History of German Culture
Code: 106334 ECTS Credits: 6| Degree | Type | Year |
|---|---|---|
| English Studies | OT | 3 |
| English Studies | OT | 4 |
Contact
- Name:
- Bernd Franz Wilhelm Springer
- Email:
- bernd.springer@uab.cat
Teaching groups languages
You can view this information at the end of this document.
Prerequisites
No prior knowledge of German language, literature, culture or history is necessary.
Objectives and Contextualisation
- give an overview of German history.
- give an overall orientation to German artistic and philosophical traditions.
- give an overall orientation to the literary and cinematographic representation of German history.
- develop and deepen the understanding of German culture and its mentalities.
- develop and deepen the understanding of regional, national and European identities.
- develop and deepen understanding of cultural and historical identities.
- Develop and deepen critical and argumentative skills and the ability to relate ideas.
- develop and deepen the capacity for aesthetic experience.
- develop and deepen the ability to present academic subjects.
- increase the linguistic awareness of the student in the receptive aspect of a text of literary, artistic and film criticism.
- introduce strategies for the study of foreign philology.
Competences
- English Studies
- Act with ethical responsibility and respect for fundamental rights and duties, diversity and democratic values.
- Develop arguments applicable to the fields of literature, culture and linguistics and evaluate their academic relevance.
- Identify and analyse the main currents, genres, works and authors in English and comparative literature.
- Produce effective written work or oral presentations adapted to the appropriate register in distinct languages (except English).
- Students can apply the knowledge to their own work or vocation in a professional manner and have the powers generally demonstrated by preparing and defending arguments and solving problems within their area of study.
- Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
- Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
Learning Outcomes
- Apply the knowledge and skills acquired to professional and academic activities related to German Literature, History and Culture.
- Communicating in the studied language in oral and written form, properly using vocabulary and grammar.
- Demonstrate a sound knowledge about advanced topics related to the study of literature and culture.
- Effectively communicating and applying the argumentative and textual processes to formal and scientific texts.
- Generate strategies to facilitate the increase and improvement of mutual respect in multicultural environments.
- Identify the main genres and the main literary, cultural and historical trends in the German language.
- Make relevant critical assessments based on an understanding of relevant information on topics related to German literature and culture of social, scientific or ethical interest.
- Practise the critical discourse and implement the argumentative processes.
- Recognise the most important aspects of the history of German-speaking countries and other Western literatures and cultures.
- Use the specific expressive resources of the essay genre.
Content
1.) Neanderthal man, the Neolithic revolution, the celestial disc of nebra
2.) The Julian calendar and the Christmas festival
3.) A brief history of the German language
4.) Biblical, Christian and Germanic names, surnames and Jewish names
5.) Zuckmayer: The General of the Devil: On a German race
6.) The Roman Empire and the Germania liberates, the battle in the Teutoburg Forest, the Germans and the Forest
7.) The migration of peoples (invasion of the barbarians), the Franks and Charlemagne.
8.) European Epochs: Romanesque in Germany and Europe
9.) The beginnings of Germany: Saxons and Ottonians.
10.) The German High Middle Ages: The Staufers
11.) The German High Middle Ages: Court culture, the Minne, Tristan and Isolde.
12.) Great women in the Middle Ages: Hildegard von Bingen, Elisabeth von Thüringen, Mechthild von Magdeburg, (Abelard &) Heloise, Leonora of Aquitania
13.) The Hansa
14.) European epochs: Gothic architecture in Germany and Europe
15.) William Tell and Swiss independence
16.) The fall of Constantinople, the invention of gunpowder and how firearms changed warfare.
17.) European Epochs: The Renaissance in Italy and Europe
18.) Erasmus of Rotterdam
19.) Gutenberg, the invention of the press and its consequences
20.) Luther and the Reformation and its consequences: The thesis of the birth of capitalism from the Protestant spirit.
21.) Luther and the Reformation and its consequences: The university, the Protestant mentality, music, Bach.
22.) Dürer
23.) Lucas Cranach (the elder)
24.) Counter-Reformation and Baroque in Germany and Europe
25.) European Epochs: The Enlightenment, Kant: What is the Enlightenment?
26.) Weimar Classicism: Goethe and Schiller, Goethe: Faust
27.) The relationship between the Enlightenment and Romanticism.
