German Literature 1
A.Y. 2024/2025
Learning objectives
The course aims to introduce learners to the study of German literature at university level and to provide them with knowledge and skills both in cultural-historical perspective and in terms of methodology, close-reading, philological and critical issues, . After a brief overview of the many centuries prior to the beginning of modern German literature, the aim is in particular to introduce them through remote teaching into literary movements, trends, genres, texts, themes and authors of the Age of Enlightenment (c. 1700-1789) and the Classic Romantic Age (c. 1789-1815). The main learning objective is thus to provide a solid foundation to advanced study of the discipline, combining literary-historical aspects and analytical practices with an in-depth study of specific topics/works (depending on the academic year), so as to train the student in analysis and interpretation of salient issues of modern German literature in its European context.
Expected learning outcomes
Knowledge and understanding: essential features of German History and Culture of the Middle Ages and of the Early Modern period; in-depth knowledge and understanding of German Literature between 1700 and 1815 ca.; in-depth knowledge and critical understanding of selected topics of modern German literature. Applying knowledge and understanding: use of historical-literary, analytical, critical tools; skills in tutored self-study with multimedia platforms; skills in close reading of selected texts (also in German as far as formal features are concerned), skills in discussing genres, trends, authors, works and themes of the given period; reading and individual analysis of complete works; ability to deal with German Studies tools and critical readings (in Italian).
Lesson period: year
Assessment methods: Esame
Assessment result: voto verbalizzato in trentesimi
Single course
This course cannot be attended as a single course. Please check our list of single courses to find the ones available for enrolment.
Course syllabus and organization
Single session
Responsible
Lesson period
year
The course takes place in the classroom and is accompanied by supplementary teaching activities to be carried out in asynchronous self-study (1st and 2nd semester)
If strictly necessary, the following emergency teaching practices will be adopted.
Teaching methods:
The course will be held (as well as in attendance, if possible, in any case according to university guidelines) by online synchronous online lectures using Teams. Lessons will not be recorded.
Reference materials:
No changes are planned.
Learning verification procedures and assessment criteria:
No changes are planned (papers + oral interview, if necessary in videoconferencing on MS Teams)
If strictly necessary, the following emergency teaching practices will be adopted.
Teaching methods:
The course will be held (as well as in attendance, if possible, in any case according to university guidelines) by online synchronous online lectures using Teams. Lessons will not be recorded.
Reference materials:
No changes are planned.
Learning verification procedures and assessment criteria:
No changes are planned (papers + oral interview, if necessary in videoconferencing on MS Teams)
Course syllabus
Title of the course: "The elegiac genre and German Literature from the Middle Ages to Romanticism"
Part A: The elegy in German Literature: history, theory, writing
Part B: The German Elegy in the Age of Classicism and Romanticism
Part C: Reading the Canon of German Literature
The course delivers 9 credits; teaching parts are all compulsory.
The course deals with German literature from the Middle Ages to Romanticism, on the elegy as a genre of modern European literature and, in particular, in its German development in the Age of Classicism and Romanticism. Special attention will be devoted to Goethe, Schiller, and Hölderlin. Unit C will focus on methods of reading literary texts from the German canon up to Romanticism.
The course includes integrative multimedia practical classes during both semesters (see ARIEL): this leads the learner to develop historical-literary knowledge and textual analysis skills with reference to German language literature from its origins to Romanticism. After a brief cultural-historical overview of the Middle Ages and of Early Modern Germany, the focus will be on movements, genres, texts, themes and authors in the Age of Enlightenment (ca. 1700-1789) and the Age of Classicism and Romanticism (ca. 1789-1815).
The course program is valid until September 2025. Starting with the exam term of December 2025 the program of the 2024-25 course will only be valid.
Part A: The elegy in German Literature: history, theory, writing
Part B: The German Elegy in the Age of Classicism and Romanticism
Part C: Reading the Canon of German Literature
The course delivers 9 credits; teaching parts are all compulsory.
The course deals with German literature from the Middle Ages to Romanticism, on the elegy as a genre of modern European literature and, in particular, in its German development in the Age of Classicism and Romanticism. Special attention will be devoted to Goethe, Schiller, and Hölderlin. Unit C will focus on methods of reading literary texts from the German canon up to Romanticism.
The course includes integrative multimedia practical classes during both semesters (see ARIEL): this leads the learner to develop historical-literary knowledge and textual analysis skills with reference to German language literature from its origins to Romanticism. After a brief cultural-historical overview of the Middle Ages and of Early Modern Germany, the focus will be on movements, genres, texts, themes and authors in the Age of Enlightenment (ca. 1700-1789) and the Age of Classicism and Romanticism (ca. 1789-1815).
