GERM 325 - Transnationalism in Contemporary German Culture

Demographic changes in Europe’s largest country have transformed conceptions of its national culture. The discourse of transnationalism has emerged to address contemporary political and cultural phenomena no longer confined to the stages of nation-states. This course examines the transnational imagination at work in recent German cultural production, with an emphasis on cinematic negotiations of German and European identity. Factors contributing to these negotiations include the tenuous legacy of German unification, the consolidation of the European Union, and the migration of people to Germany, especially those with a non-European background. The course’s method of inquiry is multidisciplinary: a focus on contemporary films is supplemented with historical background, contemporary philosophy, and political essays. To address the aesthetic qualities of transnational cinema, students familiarize themselves with the terminology and methodologies of film studies and perform critical visual analyses of the cinematic material. Participation in the accompanying FLAC section is mandatory for students wishing to earn GERM major/minor credit for this course.

Credits: 1.00
Corequisite: GERM 325L
Prerequisites: None
Major/Minor Restrictions: None
Class Restriction: None
Recommended: FMST 200 is desirable but not required
Area of Inquiry: Human Thought and Expression
Liberal Arts CORE: None

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