technologies of reproduction via visual art, sound recordings, and films associated with Berlin

Evaluation Method

Attendance
Class participation
Discussion section
Exam, final
Exam, mid-term
Group work
Homework
Paper, final
Papers
Peer assessment
Presentations
Quizzes
Readings
Writing assignments

Class Materials (Required)

• David Clay Large, Berlin. Basic Books, 2001. (ISBN: 046502632X)
• Irmgard Keun, The Artificial Silk Girl. Other Press, 2002. (ISBN: 1892746816)
• Additional materials will be made available through Canvas

Class Attributes

Historical Studies Foundational Discipline
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
SoC Individual and Social Behavior Distro