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Autumn Quarter 2008 Course Descriptions

[ Dutch ]. [ German ]. [ Scandinavian ]. [ Swedish ]. [ Yiddish ].

Call numbers can be found on the University Registrar's Web site.

Dutch

There are no Dutch courses offered this quarter.

German

Taught at 9:30 / 10:30 / 11:30 / 12:30 / 1:30
Introduction to German; development of listening comprehension, speaking, reading, writing skills and cultural knowledge.
Text: Deutsch: Na klar! 5th edition (shrink-wrapped pack), Di Donato, et al.
Please note: Students should attend one of the initial orientation sessions. In this program, students work by appointment with the Center's instructors to set goals and to receive assistance with self-managed learning. Students register for and complete from 1 to 5 credit hours during the quarter. Students who complete 5 hours before the end of the quarter may proceed to 102.51. For the dates of the orientation sessions and for more information about the program, visit the Individualized Instruction Web site at http://germanic.osu.edu/individualized-51/default-simpl.cfm
Text: Deutsch: Na klar! 5th edition (shrink-wrapped pack), Di Donato, et al.
Taught at 9:30 / 10:30 / 11:30
Continued development of listening comprehension, speaking, reading, writing skills and cultural knowledge.
Text: Deutsch: Na klar! 5th edition (shrink-wrapped pack), Di Donato, et al.
Please note: Students should attend one of the initial orientation sessions. In this program, students work by appointment with the Center's instructors to set goals and to receive assistance with self-managed learning. Students register for and complete from 1 to 5 credit hours during the quarter. Students who complete 5 hours before the end of the quarter may proceed to 103.51. For the dates of the orientation sessions and for more information about the program, visit the Individualized Instruction Web site at http://germanic.osu.edu/individualized-51/default-simpl.cfm
Text: Deutsch: Na klar! 5th edition (shrink-wrapped pack), Di Donato, et al.
MTWRF 11:30
Intensive review of basic structures, vocabulary and skills needed for entry into German 103.01
Text: Deutsch: Na klar! 5th edition (shrink-wrapped pack), Di Donato, et al.
Taught at 8:30 / 9:30 / 10:30 / 12:30
Continued development of listening comprehension, speaking, reading, writing skills and cultural knowledge; grammar review.
Text: Deutsch: Na klar! 5th edition (shrink-wrapped pack), Di Donato, et al.
Please note: Students should attend one of the initial orientation sessions. In this program, students work by appointment with the Center's instructors to set goals and to receive assistance with self-managed learning. Students register for and complete from 1 to 5 credit hours during the quarter. Students who complete 5 hours before the end of the quarter may proceed to 104.51. For the dates of the orientation sessions and for more information about the program, visit the Individualized Instruction Web site at http://germanic.osu.edu/individualized-51/default-simpl.cfm
Text: Deutsch: Na klar! 5th edition (shrink-wrapped pack), Di Donato, et al.
MTWRF 9:30 / 10:30 / 1:30
Intensive review of basic structures, vocabulary and skills needed for entry into German 104.
Text: Deutsch: Na klar! 5th edition (shrink-wrapped pack), Di Donato, et al.
Taught M W F — 8:30 - 9:48 / 10:00 - 11:18 / 11:30 - 12:48 / 1:00 - 2:18
Vocabulary building, reading, listening and written practice; cultural knowledge.
Text: Stationen: Ein Kursbuch für die Mittelstufe
Please note: Students should attend one of the initial orientation sessions. In this program, students work by appointment with the Center's instructors to set goals and to receive assistance with self-managed learning. Students register for and complete from 1 to 5 credit hours during the quarter. For the dates of the orientation sessions and for more information about the program, visit the Individualized Instruction Web site at http://germanic.osu.edu/individualized-51/default-simpl.cfm
Texts: Blickwechsel, German in Review, and the Langenscheidt Standard German Dictionary
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— 5 Credit Hours
M W F 10:30—11:48 / Prof. Byram
M W F 1:30—2:48 / Prof. Taleghani-Nikazm, email: taleghani-nikazm.1@osu.edu
German 201 is a prerequisite for the German major and minor programs and for semester- or year-long study-abroad programs in Germany. To prepare students for either experience, and to encourage continued study of German for all others, the course covers a wide range of important skills and knowledge areas, with attention being paid both to the language and to "content"—information about Germany, German culture, literature, and socio-political developments in German-speaking countries—a required skill for prospective teachers and for all others who wish to use German in their careers.