28.) Romanticism, texts by Novalis, Schlegel, Eichendorff, the art of Caspar David Friedrich
29.) Beethoven, Schillerand the European hymn
30.) Hoffmann von Fallersleben and the German hymn - the invention of nationalism
31.) Commentary on texts by Heinrich Heine
32.) A chapter from the History of Feelings: Empathy
33.) A chapter from the history of philosophy and mentalities: The death of God (Hegel, Feuerbach, Marx, Nietzsche, Freud).
34.) The autonomous subject and the reforms in Prussia.
35.) The revolution of 1848/49
36.) Bismarck and the unification of Germany
37.) Bismarck and the social state: 1883 Health insurance / 1884 Accident insurance / 1890 Invalidity insurance and pension insurance
38.) The work of Richard Wagner
39.) Nietzsche
40.) The artists' colony at Dachau and Worpswede
41.) Women in art and music of the 19th century
42.) The Habsburg Monarchy at the turn of the century: Vienna, Prague and Budapest
43.) The Habsburg Monarchy: Johann Strauss and Gustav Mahler
44.) The Wiener Moderne: the painters Gustav Klimt, Oskar Kokoschka, Egon Schiele
45.) Wiener Moderne: intellectuals (Arthur Schnitzler, Joseph Roth, Stefan Zweig, Robert Musil, Hugo von Hofmannsthal)
46.) Siegmund Freud
47.) The artists' groups: Die Brücke (The Bridge) and Der blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider)
48.) History of Expressionist Cinema - Siegfried Kracauer: From Caligari to Hitler
49.) The Bauhaus
50.) Post-war cinema (1940s and 1950s) and the new German cinema (1970s and 1980s)
51.) Music of the 70s, 80s and 90s - electronic music - Neue Deutsche Welle - music from the 90s onwards
52.) The fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of the Cold War
53.) Reunified Germany / traditional and folkloric Germany / modern, scientific and industrial Germany / multicultural Germany
Not all themes are addressed.
Activities and Methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| master classes | 45 | 1.8 | 1, 3, 7, 9 |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| give a presentation | 9 | 0.36 | 3, 7, 5 |
| Summarising lectures and reflecting on own learning outcomes | 30 | 1.2 | 1, 3, 7 |
| writing a text | 2 | 0.08 | 7, 8, 4, 10 |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| Reading books and shorter texts | 50 | 2 | 6, 9 |
| Viewing a film | 2 | 0.08 | 6, 9 |
- Master classes
- Oral presentations by students
- Group work in class
- Virtual Campus
- Films
- Tutorials
- Reading at home
- Writing texts
- Formulating and answering questions about the contents covered in class.
Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.
Assessment
Continous Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| An essay on Stefan Zweig's book: Castellio v. Calvino | 20% | 3 | 0.12 | 7, 8, 4, 10 |
| give a presentation or make a podcast | 20% | 3 | 0.12 | 3, 7, 5 |
| Summarising lectures and reflecting on own learning outcomes | 40% | 3 | 0.12 | 1, 3, 7, 2, 6, 9 |
| Write the answers to the teacher's questions on various texts | 20% | 3 | 0.12 | 1, 3, 7 |
Continuous Assessment:
1. An essay on Stefan Zweig's book: Castellio contra Calvino (20%).
2. A presentation (20 min.) (20%).
3. A text of answers to the professor's questions on various texts (20%).
4. Reflections on the in-person classes (40%).
Single Assessment:
1. An exam with 30 questions on the syllabus presented in class (40%).
2. Submission of a PowerPoint presentation with audio on a previously agreed-upon topic (20%).
3. Submission of answers to the professor's questions on various texts (20%).
4. Submission of an essay on Stefan Zweig's book: Castellio contra Calvino (20%), according to the professor's instructions (20%).
Very important! The use of electronic devices (cell phones, laptops, and others) in class is not permitted! Notes must be taken on paper. Students must bring the texts (finished) to class every day, according to the updated class schedule.
Active participation in class is mandatory. If, exceptionally, physical presence is not possible, students are responsible for independently obtaining the material presented by the teacher and are required to demonstrate, through written work and under the teacher's supervision and supervision, that they have worked independently on the class or the subject in question. Absence from class for more than 20% of the classes (or more than 20% of the written work for classes with absences) must be compensated with an extra assignment on a topic in German history or literature, approximately 5 pages in length. If the student is absent for more than 40% of classes (or the respective assignments), the conditions for an assessment are no longer met, and the grade will be "non-assessable" or the student will be assigned a single assessment.
