Prof. Dr. Holger Kersten
Anglistik/Amerikanistik
Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg
Institut für Anglistik und Amerikanistik

 
 

Veranstaltungen im Sommersemester 2005

PS Literaturstudien
American Ethnic Writing: Selected Readings
Di 9-11 h
 

One of the ways of learning about America is to read what representatives of different ethnic groups have to say about their home. The texts to be read and studied in this class include stories recording the experiences of the nation's first inhabitants, its oldest immigrants, and its more recent arrivals. Among the issues raised within the analytical framework of this class are questions of identity and family, the search for self-expression, and the problem of community. – Since this is not an introduction to the study of American literature, participants are expected to be familiar with the basic tools of textual analysis. Students wishing to sign up for this class should be aware that a significant amount of reading will have to be done during the entire semester. Active and informed participation is a basic requirement, and the semester's work will have to be documented in the form of a portfolio. A course pack with the basic reading requirements will be made available by the beginning of term.

HS Kulturstudien
Industrial Life and Social Reform in 19th Century America
Di 11-13 h
  Departing from a reading of Rebecca Harding Davis's Life in the Iron Mills, this class will expand its initial theme by examining the historical and cultural contexts of this novella. Special attention will be given to the problems of work and social class, to the debates surrounding moral and social reform, to the relationship of American art and industry, and the position of the woman writer. – Students wishing to sign up for this class must be willing to work on a variety of oral and written assignments throughout the semester. They are required to keep a written record of their study efforts (portfolio). To maximize the time available for the analysis and the discussion of the topics mentioned above, it is important for students to have read the novella by the beginning of term. – There will be no photocopied reading material for this class. Instead, students will have to buy the book which includes all the required texts. Make sure you order your copy ahead of time so that you have the book when classes begin in April. – Required text (make sure you get exactly this edition): Rebecca Harding Davis. Life in the Iron Mills (Bedford Cultural Editions.) Ed. Cecelia Tichi. Boston: Bedford Books, 1998.

Einführung Kulturstudien
Introduction to Canadian Studies
Mi 11-13 h

 

By focusing on the physical, historical, political, social, and cultural aspects of Canada, this course will introduce students to fundamental aspects of Canadian culture. The topics will include, among other things, Canada's historical development, its political system, the issue of multiculturalism, and the question of regional identities. – As usual, students who sign up for this class are expected to work on a series of assignments. Together with a final exam, a portfolio, collecting the work done in the course of the term, will be required for a "Schein." A course pack containing the reading material will be made available by the beginning of term.

HS Literaturstudien
Female Alternatives to Life in 19th-Century America:
Kate Chopin and Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Mi 9-11 h
 

The Awakening and The Yellow Wallpaper are among the most celebrated literary texts written by American women in the late nineteenth century. In their concern with questions of social control, health, and sexuality they address fundamental issues of American culture in their time. This course is designed to study these questions through various prisms of literary and cultural criticism. – Requirements for this class include the completion of various oral and written assignments and the submission of a portfolio, the written record of the studies undertaken throughout the semester. To maximize the time available for the analysis and the discussion of the topics mentioned above, it is important for students to have read the two texts by the beginning of term. – There will be no photocopied reading material for this class. Instead, participants need to buy the two books which include all the required texts. Make sure you order your copies ahead of time so that you have the books when classes begin in April. – Required texts (make sure you get exactly these editions): 1) Kate Chopin. The Awakening (Case Studies in Contemporary Criticism). Ed. Nancy A. Walker. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2000. 2) Charlotte Perkins Gilman. The Yellow Wallpaper (Bedford Cultural Edition). Ed. Dale Bauer. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 1998.

 
  Version vom 30.08.2018