Undergraduate Course: Deutscher Buchpreis: Trends in Contemporary German Literature (ELCG10034)
Course Outline
| School | School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 4 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This option introduces students to trends in contemporary German literature by reading selected novels which have won the German Book Prize. The German Book Prize, established in 2005 by the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels Stiftung (the Foundation of the German Publishers & Booksellers Association), is awarded to the 'best' German-language novel just prior to the annual Frankfurt Book Fair. Students will closely study four selected novels over two weeks respectively. Each primary text will be accompanied by some critical reading, which will enable the group both to engage with wider, transnational issues that have influenced recent German-language literary production and to discuss the judging of literary prizes and the selection criteria underlying such evaluation of literature. |
| Course description |
Academic description:
First awarded in 2005, the German Book Prize is very much a literary prize of the twenty-first century: it is part of a range of international prizes such as the Man Booker Prize that not only acknowledge the quality of a book but have a great impact on its transnational marketing. Thus, according to the German Book Prize website, 'the Prize is intended to draw attention beyond national borders to authors writing in German, to reading and to the keynote medium of the book'. Bearing in mind the transnational context of the prize, this course introduces students to trends in contemporary German literature by examining four prize-winning novels, which have been selected in order to introduce students to as wide a range of novels and themes as possible in 10 seminars, alongside relevant criticism. The selection of novels will change from year to year as new winners shape the German literary landscape. This approach will enable students not only to discuss wider issues that have influenced recent German-language literary production such as the occurrence of literary themes and forms in recent writing and their connection with (German) literary history more widely but also to develop an understanding of the mechanics of the German and international book markets and, vice versa, its significance for the popularity of certain genres and forms among writers and readers alike. Thus the notion of the canon in the context of literary prizes such as the German Book Prize will be a crucial issue to be discussed in the final session.
This option will encourage students to engage with contemporary issues in Germany and beyond via the medium of literature; to compare contemporary German texts with other European literature and thus to acknowledge their transnational links; and to develop an understanding of the marketing of literary texts as well as for their positioning in the context of literary history and literary canons as they are emerging.
Outline of content:
We will look at the history and development of the German Book Prize and contemporary German-language Literature from the year 2005 and the wider context of other German as well as international literary prizes. In particular we will be examining in the selected texts how the present is experienced in relation to memory and history; how the self, specifically the female self, is constructed in connection with gender, the body and language/communication; how migration, history and politics have shaped today's transnational Europe; and how literary engagements with flight and disappearance have had an impact on perceptions of contemporary 'Germanness'. Finally, we will consider notions of the canon.
The course is taught in 10 two-hour seminars over one semester. As one of the key teaching methods is student-led learning, which encourages learners to exercise initiative, responsibility and independence, and manage their learning activities and work with others, students are encouraged to form Autonomous Learning Groups to discuss the primary and secondary texts before each class. Handouts are provided in advance of each seminar with points for discussion and other important information that will be helpful for the class discussion. Students will listen to brief presentations on the texts and their contexts when appropriate, but most of the class will centre on workshop-based discussion.
The language of instruction and delivery of this course is a combination of German and English. We will discuss students' preferences in the first seminar.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | Only available to German Hons Students |
| Additional Costs | Although copies of the primary texts will be ordered for the library, students will be encouraged to purchase their own copies of the books. |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2022/23, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: 18 |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
196 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
The course is assessed on coursework only. There are two coursework components:
1. Reflective essay (750 words; 30%)
2. End-of-course essay/project (1750 words; 70%) |
| Feedback |
General verbal feedback will be given regularly in class. Written electronic feedback will be given on the reflective essay and the end-of-course essay. Students are also invited to schedule an individual feedback session where this can be further discussed in person and where an essay plan for the end-of-course essay can also be discussed. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- demonstrate knowledge and critical understanding of the primary and secondary literature related to this course
- demonstrate the ability to construct and express an argument in oral and written form in relation to contemporary German literature in a transnational context
- apply analytical skills to the primary and secondary literature and engage in critical close reading, drawing on a range of sources
- present and convey to peers specialised information on topics related to this course
- exercise independence and initiative in research-related activities under the guidance of the tutor and in working with peers
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Reading List
Beilein, Matthias, Claudia Stockinger, and Simone Winko, ed., Kanon, Wertung und Vermittlung: Literatur in der Wissensgesellschaft, Studien und Texte zur Sozialgeschichte der Literatur, 129 (Berlin and New York: de Gruyter, 2011)
Braun, Rebecca, and Andrew Piper, eds., World Authorship, special issue Seminar: A Journal of Germanic Studies, 51.2 (2015), esp.