Prof. Ribaj, email: ribaj.1@osu.edu
M W 11:30—1:18
Reading and discussion of German literary texts representing significant prose types, authors, and periods including fairytale, fable, diary, short story, novella, essay, and novel.
German 250 German Literature — 5 Credit Hours (GEC course)
Prof. Ribaj, email: ribaj.1@osu.edu
T R 1:30—3:18 pm
This course will be taught in English. GEC course
Study of popular culture forms in relation to the artistic, intellectual, historic, and literary traditions of the German-speaking world.
German 293 Individual Studies — 2-5 Credit Hours
Prereq: Written permission of chairperson.
Prof. Spencer, email: spencer.4@osu.edu
T R 12:30—2:48 pm GEC course
Taught in English !
This course, taught entirely in English, includes material from the Weimar Republic, the Nazi period, and, the post-WWII era in the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany). In exploring the literature, films, art, and architecture representative of these periods, we will concentrate on three aspects of National Socialism: its roots in late nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century Europe; its manifestation in everyday life during the Third Reich; and, its legacy for post-WWII Germans individually and collectively.
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Prof. Spencer, email: spencer.4@osu.edu
M W F 1:30—2:48 pm
German 301 is the first language and cultural skills course on the advanced level. In addition to printed materials, students will utilize Web-based resources. Students will explore events, accomplishments, shortcomings, trends, and ideas in German culture, science, politics, and society from the Revolution of 1848 to the end of the Third Reich.
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Prof. Byram
T R 2:30—4:18 pm
Taught in English. GEC course.
In the last decade, several contemporary German novels and movies have achieved great success in the U.S. Five German films have been nominated for Academy Awards, and two novels have both received praise from critics and become bestsellers in their English translations. One was even a selection for Oprah's book club. In this course, we will discuss and write about these trans-Atlantic hits. We will consider what they can teach us about Germany’s present and past, but we will also ask ourselves why they have been so successful in the U.S. Can texts from and about Germany teach us something about the United States' past and present?
Prof. Hammermeister, email: hammermeister.2@osu.edu
M W F 9:30—10:48
German 401 is the second language and cultural skills course on the advanced level and builds upon knowledge acquired in German 301. It is meant for students who have begun to master advanced skills in writing, speaking, reading, and listening and are venturing into the complexities and subtleties of the German language. We will review difficult points of German structure, discuss variations in style and regionalisms and work on building vocabulary and using it correctly. Materials used for analysis will include written texts, images as well as music and performance that represent highlights in German culture and history from the early Middle Ages through the beginning of the Second Empire. The comprehensive goal of the course is to enable students to discuss fundamental aspects of early German history in an informed manner and at an advanced level of speaking and writing.
Prof. Hammermeister, email: hammermeister.2@osu.edu
M W F 11:30—
Practice in spoken German on topics of general interest and current events.
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Prof. Malkmus, email:malkmus.1@osu.edu
T R 11:30—1:18
This course introduces students to major intellectual, artistic and social trends in German culture over the past two centuries based on readings and the presentation of music and the visual arts including films. The class format will consist of lectures and class discussion in German. The course is also intended to improve a variety of language skills.
Taught in German.
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M W F 9:30—10:48
The fundamentals of German grammar, as required for the reading of German texts in the sciences, social sciences, and humanities.
German 572 German for Research I — 3 Credit Hours — G
ARR
Prof. Fehervary, email: fehervary.1@osu.edu
Satisfactory completion of this course (grade of A or B) may be accepted by the student's dept as evidence of a dictionary reading knowledge in fulfillment of PhD language requirement.
German 573 German for Research II — 3 Credit Hours — G
ARR
Prof. Fehervary, email: fehervary.1@osu.edu
Reading of difficult material at a reasonable rate of speed and with only infrequent use of dictionaries. Completion of this course with grade of A or B may be accepted by the student's Dept. as evidence of a thorough reading knowledge of German.