The course program is valid until September 2025. Starting with the exam term of December 2025 the program of the 2024-25 course will only be valid.
Prerequisites for admission
No prerequisites for admission
Teaching methods
The course is delivered mainly as a lecture (overall introductions, methodological and historical perspectives, literary forms and terms, close readings of original texts; philological and critical issues). It also includes practical classes (remote teaching, multimedia tools, self assessment) in both first and second semester.
Teaching Resources
The course has a website on the "My Ariel" online teaching platform (Letteratura tedesca 1). There one finds materials for attending the course and preparing for the exam as well as further information and material.
Teaching parts A, B & C
The program of the three parts is unique and consists of three sections.
1) HANDBOOK OF GERMAN LITERATURE AND SELECTED TEXTS
C.M. Buglioni, M. Castellari, A. Goggio, M. Paleari: "Letteratura tedesca. Epoche, generi, intersezioni. Dal Medioevo al primo Novecento" (= vol. 1). Milano: Mondadori 2019, pp. 1-292 (from the Middle Ages to Romanticism) + all further materials regarding these contentsinsight boxes, glossary, tables etc.
2) READING OF FOUR ENTIRE WORKS
Each student must read four literary works.
It is recommended to read introductions and / or afterwords.
The choice between the various existing editions is free as long as they are integral versions.
One can read these works in German or in translation.
A) at least two of the following works by two different authors (XVIIIth century, please choose one drama and one narrative); the works are here listed in a chronological order:
- Ch.M. Wieland, "Musarion oder Die Philosophie der Grazien"
- G.E. Lessing, "Emilia Galotti"
- J.M. Lenz. "Die Soldaten"
- G.E. Lessing, "Nathan der Weise"
- J.W. Goethe, "Die Leiden des jungen Werther"
- F. Schiller, "Kabale und Liebe"
- J.W. Goethe, "Iphigenie auf Tauris"
- J.W. Goethe, "Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre"
- L. Tieck, "Der blonde Eckbert"
- F. Hölderlin, "Hyperion oder der Eremit in Griechenland"
B)
A) at least two of the following works by two different authors (XIXth century, please choose one drama and one narrative); the works are here listed in a chronological order:
- F. Schiller, "Maria Stuart"
- F. Schiller, "Wilhelm Tell"
- J.W. Goethe, "Faust" (Part One)
- J.W. Goethe, "Die Wahlverwandtschaften"
- H.v. Kleist, "Penthesilea"
- H.v. Kleist, "Prinz Friedrich von Homburg"
- A.v. Chamisso, "Peter Schlemihls wundersame Geschichte"
- E.T.A. Hoffmann, "Der goldene Topf"
- E.T.A. Hoffmann, "Der Sandmann"
- J.v. Eichendorff, "Aus dem Leben eines Taugenichts"
3) THE ELEGIAC GENRE
An anthology of texts and materials will be made available (class, study, oral interview).
Some general indications, also useful for non-attending students
- J.W. Goethe, "Römische Elegien" and other elegies taken from the poetic corpus (reference ed.: "I Meridiani", Mondadori)
- F. Schiller, "Über naive und sentimentalische Dichtung"
- F. Schiller, elegies from the poetic corpus (reference ed "Poesie filosofiche", Feltrinelli)
- F. Hölderlin, elegies taken from the poetic corpus (reference ed.: "I Meridiani", Mondadori)
Programme for non-attending students
The attendance of the course is highly recommended as it is one of the compulsory exams for those who study German Language and Literature in the context of Foreign Languages and Literatures.
During office hours, non-attending students (i.e. those who do not attend at all and those who attend less than 75% of the lessons) will be given further directions for the preparation of the exam.
In any case, it is foreseen for non-attendants:
- the extension of the number of individual readings to at least six works (3 of the first group, by three different authors, 3 of the second group, by three different authors, preserving the presence of both dramatic and narrative texts in both cases).
For the rest, the program coincides with that of attending students (the possibility of taking partial tests after taking practical classes in remote teaching is also offered to non-attending students)
Teaching parts A, B & C
The program of the three parts is unique and consists of three sections.
1) HANDBOOK OF GERMAN LITERATURE AND SELECTED TEXTS
C.M. Buglioni, M. Castellari, A. Goggio, M. Paleari: "Letteratura tedesca. Epoche, generi, intersezioni. Dal Medioevo al primo Novecento" (= vol. 1). Milano: Mondadori 2019, pp. 1-292 (from the Middle Ages to Romanticism) + all further materials regarding these contentsinsight boxes, glossary, tables etc.
