German Studies
Course Descriptions – FALL 2016
Department of Modern Languages
These descriptions supplement the official descriptions published in the most recent KSU Undergraduate and
Graduate Catalog, and should be read together with them. They are arranged numerically in the same order as the
schedule of classes. When available, a list of required texts follows each description.
Note for German 101-301 regarding student placement:
The Department of Modern Languages strives to provide the best possible learning environment for its
students, and for this reason we take very seriously the placement of students in courses that match
their abilities. In order to best serve each individual, the Department reserves the right to remove
students from the rosters of classes that do not correspond to their proficiency levels. Students
who have acquired advanced language skills abroad or at home must consult with Modern Languages
staff in order to determine their appropriate entry point in our language sequence.
GRMN 101: Beginning German I
(5 cr) STAFF
Note: This course is not open to students with previous (classroom or immersion) experience with German.
This first-semester German language course is for students who have no previous experience with the
language. In four class meetings per week and guided individual study and projects, students develop basic
language skills and explore the culture of the modern German-speaking world. The course is conducted in
German and takes a communicative approach. Students learn to use basic German language forms in
meaningful contexts, both in speaking and in writing. By the end of the course, students will be able to deal
with a variety of communicative situations and narrate orally and in writing; they will, for example, be able to
ask and answer questions, name and describe persons, things, and places, refer to present and past events, and
express wishes. Class periods are primarily for using German in practical communication, while reading,
writing, and the practice of grammatical structures are done mostly outside of class. The overall goal of the
course is to develop students' ability to master every-day situations in a German-speaking environment.
Texts:
Terrell et al., Kontakte: A Communicative Approach. 2013 (7th ed.).
Terrell et al., Kontakte: Connect Plus (Online Workbook/Lab Manual). 2013 (7th ed.).
[Note: If you purchase a used book, you will have to buy the online component separately!]
Zorach, English Grammar for Students of German. 2001 (4th ed.) [Recommended]
GRMN 102: Beginning German II
(5 cr) STAFF
Prerequisite: GRMN 101 (a grade of C or better) or equivalent
The second semester course continues the linguistic and culture instruction begun in German 101. By the end
of this course, students will be familiar with most basic structures of the German language and will have
developed basic cultural knowledge about the German-speaking world. In German 101, students develop
their vocabulary and grammar and become increasingly better at expressing their thoughts, feelings, and
opinions on a variety of subjects they may encounter in every-day life in a German-speaking community. To
facilitate this, the course is conducted in German and takes a communicative approach. Students learn to use
basic German language forms in meaningful contexts, both in speaking and in writing. Class periods are
primarily for using German, while reading, writing, and the practice of grammatical structures are done
mostly outside of class. To develop reading and interpretative skills, students in this course will read and
discuss a detective novel and several longer cultural texts. Class meetings will be conducted entirely in German.
Texts:
Terrell et al., Kontakte: A Communicative Approach. 2013 (7th ed.).
Terrell et al., Kontakte: Connect Plus (Online Workbook/Lab Manual). 2013 (7th ed.).
[Note: If you purchase a used book, you will have to buy the online component separately!]
Zorach, English Grammar for Students of German. 2001 (4th ed.) [Recommended]
GRMN 201: German III: Speaking, Reading, and Review
(5 cr) Luly
Prerequisite: GRMN 102 (a grade of C or better) or equivalent
German 201 concludes the three-semester introduction to the German language. In this course students gain
the skills to read German texts for basic understanding and analysis, engage in discussion, and work with video
segments. They will further expand their vocabulary, become familiar with more complex grammar, and thus
increase their ability to communicate their thoughts in German. This course has a stronger emphasis on
integrating reading skills into the classroom: Students apply their linguistic and cultural knowledge to the
reading and interpreting of German texts. They will also carry out a variety of creative activities based on this
text, and they will learn more about the culture and history of the German-speaking countries. The course is
conducted in German and takes a communicative approach. Students learn to use basic German language
forms in meaningful communicative contexts, both in speaking and in writing. Class meetings will be conducted
entirely in German.
Texts:
Terrell et al., Kontakte: A Communicative Approach. 2013 (7th ed.).