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German 693 Individual Studies — 2-5 Credit Hours
Prereq: Signature of undergraduate advisor or Graduate Studies Committee chair as applicable.
Prereq: Written permission of department chairperson.
Prof. Fehervary, email: fehervary.1@osu.edu
M W 1:30—3:18 p.m.
This course, required of all M.A. candidates in German, serves as an introduction to the methods and tools of literary research. Students will become familiar with standard bibliographical work, the MLA handbook, and other aids in the preparation of seminar and research papers. The course also serves as an introduction to the professional concerns of Germanistik/Literaturwissenschaft/German Studies, historical developments in and contemporary aspects of literary criticism, as well as basic principles of poetics, rhetoric, editorial practice, and stylistic analysis.
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Prof. Hammermeister, email: hammermeister.2@osu.edu
T R 1:30—3:18 p.m.
The novel, Novelle, short story, and other forms of German prose: historical overview, theory, and selected primary texts as illustration.
Taught in German.
Prof. Taleghani-Nikazm, email: taleghani-nikazm.1@osu.edu
September 2—September 12, 2008: GTA workshops; and
during Autumn Quarter: Wednesdays 3:30—6:18 p.m.
This course is required for new GTAs in German.
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Prof. Malkmus, email: malkmus.1@osu.edu
R 3:30—6:18 p.m.
COURSE FLYER [pdf]
Selected topics in German literature, language, and culture; seminar discussion format with oral and written reports.
The work of W.G. Sebald has attracted a considerable amount of critical attention in recent years. This seminar will provide insights into the German and European intellectual and literary developments within which Sebald worked, including German art and photography, French film, Kafka and writings on World war II and the Holocaust, e.g. Alexander Kluge and Imre Kertész. We will pay particular attention to Sebald's use of images and photography, his art of intertextuality, and his concept of memory. A separate unit will deal with his critical writings on Austrian literature and European history as well as with the worldwide reception and particular (mis)readings of his work.
German 893 Individual Studies — 2-5 Credit Hours
Prereq: Permission of chair of Graduate Studies Committee.
ARR
Opportunity for advanced graduate students to plan and teach in conjunction with faculty member a course at 200 or higher level. Prereq: A minimum of one year experience as GTA.
Prof. Davidson, email: davidson.92@osu.edu
T 3:30—6:18 p.m.
The events of Sept. 11, 2001 and the subsequent war in Iraq evoked curious reactions of sympathy and protest in Germany's public discourse and practice: some drew an explicit parallel between the attack on New York and the bombing of Dresden; others protested the air campaign against Baghdad using the same parallel. As Huyssen notes, even elementary-school children were marching under the banner of "we know what it's like to be bombed." Such posturing marks the latest manifestation of the theme of German victimization, which, despite frequently recurring protests to the contrary, has been an almost consistent refrain since the end of WWII, especially in the discussions of cinematic representations. The proposed course uses this most recent surge in the discourse to explore four things. First, it maps the ways in which film contributes to our understanding of the broader issue of German postwar "memory work" through an overview of the ebbs and flows in the discursive and representational history. Second, it asks what "German" means in "German wartime suffering": what elisions (gendered, ethnic, class...) are at work in constructing the imagined community that corresponds to that label? Third, what is the meaning of the "normalization' that informs the current context of this discourse of victimization? What recontextualization does that set out for "classic" representations such as Staudte's Die Mörder sind unter uns or Fassbinder's Ehe der Maria Braun? What does rereading those classics mean for understanding what has been called the current "cinema of consensus" that includes so-called "heritage" and "nostalgia" films? Finally, broader questions lurk behind these explorations: namely, how do German cinematic representations of WWII and its aftermath add to our understanding of the possibilities and limitations of film as a medium to represent history, and how does form in cultural representation affect that representation?
German 993 Individual Studies — 1-5 Credit Hours
Prereq: Signature of Graduate Studies Committee chair.
Research for master's thesis.
Research for dissertation purposes only.