Each assessment section must be passed with a minimum grade of 5 (out of 10). If this minimum requirement is not met, the test must be repeated during the make-up weeks. The tests are given on the indicated date or during the make-up weeks. If the student fails the make-up section, the final grade will be a fail.
At the time of each assessment activity, the teacher will inform students (Moodle) of the procedure and date for grade review.
Presentations must be submitted on the date specified in the updated schedule (which is constantly updated!); presentations cannot be presented outside the historical or cultural context of the syllabus. If you do not present the presentation on the scheduled day or fail it, you must make up this part of the assessment by writing a 15-page essay on the same topic during the make-up weeks.
To be eligible for a make-up exam, you must have an average grade of 3.5 and, in addition, you must have passed 60% of the assessment activities with a minimum grade of 5 (out of 10). If the percentage of failed sections exceeds 40%, the course is failed. During the make-up exam, you must also pass each of the assessment sections with a minimum grade of 5 (out of 10); otherwise, the course is failed.
Presentations must be presented on the day scheduled in the updated schedule (which is constantly updated!); presentations outside of their historical or cultural context cannot be presented. The presentation should last approximately 15-20 minutes; if the topic is for two people, it should last 30-40 minutes.
If the presentation is not submitted that day, the presentation will be considered a missed presentation, and this part of the assessment must be made up with a 10-page essay on the same topic during the make-up weeks.
All Word files containing reflections on the lectures and presentations must be compiled into a single Word file, sorted by date and topic. Remember to include your first and last name in the file header.
All sections of the assessment must be completed, submitted, and passed, both in the continuous assessment and the single assessment.
The languages taught are Spanish and Catalan.
The presentations will be in Spanish, Catalan, and English.
Written assignments can be in the following languages: German, Catalan, Spanish, English, French, or Italian.
VERY IMPORTANT:
Total or partial plagiarism in any of the exercises will automatically be considered a FAIL (0) for the plagiarized exercise. If this situation is repeated, the entire course will be failed. PLAGIARISM is copying a text from unidentified sources, even a single sentence or more, and passing it off as one's own work. (THIS INCLUDES COPYING PHRASES OR EXCERPTS FROM THE INTERNET AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND ADDING THEM WITHOUT MODIFICATIONS TO THE TEXT PRESENTED AS ONE'S OWN.) It is a serious offense. It is important to learn to respect the intellectual property of others and always identify the sources that may be used. It is essential to take responsibility for the originality and authenticity of one's own text.
If students commit any irregularities that could lead to a significant change in the grade for an assessment, the assessment will be graded with a 0, regardless of any disciplinary process that may be initiated. If multiple irregularities occur in the assessments for the same subject, the final grade for that subject will be 0.
If the tests cannot be administered in person, their format will be adapted (maintaining their weighting) to the possibilities offered by the UAB's virtual tools. Homework, activities, and class participation will be conducted through forums, wikis, and/or exercise discussions via Teams or other platforms, ensuring that all students have access to them.
Note for Erasmus students:
Erasmus students requesting to advance an exam must present their instructor with a written document from their home university justifying their request.
Use of AI:
This subject allows the use of AI technologies exclusively for support tasks authorised by the teacher. Other specific situations may be contemplated, as deemed appropriate by the teacher.
The student must clearly (i) identify which parts have been generated using AI technology; (ii) specify the tools used; and (iii) include a critical reflection on how these have influenced the process and final outcome of the activity.
Lack of transparency regarding the use of AI in the assessed activity will be considered academic dishonesty; the corresponding grade may be lowered, or the work may even be awarded a zero. In cases of greater infringement, more serious action may be taken.
Bibliography
Extracts of Texts compiled in a Dossier:
J.Huizinga: El Otoño de la Edad Media +
J.Burckhardt: El Renacimiento en Italia.
Books:
Stefan Zweig: Castelo contra Calvino (El acantilado)
Rüdiger Safranski: El Romanticismo. Una odisea del espíritu alemán (Tusquets)
Stefan Zweig: The world of yesterday.
