GERMAN
STUDIES/GERMAN LANGUAGE AND
LITERATURE
Glenn R. Cuomo
Wendy Sutherland
Overview
The concentration in
German Studies/ German
language and literature at New College begins with a two-year, four-course
sequence (four full-semester courses:
Elementary German I & II and Intermediate German I & II). For students
who have either completed the above sequence or already have an adequate
knowledge of German, occasional courses (e.g. Das deutsche Hörspiel Die
deutsche Lyrik, Die
deutsche Novelle) and individual and group tutorials in advanced language
skills, German literature in the original, and cultural topics are offered
every semester.
In addition to the
curriculum in German language and literature in the original, there is usually
one course each semester on a German Studies topic that is accessible to
students with no background in the language. Courses taught in English
translation include: The Theatre of
Bertolt Brecht (a survey of 20th-century Austrian, German, Swiss, and East
German Drama, with a focus on dramaturgy before and after Brecht's "Epic
Theatre"), The Age of Goethe (a study of works by Lessing, Lenz, Goethe,
Schiller, Kleist, and contemporary women authors); Poems Before and After
Auschwitz (poetry from Stefan George, Rilke, Else Lasker-Schüler, and Gottfried
Benn to Verena Stefan and Christa Reinig); and seminars such as Intensive
Kafka, Instroduction to Film Studies: Weimar Cinema, and Postwar German Cinema.
Course
of Study
An area of
concentration in German requires a solid command of the language gained by
completing coursework beyond the second year and/or participating in a program
at another institution, especially one in a German-speaking country. In the past New College students have
accomplished this by completing summer ISPs and off-campus semesters at
branches of the Goethe Institute in Germany.
At least one course in German history (Medieval, 19th or 20th Century)
is also required, and relevant coursework in art history, religion, music, or
German philosophy is encouraged.
Students should demonstrate a thorough knowledge of major works and
authors from the modern and classical periods in German literature. The senior thesis may focus on any aspect of
German cultural studies; and interdisciplinary approaches are encouraged.
Sample
Senior Thesis Titles
·
Women, Sexuality, and
Virtue: The Study of a Gender Paradigm in Weimar Film
·
The Individual in the
Modern Age: Early Twentieth Century Vienna
·
Joseph K's Inner
Struggle: An Analysis of Franz Kafka's The Trial
·
Manuscripts
Don't Burn: The Evolution of the Faust Legend From Marlowe to Bulgakov
· An Economic and Social Analysis of Nazi Germany and the Volkswagen Project
· Asserting Identity: Jewish Repatriates in the GDR
· Experience Over Reason: Werner Herzog's Kaspar Hauser
GLENN R. CUOMO
Professor of German
Language and Literature. 1982
B.A., State University of
New York College at New Paltz; M.A., University of Georgia; Ph.D., The Ohio
State University
In addition to
teaching all levels of German language, Professor Cuomo offers courses and
tutorials on a variety of topics in German literature, film and cultural
studies. While he has a generalist
background in German literature and philology, Professor Cuomo's research
interests and publications have focused on German literature and cultural
history from 1890 to the present. He is
the author of Career at the Cost of Compromise: Günter Eich’s Life and Work
in the Years 1933-1945 and the editor and contributor to National
Socialist Cultural Policy. His current projects involve postwar German film
and contemporary drama.
WENDY SUTHERLAND
Assistant Professor of
German Language and Literature. 2004
B.A. , Smith College; M.A. Middlebury
College; Ph.D., University of
Pennsylvania
For further information,
you may contact the faculty directly:
New College of Florida
Division of Humanities
5800 Bay Shore Road
Sarasota, FL 34243
(941)487-4360