Unit name | Representing the Holocaust |
---|---|
Unit code | GERM32054 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | H/6 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
Unit director | Dr. Debbie Pinfold |
Open unit status | Open |
Pre-requisites |
None |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | Department of German |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Theodor Adorno's statement in 1951 that it was 'barbaric' to write poetry after Auschwitz has been variously (mis)interpreted by German authors as a prohibition on art after and especially about the Holocaust and as a challenge to find new aesthetic strategies. This unit will take Adorno's comment as a starting point for exploring a wide range of different artistic responses to the Holocaust, including memorials, documentary film and theatre, autobiography, narrative fiction, poetry, graphic novels and feature films. Texts considered will range from the immediate post-war period to the present day in order to chart developing attitudes to this material and consider what aesthetic strategies may be most appropriate/effective in dealing with it. Students will be encouraged to develop their capacity for critical analysis through close reading and seminar discussion.
Aims:
The unit is open subject to sufficient knowledge of German.
Students will:
Students will be introduced to the broad context by means of informal lectures. The unit will be taught mainly through seminar discussions based on students close reading of the set texts, which will be supported by worksheets to be prepared before classes. Students will also be expected to deliver short oral presentations based on their own reading and research.
2 essays of approximately 3,000 words, each counting for 50% of the unit mark