Rebecca Braun, 'Introduction: The Rise of the World Author from the Death of World Literature', 81-99
Braun, Rebecca, 'Prize Germans? Changing Notions of Germanness and the Role of the Award-Winning Author into the Twenty-First Century', Oxford German Studies, 43. 1 (2014), 37-54
Herrmann, Leonhard, 'Kanon und Gegenwart: Theorie und Praxis des literarischen Kanons im Zeichen von Historizität, Pluralität und Dynamik', in Kanon und Literaturgeschichte: Facetten einer Diskussion, ed. by Ina Karg and Barbara Jessen, Germanistik -- Didaktik -- Unterricht, 12 (Frankfurt/Main: Peter Lang, 2014), pp. 15-34
Herrmann, Elisabeth, Carrie Smith-Prei, and Stuart Taberner (eds), Transnationalism in Contemporary German-Language Literature (Rochester, NY: Camden House, 2015)
Herrmann, Leonhard, and Silke Horstkotte, Gegenwartsliteratur, Lehrbuch Germanistik (Stuttgart and Weimar: Metzler, 2016), esp.
Silke Horstkotte and Leonhard Herrmann, 'Poetiken der Gegenwart: Eine Einleitung', pp. 1-11
Christoph Jürgendsen, 'Würdige Popularität: Überlegungen zur Konsekrationsinstanz "Literaturpreis" im gegenwärtigen literarischen Feld', pp. 285-302
---, eds, Poetiken der Gegenwart: Der deutschsprachige Roman nach 2000 (Berlin and New York: de Gruyter, 2013)
Lützeler, Paul Michael, Erin McGlothlin, and Jennifer Kapczynski, eds, Gegenwartsliteratur: Ein germanistisches Jahrbuch / A German Studies Yearbook (Tübingen: Stauffenburg, 2002-)
Ryan, Judith, The Novel after Theory (New York: Columbia University Press, 2012)
Taberner, Stuart, 'Transnationalism in Contemporary German-Language Writing by Non-Minority Writers', Seminar, 47:5 (2011), 624-46
---, 'German Fiction in the Age of Globalisation', in German Culture, Politics and Literature into the Twenty-First Century: Beyond Normalization, ed. by Paul Cooke and Stuart Taberner (Rochester: Camden House, 2006), pp. 209-21
---, ed., German Literature in the Age of Globalisation (Birmingham: Birmingham University Press, 2004)
www.deutscher-buchpreis.de |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Students will develop graduate skills in all four clusters of ability: A) research and inquiry; B) personal and intellectual autonomy; C) communication; and D) personal effectiveness. In particular students will:
A) be able to exercise critical judgement in creating new understanding; be ready to ask key questions; be able to critically assess existing understanding and the limitations of their own knowledge and recognise the need to regularly challenge all knowledge; search for, evaluate and use information to develop their knowledge and understanding; recognise the importance of reflecting on their learning experiences and be aware of their own learning style
B) be open to new ideas, methods and ways of thinking; be creative and imaginative thinkers; be independent learners; be able to make decisions; be intellectually curious
C) make effective use of oral, written and visual means to critique, negotiate, create and communicate understanding; seek and value open feedback to inform genuine self-awareness
D) have the confidence to make decisions based on their understandings and their personal and intellectual autonomy; be able to work effectively with others |
| Keywords | contemporary literature,literary prizes,literary trends,literary markets,canons |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Frauke Matthes
Tel: (0131 6)51 1483
Email: Frauke.Matthes@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mr Craig Adams
Tel: (0131 6)50 3646
Email: craig.adams@ed.ac.uk |
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