Winter Term 2020/21
Here are the classes taught by staff members of the Chair of English, Postcolonial and Media Studies during the winter semester 2020/21.
Due to the Corona pandemic, teaching will commence on November 2nd at the earliest. Watch out for information from your lecturers about adjustments to the course schedule.
Prof. Dr. Mark U Stein
AOR Dr. Silke Stroh
Felipe Espinoza Garrido
Deborah Nyangulu
Julian Wacker
Prof. Dr. Mark U Stein
Black texts matter: Writing, curriculum, and the public sphere
093020 | Seminar | Thu. 10-12 | ES 3
From #BlackLivesMatter to #RhodesMustFall, from protests condemning systemic racism and anti-Black violence to sustained demands for syllabus revision and curricular reform, this point in history is marked by intersecting struggles and dissent; and by the hope that more equitable societies and cultures can become a reality. Now is also the time for asking in which ways Black texts signify and matter which is what this class offers. The seminar focuses on texts from a range of genres and sources, from novel to new media, from post to poem, from mail to manifesto – with the aim of contextualising, analysing, and theorising a selection of key texts of our times. Some of the texts will be made available for reading during the term-break; students are also encouraged to suggest texts for discussion by uploading the reference (or the text itself) to learnweb. The class is designed for students with a background and interest in cultural theory, Black studies, postcolonial studies, and gender studies.
The seminar will engage with several texts and authors including Beryl Gilroy, Renni Eddo-Lodge, Tiffany N. Florvil, Grada Kilomba, Peggy Piesche, Ngugi wa Thiongo, Johny Pitts, and Kehinde Andrews.
Introduction to Literary and Cultural Studies I
092862 | Lecture | Thu. 14-16 | H 1
”Introduction to Literary and Cultural Studies” is a two-part course running over two semesters.
Part I (winter term) is a weekly lecture course all first-year students of English should attend. The essential introduction to literary and cultural theory provides in-depth coverage of the most common approaches to the study of literature and culture in English today. The lecture explains how the understanding of literature and culture and the ways we study literary and other cultural representations have changed over time. It not only gives a profound overview of seminal concepts and critical practices used in the field, but also shows how these discrete approaches respond to each other, how they are mutually exclusive, or how they can work together complementary. To illustrate these complex relations we will apply the themes and viewpoints of different theoretical trends, schools, and paradigms to the primary texts that students are required to read (see below).
Part II (summer term) will focus in more detail on the ways in which these broader theoretical, methodological, and historical considerations can be usefully applied to reading literature and other media. Using examples from a variety of primary texts, it introduces analytical tools and interpretive approaches such as genre theory, narratology, and film analysis.
All further details will be announced in the first meeting, which takes place at 6:15 pm in lecture hall H1 (Schlossplatz 46).
Required reading for all students
Primary Literature:
- Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness (London: Penguin Random House, 2007). ISBN: 978-0141441672
- Claudia Rankine, Citizen: An American Lyric. (London: Penguin, 2015). ISBN: 978-0141981772
Secondary Literature:
- Peter Barry, Beginning Theory: An Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory. Third Edition (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2008). ISBN: 978-0719079276
Postgraduate Class - Research Module I (Literary Studies)
093016 | Colloquium | Thu. 14-16 | ES 3
Kolloquium "Postcolonial, Transnational and Transcultural Studies"
093036 | Oberseminar | t.b.a. | t.b.a.
Date and room for this seminar will be discussed and settled at a later point in time.
AOR Dr. Silke Stroh
The Postcolonial Middle Ages
092908 | Seminar | Tue. 12-14 | ES 2
Re-examining medieval history and culture through the lens of modern Postcolonial Studies has been a growing field of academic study in recent years. At first sight, these two fields seem to make ‘strange bedfellows’, but bringing them together can offer fascinating insights: for instance, it allows us to see the medieval literary canon in a different light, as well as highlighting the importance of literature beyond the traditional canon of medieval English Studies, e.g. in other languages of the British Isles that today have become minority tongues and are thus often overlooked.
