GERMAN LITERATURE I
cod. 12970

Academic year 2024/25
1° year of course - Second semester
Professor
Stefano BERETTA
Academic discipline
Letteratura tedesca (L-LIN/13)
Field
Letterature straniere
Type of training activity
Characterising
30 hours
of face-to-face activities
6 credits
hub: PARMA
course unit
in ITALIAN

Learning objectives

The aim of the course is to introduce to the main authors and movements of the German literature of the first part of the 20th century, contextualizing them in the complex cultural and political history.
The course allows the students:
- to come into contact with the principal authors, and current works of literature in the German language in the first part of the 20th century, considering historical context, politics, aesthetics.
- to become familiar with the literary text, both in Italian translation as in the original German version, appreciating the specific linguistic and structural complexity.
- to expand their knowledge on the subjects and texts dealt through the use of stand-alone bibliography.
- to Identify the salient features of the language of literature, putting them into the curriculum of their studies in order to capture the diversity and complexity of the concept of 'German language'.

Prerequisites

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Course unit content

The course is intended as a presentation and discussion of
some of the authors and the most significant movements in German literature in the early part of the 20th century. The first series of lectures will explain the salient features of the poetical developments, with the sociological and historical literary scene in question. This period will be followed by the study of the consequences of productive tension between Modern Classic and avant-garde. Here we will proceed to the close reading and textual analysis - structure, style, ideological argument - of narrative, lyric and dramatic scenes taken from some of the most significant works of this period. The programme will be available both on the website of the Area of Foreign Languages ​​and Literatures in paper form, and by the teacher at the end of the course.

Full programme

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Bibliography

L. Crescenzi, La letteratura tedesca: secoli ed epoche, Carocci, Roma 2005, as an introduction to the periodization of German literature,
A.Venturelli, “L’età del moderno. La letteratura tedesca del primo Novecento (1900-1933)“, Carocci, Roma 2009, as a discussion on the authors and the most relevant aspects of the considered literary scene.

Teaching methods

The course will consist of lectures during which the works, in part provided by the teacher, will be introduced and analyzed. At the meantime the student learns how to deepen and extend in autonomy the content of the topics covered in class.

Assessment methods and criteria

The knowledge gained during the course will be assessed through an oral exam in Italian, which will ensure the following skills:

- knowledge of the movements, authors and works discussed in class and graded in their historical and cultural context;

- The processing capability of the course content, aimed at the formulation of judgments that also means the retrieval of information that expand the content itself;

- The ability to apply these skills to the analysis of literary texts, their contextualization in the historical and cultural origin and related issues;

- The oral proficiency in the German language corresponding to level B1 of the Common European Framework, demonstrated at the time of reading and translation into Italian of a short excerpt from a work of German literature of the period in question.

In the oral test will be adopted the following evaluation criteria:

- Evaluation insufficient, less than 18/30: lack of knowledge about basic content of the course, inability to articulate a proper Italian expression, to make independent judgments on issues and to recognize the specificity of literary texts, failure to reach the B1 level of the Common European Framework in oral proficiency in German.

- Sufficient assessment, from 18 to 23/30: demonstrated knowledge of the core content of the course, treating it in a proper Italian expression, ability to make independent judgments on the issues discussed recognizing the specificity of the literary text and to retrieve information that expand such content, reached level B1 of the Common European Framework in oral proficiency in German;

- good asessement, 24 to 27/30: fulfillment of the requirements listed above at a discrete level or good;

- High evaluation, between 28 and 30/30 with honors: fulfillment of the requirements listed above to an optimum level or excellent.

Other information

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2030 agenda goals for sustainable development

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