Terrell et al., Kontakte: Connect Plus (Online Workbook/Lab Manual). 2013 (7th ed.).
[Note: If you purchase a used book, you will have to buy the online component separately!]
Zorach, English Grammar for Students of German. 2001 (4th ed.) [Recommended]
GRMN 222: German Conversation
Prerequisite: GRMN 102 or equivalent. Recommended: concurrent enrollment in GRMN 201 or 301.
(2 cr) STAFF
Not open to students whose competency has been demonstrated at this level.
This course is designed to help you improve and become confident in using basic conversational German.
The topic of the course will focus on themes related to German-speaking cultural contexts, with an emphasis
on Germany. Students will be expected to participate in discussions of historical, cultural, and current events.
Class meetings will be conducted entirely in German.
Texts:
A good (big!) German-English/English-German dictionary (e.g., Langenscheidt, Oxford-Duden,
Harper-Collins)
GRMN 301: German IV: Reading, Discussion, and Review
(4 cr) STAFF
Prerequisite: GRMN 201 (grade of C or better) or equivalent
This course is designed to be a "bridge" between the basic language series (German I-III) and more advanced
composition, grammar, and literature/culture courses. Through reading, interpreting, and discussing longer
German texts (including poems and short stories), this course extends the focus on language and culture
begun in German III. Moreover, students research various aspects of the history and culture of the Germanspeaking countries and will gain practice writing about and presenting the results of their research. Grammar
instruction and review is an integral part of this course, as mastery of the structures of German will facilitate
your ability to express more complex ideas. We will supplement a textbook with grammar exercises,
additional readings, music, and films. Class meetings will be conducted entirely in German.
Texts:
Motyl- Mudretzkyj & Späinghaus, Anders gedacht. Textbuch incl. CD. 2010.
[Note: Older editions are not accepted as textbook alternatives. You will need 2010 ed.]
A good German dictionary. [Strongly recommended]
GRMN 515: The German Language: A Linguistic Introduction
(3 cr) McGregor
Note: This course is taught in English.
This course introduces students to linguistic concepts and topics which help us to understand the structure
and use of the German language in contemporary times. The fields we will study include: syntax, phrase
structures, and case; morphology and word-formation; phonetics and phonology; the lexicon and its
structure; and word borrowing. We will also briefly discuss historical changes and sociolinguistic variation.
Approaching the German language from a linguistic point of view affords students a view of how Modern
German works as a system, how interdependencies influence the system and determine its path during
change. This brings about a deeper understanding of the language and its system and will make students
more conscious of the linguistic patterns they encounter on a daily basis (both in German and in English).
Additionally, students gain insight into how their own language learning processes work, what stages they go
through during their learning, and how they can approach and overcome difficulties.
Texts:
Sarah M. B. Fagan. German: A linguistic introduction. 2009.
GRMN 521: Love, Lust and Death: The German Novella in the 18 th and 19th Centuries
(3 cr) Luly
Pre-requisite: GRMN 301 or equivalent
This course will trace the development of the 18 th and 19th centuries through the genre of the novella. These
short, fictional narratives incorporate a variety of literary genres including mysteries, detective fiction, tales of
horror and fairy-tale texts. Through these texts we will examine not only changes in the genre, but also
consider questions of social context including the changing notion of family life, the struggles of
modernization and industrialization, issues of gender and attitudes towards race. Readings will include texts
by Kleist, Goethe, Achim von Arnim, and Caroline de la Motte Fouque. Class meetings will be conducted entirely in
German.
GRMN 523: Advanced Composition – Mapping German Culture
(3 cr) Chronister
Pre-requisite: GRMN 301 or equivalent
This course is designed to advance students’ abilities in all four language skills (reading, writing, listening, and
speaking) with an emphasis on writing. Over the course of the semester, each student will select a German,
Austrian, or Swiss city to focus on. Students will develop their skills by writing a number of everyday and
academic genres, including a formal email to a museum in their selected city requesting information, a mock
letter of application for a summer language program at a German-speaking university, a biography of a
famous personality connected to that city, an academic report about an historical event specific to that area, a
short academic paper analyzing a piece of literature that features that city, and a critical interpretation of a
film. Students will not only produce original writing that centers on their selected city, but will also practice
peer editing and peer review in the compilation of a cultural map that links to each student’s writing. In-class
activities are designed to review grammar, build vocabulary, develop analytical and discussion skills, and
practice the steps of composition. This course prepares students to communicate in German in a variety of
contexts and for subsequent work in 500- and 700-level German language, culture, and literature classes. Class
meetings will be conducted entirely in German.