Software
1.) Neanderthal Man, the Neolithic Revolution, the Nebra Sky Disc
2.) The Julian Calendar and the Christmas Festival
3.) A Very Brief History of the German Language
4.) Biblical, Christian, and Germanic Names, Surnames, and Jewish Names
5.) Zuckmayer: The Devil's General: On a German Race
6.) The Roman Empire and Liberated Germania, the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, the Germans and the Forest
7.) The Migration of Peoples (Barbarian Invasion), the Franks, and Charlemagne
8.) European Periods: Romanesque in Germany and Europe
9.) The Beginnings of Germany: the Saxons and Ottonians
10.) The German Early Middle Ages: The Staufers
11.) The German Early Middle Ages: Court Culture, Minne, Tristan and Isolde
12.) Great Women of the Middle Ages: Hildegard von Bingen, Elisabeth von Thuringia, Mechthild von Magdeburg, (Abelard &) Heloise, Eleanor of Aquitaine
13.) The Hanseatic League
14.) European Periods: Gothic Architecture in Germany and Europe
15.) William Tell and the Independence of Switzerland
16.) The Fall of Constantinople, the Invention of Gunpowder, and How Firearms Changed Warfare
17.) European Periods: The Renaissance in Italy and Europe
18.) Erasmus of Rotterdam
19.) Gutenberg, the Invention of the Printing Press, and Its Consequences
20.) Luther and the Reformation and Its Consequences: The Birth of the Lamb Thesis Capitalism from the Protestant perspective
21.) Luther and the Reformation and its consequences: The university, the Protestant mentality, music, Bach
22.) Dürer
23.) Lucas Cranach (the elder)
24.) The Counter-Reformation and the Baroque in Germany and Europe
25.) European eras: The Enlightenment, Kant: What is the Enlightenment?
26.) Weimar Classicism: Goethe and Schiller, Goethe: Faust
27.) The Relationship between the Enlightenment and Romanticism
28.) Romanticism, Texts by Novalis, Schlegel, Eichendorff, and the Art of Caspar David Friedrich
29.) Beethoven, Schiller, and the European Anthem
30.) Hoffmann von Fallersleben and the German Anthem – The Invention of Nationalism
31.) Commentary on Texts by Heinrich Heine
32.) A Chapter from the History of the Sentiments: Empathy
33.) A Chapter from the History of Philosophy and Mentalities: The Death of God (Hegel, Feuerbach, Marx, Nietzsche, Freud)
34.) The Autonomous Subject and the Reforms in Prussia
35.) The Revolution of 1848/49
36.) Bismarck and Unification of Germany
37.) Bismarck and the Welfare State: 1883 Health Insurance / 1884 Accident Insurance / 1890 Disability Insurance and Retirement Insurance
38.) The Work of Richard Wagner
39.) Nietzsche
40.) The Dachau and Worpswede Artist Colonies
41.) Women in 19th-Century Art and Music
42.) The Habsburg Monarchy at the End of the Century: Vienna, Prague, and Budapest
43.) The Habsburg Monarchy: Johann Strauss and Gustav Mahler
44.) Wiener Moderne: Painters Gustav Klimt, Oskar Kokoschka, Egon Schiele
45.) Wiener Moderne: Intellectuals (Arthur Schnitzler, Joseph Roth, Stefan Zweig, Robert Musil, Hugo von Hofmannsthal)
46.) Siegmund Freud Freud
47.) Artist Groups: Die Brücke (The Bridge) and Der blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider)
48.) History of Expressionist Cinema – Siegfried Kracauer: From Caligari to Hitler
49.) The Bauhaus
50.) Postwar Cinema (1940s and 1950s) and New German Cinema (1970s and 1980s)
51.) Music of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s - Electronic Music - Neue Deutsche Welle - Music Since the 1990s
52.) The Fall of the Berlin Wall and the End of the Cold War
53.) Reunified Germany / Traditional and Folkloric Germany / Modern, Scientific, and Industrial Germany / Multicultural Germany
Not all topics are always covered
Groups and Languages
Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2025. You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject.
| Name | Group | Language | Semester | Turn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (PAUL) Classroom practices | 1 | Catalan/Spanish | second semester | morning-mixed |
| (TE) Theory | 1 | Catalan/Spanish | second semester | morning-mixed |