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GERM3241: DOING THE RIGHT THING: CONCEPTS OF JUSTICE IN GERMAN LITERATURE AND FILM

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Type Open
Level 3
Credits 20
Availability Not available in 2023/24
Module Cap
Location Durham
Department Modern Languages and Cultures (German)

Prerequisites

  • German Language 2A (GERM2021), or German Language 2B (GERM2152) or an equivalent qualification to the satisfaction of the Chairman/Chairwoman of the Board of Studies in MLAC or his/her representative.

Corequisites

  • Modern Languages, Combined Honours and all Joint and 'with' programmes: German Language 4 (GERM3071). Other: see Chairman/Chairwoman of the Board of Studies in MLAC or his/her representative.

Excluded Combinations of Modules

  • None.

Aims

  • To explore and analyse the role literature and films play in establishing or subverting contemporary concepts of justice
  • To familiarise the students with key texts /films / authors in German culture
  • To give students an insight into the changing perceptions of justice over the course of the centuries and to familiarise them with various theories of justice
  • Students will develop competence in reading and analysis of literary and theoretical discourse, also to some extent in the analysis of visual imagery.

Content

  • Plays, narratives and philosophical/theoretical texts from the 18th21st centuries

Learning Outcomes

Subject-specific Knowledge:

  • Overview of debates about, and theories of, justice in different phases of German culture
  • Understanding of key texts /films and their contexts
  • Overview of historically and culturally crucial periods in Germany (Goethe-Zeit, Weimar, Nazi Regime, 20th and 21st centuries)
  • Insights into broader debates surrounding the nature of justice

Subject-specific Skills:

  • Ability to analyse aesthetic texts/films in their cultural, political and philosophical contexts
  • Independent research skills, developed through a research project focussing on two case-studies
  • Enhanced ability to talk and write about literary texts/films and concepts of justice in both German and English

Key Skills:

  • Enhanced range of fluency and expression in English and German
  • Ability to formulate arguments coherently and to present them in written form
  • Ability to pursue a guided programme of self-directed study, leading to the production of an extended piece of written work .

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

  • The teaching on this module will be in German, and will involve a combination of plenary lectures and seminars.
  • Lectures will provide information about the historical context and introduce methodological issues.
  • In seminars, students will have the opportunity to present and discuss the central questions arising from their reading of a range of texts.
  • In both oral discussion and in summative assessed work, students will be able to demonstrate their ability to formulate clear arguments, and use both contextual and methodological knowledge in order to elucidate a corpus of literary, historical, and journalistic texts.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

ActivityNumberFrequencyDurationTotalMonitored
Lectures21Weekly1 Hour21Yes
Seminars10Fortnightly1 Hour10Yes
Student preparation and reading time169 
Total SLAT hours200 

Summative Assessment

Component: CommentaryComponent Weighting: 25%
ElementLength / DurationElement WeightingResit Opportunity
Commentary (in English)1,500 words100No
Component: ProjectComponent Weighting: 75%
ElementLength / DurationElement WeightingResit Opportunity
Project (in German)3,500 words100No

Formative Assessment

None

More information

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