GRMN 704: Topics in German Literature and Culture since 1945: Die 80er Jahre
(3 cr) Hillard
Pre-requisite: 500-level literature/culture course
The 1980s was a decade of dynamic and multifaceted change: the era of Helmut Kohl (and Reagan and
Thatcher in the USA and UK), massive anti-nuclear missile protests in West Germany, glasnost in the Soviet
Union, the time of Die Grünen, the women's and environmental movements, AIDS, and Tschernobyl. It was
the last decade of the Cold War, the Berlin Wall, and two countries that no longer exist: East and West
Germany. Thus it marks a caesura with which people are still coming to terms. The current stylistic and popculture 80s revival in both the US and Germany shows no signs of abating, such that one might be led to
think that it is the last decade to really grab us. In this class, we will seek answers to the questions that this
provokes: Why the fascination with this time and what were the 1980s? We will explore these questions by
investigating the era's striking artistic statements in film such as Das Boot and Himmel über Berlin, and in
literature about the two Germanys by authors such as Christoph Hein, Peter Schneider, and Christa Wolf.
Since pop music played a major role in shaping different kinds of identities in the 1980s, we will also sample
tunes from various acts of the day from both Germanys such as Einstürzende Neubauten, Feeling B,
Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle (F.S.K.), and Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft.
GRMN 729: Poetry and its Performance
(3 cr) Chronister
Pre-requisite: 500-level literature/culture course
The oldest forms of German literature that survive are poetic in form, which means that German literature,
in some sense, is rooted in performance. Medieval epic poetry and Minnesang were intended to be performed
before audiences and made use of meter and rhyme, which aided in the memorization and retelling of stories
and poems before most people could read. The tendency toward the poetic endured into the modern era.
Goethe’s Faust, which is arguably Germany’s most famous piece of literature, is both a play and a long poem.
Even today, spoken word or “slam” poetry is one of the most innovative and popular forms of poetry
thriving in Germany. In this survey of German poetry, we will begin in the medieval period, reading excerpts
from the Nibelungenlied, a foundational epic poem based on German mythology, as well as the love-sick
Minnesang of wandering minstrel singers. We will examine poetry of the Enlightenment, romantic poetry,
modernist poetry including expressionist and dada, Holocaust poetry and Gruppe 47, Afro-German poetry,
and come into the present day with slam poetry. Over the course of the semester, we will investigate the
relationship between poetry and performance, examining intersections of poetry and theater, music, dance,
visual art, and film. We will conclude the course with creative student projects inspired by the poetry we
encounter. Readings and discussion are in German.
Courses offered Summer 2016
GRMN529 K-State in Leipzig - Faculty-led Summer Study Abroad
(3-8 cr.) Chronister
Come explore Berlin and East Germany with us! This summer course includes both intensive language
instruction at the Herder Institut at the Universität Leipzig and a two-week, faculty-led tour of Berlin and East
Germany. Prior to language study in Leipzig, students spend one week with a K-State professor in Berlin,
during which they explore the traces that three political systems in one century have left on Germany’s largest
city. In addition to visits to museums and monuments, students will have time to explore the city on their own
and enjoy Berlin's cultural offerings: cuisine, shopping, and nightlife. During the 3.5-week stay in Leipzig,
students take language courses, travel to Dresden and Eisenach on weekends, and attend concerts and the
opera. The course concludes with day trips to the "Goethe-city" Weimar, the Nazi concentration camp
Buchenwald, Erfurt, Lutherstadt Wittenberg and a second stay in Berlin, the "new" capital of Germany. This
summer seminar offers students from various academic backgrounds the opportunity to combine their
interests in German language and culture with interests in other fields. By traveling in eastern Germany
(Saxony, Saxon-Anhalt, Berlin, and Brandenburg) students will become familiar with lesser-known areas of
the former German Democratic Republic. Course dates: May 28-July 10, 2016.