2) READING OF FOUR ENTIRE WORKS
Each student must read four literary works.
It is recommended to read introductions and / or afterwords.
The choice between the various existing editions is free as long as they are integral versions.
One can read these works in German or in translation.
A) at least two of the following works by two different authors (XVIIIth century, please choose one drama and one narrative); the works are here listed in a chronological order:
- Ch.M. Wieland, "Musarion oder Die Philosophie der Grazien"
- G.E. Lessing, "Emilia Galotti"
- J.M. Lenz. "Die Soldaten"
- G.E. Lessing, "Nathan der Weise"
- J.W. Goethe, "Die Leiden des jungen Werther"
- F. Schiller, "Kabale und Liebe"
- J.W. Goethe, "Iphigenie auf Tauris"
- J.W. Goethe, "Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre"
- L. Tieck, "Der blonde Eckbert"
- F. Hölderlin, "Hyperion oder der Eremit in Griechenland"
B)
A) at least two of the following works by two different authors (XIXth century, please choose one drama and one narrative); the works are here listed in a chronological order:
- F. Schiller, "Maria Stuart"
- F. Schiller, "Wilhelm Tell"
- J.W. Goethe, "Faust" (Part One)
- J.W. Goethe, "Die Wahlverwandtschaften"
- H.v. Kleist, "Penthesilea"
- H.v. Kleist, "Prinz Friedrich von Homburg"
- A.v. Chamisso, "Peter Schlemihls wundersame Geschichte"
- E.T.A. Hoffmann, "Der goldene Topf"
- E.T.A. Hoffmann, "Der Sandmann"
- J.v. Eichendorff, "Aus dem Leben eines Taugenichts"
3) THE ELEGIAC GENRE
An anthology of texts and materials will be made available (class, study, oral interview).
Some general indications, also useful for non-attending students
- J.W. Goethe, "Römische Elegien" and other elegies taken from the poetic corpus (reference ed.: "I Meridiani", Mondadori)
- F. Schiller, "Über naive und sentimentalische Dichtung"
- F. Schiller, elegies from the poetic corpus (reference ed "Poesie filosofiche", Feltrinelli)
- F. Hölderlin, elegies taken from the poetic corpus (reference ed.: "I Meridiani", Mondadori)
Programme for non-attending students
The attendance of the course is highly recommended as it is one of the compulsory exams for those who study German Language and Literature in the context of Foreign Languages and Literatures.
During office hours, non-attending students (i.e. those who do not attend at all and those who attend less than 75% of the lessons) will be given further directions for the preparation of the exam.
In any case, it is foreseen for non-attendants:
- the extension of the number of individual readings to at least six works (3 of the first group, by three different authors, 3 of the second group, by three different authors, preserving the presence of both dramatic and narrative texts in both cases).
For the rest, the program coincides with that of attending students (the possibility of taking partial tests after taking practical classes in remote teaching is also offered to non-attending students)
Assessment methods and Criteria
The exam (written test + interview) has to be taken entirely in a single term.
Partial tests at the end of each term enable to avoid the written test (part 1) and take directly to the interview (which is focused only on part 2 and 3 of the syllabus).
Both written test and interview are in Italian, overall reference to original texts and basic knowledge of literary terms in German is requested too.
The exam consists of a preliminary written test (literary history, close reading of selected texts) which gives access to an oral test on the contents of the scheduled entire readings.
The exam aims to test knowledge and skills obtained during the entire course (frontal lessons, blended learning, individual study).
International or Erasmus incoming students are invited to contact the professor (mail; office hours). The examination procedures for students with disabilities and / or with DSA must be agreed with the professor, in agreement with the competent Office.
Partial tests at the end of each term enable to avoid the written test (part 1) and take directly to the interview (which is focused only on part 2 and 3 of the syllabus).
Both written test and interview are in Italian, overall reference to original texts and basic knowledge of literary terms in German is requested too.
The exam consists of a preliminary written test (literary history, close reading of selected texts) which gives access to an oral test on the contents of the scheduled entire readings.
The exam aims to test knowledge and skills obtained during the entire course (frontal lessons, blended learning, individual study).
International or Erasmus incoming students are invited to contact the professor (mail; office hours). The examination procedures for students with disabilities and / or with DSA must be agreed with the professor, in agreement with the competent Office.
Professor(s)
Reception:
TUE 4:30 p.m. -- please book an appointment
On Teams (code 0nzjzr4) or office hours (S. Alessandro)