Course overview

This course, composed of new texts, builds on similar courses on German literature given by Stephen Smith. Four novels and one poet will be analysed and placed in context over the 10 weeks’ duration of the course. The first text, The Passenger by Ulrich Alexander Boschwitz, was actually written in 1938, but having recently been rediscovered, it is too good not to include. We will begin with this novel and then explore: Vertigo - WG Sebald. Lost - Hans Ulrich Treichel. Kairos - Jenny Erpenbeck. The Poetry of Durs Grunbein. The course will offer great scope for discussion of excellent texts, which are intellectually, imaginatively and emotional stimulating.

Course description

Each of the texts and authors will be studied in depth, with context, textual analysis, and an investigation of the text’s style and unique themes to the fore. In Boschwitz’s work, we will recognise a terrible prescience, and this will create the stage for our later assessments of the themes of memory, guilt, and German suffering itself in the post-war years. Each of these themes will provoke us to consider moral, ethical and philosophical responses to the trauma of mid-century Germany and Europe, a legacy with which we are still contending.

Our second text, Vertigo by the late, and were it but for his untimely death, a Nobel Prize winner in waiting, is a genre defying tale of pursuit and the pursuit of memory across Europe. Our third text, Lost, will illustrate the persistence of memory but in the context of a family’s loss through displacement.

Our fourth and last novel is Kairos by Jenny Erpenbeck, which has enjoyed widespread praise since its publication. It is a beautiful and profound work.

Our final author is the poet Durs Grunbein, among Germany’s leading post-war poets, and we will evaluate a selection of his poems, discovering in these works a sensitivity of perspective and humanity.

The course offers much to discover and discuss and illustrates why German writers have been at the forefront of postwar European literature.

What financial support is available?

We don't want anything to stand in your way when it comes to bringing Adult learning within reach so if you need anything to support you to achieve your goals then speak to one of our education experts during your enrolment journey. Most of our courses are government funded but if you don't qualify or need alternative financial help to access them then let us know.

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All of our digital content, teaching and learning activities and assessments are designed to be accessible so if you need any additional support you can discuss this with the education experts during your enrolment journey and we will do all we can to make sure you have optimal access.

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