GM4590: BORDER CROSSINGS: GERMAN TRAVEL WRITING THROUGHOUT THE AGES D (2020-2021)

Course Aims: This course aims to introduce students to canonical German texts, ranging from the reports of ancient travellers to contemporary writers, and to engage critically with the social and ethical commentary of these texts in the context of the changing attitudes to travel, notions of foreignness, and self-reflection. Main Learning Outcomes: Students will gain knowledge and understanding of a particular thread of German literature; Students will have improved their knowledge of the German language, and an appreciation of a range of narrative and literary styles Students will have improved their knowledge and understanding of German cultural and historical developments. Students will have developed analytical and conceptual approaches to a variety of literary texts. Students will assemble a coherent argument for presentation in oral or written work. In addition students will develop more general intellectual, and practical skills, including the ability to: (a) develop analytical, conceptual and theoretical approaches to a variety to texts; (b) engage with the process of learning in a constructive and self-motivated fashion; (c) read, order and analyse a body of material; (d) articulate views and present the findings of independent research (e) defend an argument both orally and in writing in an appropriate manner; (d) work to deadlines, either on their own or as part of a team; (e) listen effectively. Content: It has been claimed that travel writing incorporates the characters and plot line of a novel, the descriptive power of poetry, the substance of a history lesson, the discursiveness of an essay, and the-often inadvertent-self-revelation of a memoir. This module explores ways in which these literary genres combine to create a fictional / non-fictional account of the unique way travellers experience and describe the unfamiliar, how that reflects on themselves, and how it affects the reader. The journeys of discovery will include accounts such as the saga introducing the first white woman in the New world, Fontane's famous journey through Scotland, and Heinrich Boell's diary from Ireland.

Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.

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There are no assessments for this course.