Scandinavian

Prof. Kaplan, email: kaplan.103@osu.edu
T R 9:30—11:18
What do we know about Thor and Odin, and how do we know it? This course examines the myths of the Old Norse gods and the sources in which those myths are recorded. Students will gain insight into the world view and beliefs of the pagan North by reading (in English translation) the most important textual sources on Scandinavia's pre-Christian mythology. Placename, archaeological, and other evidence will also be discussed. Students intrigued by the Viking Age, medieval Northern Europe, or the interpretation of myth will find much of interest. GEC course.
Required texts: Carolyn Larrington's edition of The Poetic Edda, Anthony Faulkes' edition of Edda, and John Lindow's Norse Mythology: A Guide to Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs. Tacitus' The Agricola and The Germania is an optional text.

Swedish

Prof. Blackwell, email:blackwell.4@osu.edu
MTWRF 11:30-
Text: Althén, Anette. Mål 1 Lärobok (textbook with CD); Althén, Anette. Mål Övningsbok (workbook). Both Stockholm: Natur och Kultur (2007 edition).
Prof. Blackwell, email:blackwell.4@osu.edu
M W F 12:30—1:48 pm
Text: Althén, Anette. Mål 2 Lärobok (textbook with CD); Althén, Anette. Mål Övningsbok (workbook). Both Stockholm: Natur och Kultur (2007 edition).
Swedish 293 Individual Studies — 2-5 Credit Hours
Prereq: 104 or equiv or permission of instructor. Taught in Swedish.
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Yiddish

Yiddish is the language of the largest country in Europe; a key to the last thousand years of Jewish life; the language of a great national culture; and the secret of what makes today's Jews the way they are.
Yiddish 101-104 provides a comprehensive foundation in speaking, reading, writing, and comprehending the national language of Ashkenazic Jewry.Yiddish language courses are applicable toward satisfaction of the foreign language requirement.
MT R 10:30-11:48
ARR
Yiddish 241 Yiddish Culture — 5 Credit Hours (GEC course)

MTWRF 12:30- (GEC course)
From Crackow to Columbus, from Brooklyn to Beechwood, the great majority of American Jews are heirs to the thousand-year old culture of Ashkenaz—the largest country in Europe. Yiddish 241 explores the culture of Ashkenaz in its many forms of expression —literature, film, folklore, family life, food, politics, religion, academics, sports, entertainment, immigration, assimilation, self-assertion, marginality, subversion, and the "Jewishing" of the American dream.
Yiddish 293 Individual Studies — 1-5 Credit Hours
Prereq: Written permission of instructor.
MTWRF 2:30- (GEC course)
Introduction to Jewish-American literature; development of expository writing and argumentation skills through systematic and critical reflection upon their own country from the perspective of an ethnic community.
Yiddish 367 satisfies the GEC second writing course requirement.
Prereq: English 110 or 111 or equiv, and soph standing or above.
Yiddish 399 The Holocaust in Literature and Film — 5 Credit Hours (GEC course)
Prof. Jacobs, jacobs.8@osu.edu
T R 1:30—3:18 p.m.
Taught in English . . . GEC course
Reading and analysis of texts (primary documents, memoirs, academic works, fictional literature), and presentation and discussion of films and music pertaining to the topic of the Holocaust, the genocide perpetrated by Nazi Germany against European Jewry. The main focus of this course is internal: on the representation of the experiences, responses, reactions, and impact of the Holocaust within Ashkenazic-Jewish civilization.
ARR
This course covers the entire grammar of Yiddish. By the end of the quarter you should be able to read an academic article in your area of specialization with moderate use of a dictionary. In addition, students will be exposed to all levels of spoken Yiddish, and should be able to follow academic spoken material, such as news broadcasts, monologues, etc. The course also covers issues in Yiddish stylistics, and provides an introduction to bibliographic tools in the field.
This course moves quite rapidly. Knowledge of German helps significantly, as Yiddish and German are very similar—at least on the surface. So, the course is designed for people who have a knowledge equivalent to German 301 or higher. However, if you don't know German, but know a few other languages, and can learn a new language at an exciting pace—you are welcome as well.
Yiddish 693 Individual Studies — 1-5 Credit Hours
Prereq: Written permission of instructor.
Prereq: Written permission of department chairperson.
Prof. Miller, miller.3@osu.edu
T R 2:30—4:18 p.m.
In-depth study of a selected topic or issue in Yiddish literature, linguistics, or intellectual culture.
Yiddish 998 Research in Yiddish — 1-10 Credit Hours
Research for thesis purposes only. Prereq: Permission of instructor.
Information in this course description bulletin is subject to change.

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