The seminar will build on students’ previous knowledge of Postcolonial Studies (e.g. as acquired in the Grundkurs in first year), but also gives them an opportunity to deepen their knowledge of postcolonial thought. In addition, the seminar supports students’ engagement with Medieval Studies that is required in their ”Readings...” Module: 3rd-semester students will get an initial grounding in the field that will stand them in good stead when they begin ”Readings...” in semester 4; and 5th-semester students who may have struggled with some of the ”Readings...” material in the early days of the ‘Corona semester’ in summer and still have some catching up to do may use this class as extra learning support. The precise choice of primary texts to be studied in this seminar is also open to student input – if there are texts you’ve encountered in ”Readings” (or elsewhere) which you think will lend themselves to postcolonial readings, and which you would like to discuss in more detail, please contact the instructor to suggest inclusion in the schedule.
Students will also have the opportunity to practice their reading skills in medieval varieties of English. Texts from other languages (Latin, Welsh, Gaelic, and possibly Norse and French) will be discussed through translations.
Questions to be discussed include: How multicultural were medieval societies in the British Isles? How do multiculturality and cultural minorities relate to (or clash with) medieval ideas of state and nation – does a nation have to be culturally unified? How does medieval literature portray minorities and foreigners? How does it portray intercultural encounters and international conflicts? Can medieval imperialism be seen to parallel (or perhaps even directly anticipate and prepare) modern imperialism?
Potential topics for case studies include: the Norman Conquest and the relations between Anglo-Saxon, Welsh and Norman culture; the Arthurian legend as a transcultural text and a vehicle to negotiate cultural identity; relations between England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland, and between British mainstreams and their Muslim, Jewish and Black Others, e.g. during the Crusades and later on the eve of the Renaissance.
Students are welcome to make their own suggestions and choices as to the precise weighting of these topics, and the addition of other topics if they like. We will consult on these matters at the beginning of the term and finalise the schedule together.
Postgraduate Class (Literary & Cultural Studies) – M.A. NTS Research Module II
093016 | Colloquium | Wed. 14-16 | ES 333
This postgraduate class assists and supervises students’ independent study programme within Research Module II, with regard to
1) the choice and discussion of relevant events to attend, and
2) their individual research projects. Students either deepen their knowledge of the research area they had already chosen for ”Research Module I” or choose a new research area. The research area chosen for ”Research Module II” will typically lead to (and later complement) their M.A. thesis. The postgraduate class offers a collaborative forum where students present their project plans, hypotheses and first results, and receive feedback and advice from classmates and the course teacher on both thematic and organisational issues. This will complement the input students will receive from their thesis supervisors as their project unfolds.
If desired, this 3rd-semester class will also help students to develop other aspects of their academic profile and reflect on future career plans, although these will receive more thorough attention in semester 4.
Postcolonialism and Cultural Memory: Theories, Narratives, Practices
092907 | Seminar | Thu. 14-16 | ES 131
One focus of this seminar is theoretical: it will allow students to familiarise themselves with theories about such concepts as ”collective memory,” ”cultural memory” and ”culture(s) of memory.” For example, this bears on questions of how social and cultural groups remember their history, what role this history (and the ways in which it is remembered) plays in their identity, how this can be contested ground subject to different interpretations by different (sub–)groups, how cultural memory can change over time, and how all this can impact on social action. In a second step, we will consider these issues through selected case studies from (mainly) anglophone postcolonial contexts. For example, we may consider different textualisations of colonial history, independence struggles, postcolonial political and ethnic histories, contemporary imperialisms, migrations and diasporas, and border regimes; the role of memory and forgetting in present-day debates on diversity, racism and social justice; and how interventions in the field of memory can also be used to campaign for change in the present and future. Examples may come from a wide range of media, including literature, film, museums, monuments, art installations, festivals and other events, etc. The precise choice of case studies will be determined in consultation with students, who are most welcome to make suggestions.
Felipe Espinoza Garrido
Introduction to Literary and Cultural Studies I
092862 | Lecture | Thu. 14-16 | H 1
”Introduction to Literary and Cultural Studies” is a two-part course running over two semesters.
Part I (winter term) is a weekly lecture course all first-year students of English should attend. The essential introduction to literary and cultural theory provides in-depth coverage of the most common approaches to the study of literature and culture in English today. The lecture explains how the understanding of literature and culture and the ways we study literary and other cultural representations have changed over time. It not only gives a profound overview of seminal concepts and critical practices used in the field, but also shows how these discrete approaches respond to each other, how they are mutually exclusive, or how they can work together complementary. To illustrate these complex relations we will apply the themes and viewpoints of different theoretical trends, schools, and paradigms to the primary texts that students are required to read (see below).
Part II (summer term) will focus in more detail on the ways in which these broader theoretical, methodological, and historical considerations can be usefully applied to reading literature and other media. Using examples from a variety of primary texts, it introduces analytical tools and interpretive approaches such as genre theory, narratology, and film analysis.
All further details will be announced in the first meeting, which takes place at 6:15 pm in lecture hall H1 (Schlossplatz 46).
Required reading for all students
Primary Literature:
- Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness (London: Penguin Random House, 2007). ISBN: 978-0141441672
- Claudia Rankine, Citizen: An American Lyric. (London: Penguin, 2015). ISBN: 978-0141981772
Secondary Literature:
- Peter Barry, Beginning Theory: An Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory. Third Edition (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2008). ISBN: 978-0719079276
Reading Class (Gruppe II)
092954 | Übung | Thu. 10-12 | ES 24
Deborah Nyangulu
Nation, Nationalism, Transnationalism: Historical and Theoretical Foundations
093013 | Seminar | Fri. 10 – 12, 14 – 16 (4SWS) | Audi Max
This MA level seminar offers a transdisciplinary take on the study of nationhood, nationalism, and transnationalism and engages with various conceptualizations of these notions in both the humanities and the social sciences. Using Benedict Anderson’s influential idea of Imagined Communities as one of its departure points, the course takes seriously the idea of the social constructedness of the nation and tries to situate nations in their historical and geopolitical contexts. It questions how the nation came to be considered as culturally given and why it is regarded as the most potent unit of political organization and expressing sovereignty. In keeping in tune with this interrogation of how the idea of the nation and nationalism came to be, the seminar also engages with countervailing trends (such as transnationalism, globalization, and cosmopolitanism) which undercut the resilience of nationalism. The course also explores how related notions of gender, race, class, citizenship, imperialism, decolonization, and migration feature in the (de)construction and reproduction of nations. The main course aims include:
• Placing contemporary theoretical debates into a wider historical context and considering earlier theorizations and discussions on the ‘origins’ of nations
• Providing an overview of key theoretical approaches to nationalism and considering some of the main criticisms levelled against them in a comparative perspective
• Considering how alternative forms of knowledge including ideas of decolonization challenge dominant Euro-American conceptualizations of nationhood and nationalism
• Examining the ways in which cultural products such as novels, art, music, media, film, language, etc participate in both entrenching and undermining the idea of the nation, as well as transcending it. Students are particularly encouraged to engage with diverse forms of cultural artifacts such as fashion, gaming, sport, celebrity, TV to understand ideas of nation, nationalism and transnationalism.
Course readings will be made available in a course folder on Learnweb. A separate introductory reading list for independent study will also be made available. This is a reading-intensive course and students are encouraged to complete all their readings in readiness for class discussions. To pass this course, students will be expected to complete and pass a final exam.
Julian Wacker
Queer Nigerian Fiction (Übung Theory and Literature Gruppe V)
092914 | Übung | Thu. 16-18 | ES 130
Orientation Week: M.A. NTS
Can Çakır
Academic Skills
t.b.a.