German

The varieties of German differ in the lexis and pronunciation of words as well as in morphology, morphosyntax, syntax, and lexical semantics. In the course of this seminar, we will deal with various such variation phenomena from both a theoretical and an empirical perspective 

The seminar deals with the literary representations of insects. The introduction to the topic is the Czech play by the Capek brothers “From the Life of Insects” from the 1920s, in which the society of the interwar period is criticized in an allegorical manner. The traces of this short text can be found in the Russian novel “The Life of Insects” by Viktor Pelevin. The novel captures another transformative era - the geopolitical change of the 1990s following the collapse of the Soviet Union. The characters show the characteristics of insects, but act like humans and experience both physical and social metamorphoses. In addition to considering the obvious intertextual references, the inclusion of Jan Švankmajer's animated film “Insects”, a free film adaptation of the play, also opens up a further intermedia perspective. The theoretical focus is on the concepts of allegory, metaphor and metamorphosis. Knowledge of the Slavic languages (Czech/Russian) is not a prerequisite for participation.

After decades of division and the restoration of urban normality after 1990, Berlin is in a situation that makes it sensible and exciting to take a look back at the “Golden Times” of the 1920s and compare them with the questions and problems of today's situation. With the founding of the Weimar Republic in 1918, the political framework conditions were in place to reorganize the Berlin area. The city of Berlin in its current area was created on October 1, 1920 with the “Greater Berlin Law”, which brought about the merger with 7 other cities, 59 rural communities and 27 manor districts. After this merger, Berlin developed into a metropolis in the 1920s that is still considered a symbol of modernity today. The 1920s were only “golden” for a few, but against the background of the size and anonymity of the megacity and the freedoms guaranteed by the new republic, the 1920s appeared to be a time of experiments, attractions and the fascination for the new. What problems had to be overcome back then and what solution strategies were tested and implemented? And what ideas about the future of Berlin were developed back then? Against the background outlined and in a comparative perspective, the seminar will deal with questions of local administration, economy and work, housing, transport and infrastructure and, in two main areas, with questions about population and migration as well as the offers of culture and cultural workers. Excursions in the city area and visits to museums/exhibitions are planned for the areas listed. 

This course focuses on deepening the knowledge of selected topics in personality psychology as well as the practical application of the knowledge and methods. This includes the evaluation and interpretation of psychodiagnostic methods of personality psychology as well as a critical confrontation with empirical studies from primary literature.

Hannah Arendt's work has become a classic of modern political theory, drawing on themes of totalitarian rule, flight, and statelessness. In the context of current crises, such as the climate crisis and the global conflict between authoritarianism and liberal democracy, Arendt's concept of politics reemerges as relevant.  At the heart of this conflict is Russia's attack on Ukraine and Hamas's attack on Israel. Moscow has become the center of a new form of fascism. Russia's aggression against Ukraine is, alongside man-made climate change, the greatest catastrophe of our time. Why were we unable to recognize the signs of impending disaster? Everything is possible, even in this century. The elements and origins of totalitarian rule remain relevant. "The meaning of politics is freedom," wrote Hannah Arendt, a meaning that we have lost sight of in times of peace and prosperity. But what does the controversial term freedom actually mean? How is the distortion of freedom at the expense of people and nature connected to the destruction of a free society? Arendt's thoughts on freedom go beyond today's understanding of liberalism: individual freedom and community spirit are interdependent. Hannah Arendt allows us to rethink freedom.

As a global conflict impacting society and culture, the Cold War poses a unique challenge for Musical historiography. While historians concentrate on the „superpowers“, the USA and the Soviet Union, the developing field of Cold War studies is emphasising the importance of smaller countries caught between west and east governments. With this expansion and new focus of our perspective, we are revising and pluralising our historiographical methods to make the dynamic national/historical borders of the Cold War more visible. The course uses the approach of political musical history to conceptualise the era. At the same time we also study broader Cold War history and new perspectives on national/international musical historiography.

The course focuses on analogue drawing of real urban and natural motifs (urban/nature sketching). We focus on drawing techniques, knowledge of materials and examples from the rich world of illustration. With the help of exercises, different techniques and graphic languages are tried out, and your own style can gradually be discovered and developed. We will work outdoors directly on the motif as much as possible.

This lecture introduces and analyzes the different aspects categorized under social psychology. Some topics include social cognition, aggression versus prosocial behavior, group dynamics, and how attitudes develop and vary. Additionally, students will learn how to analyze different studies and theories and apply them to themselves and other real life scenarios.

In this course we want to explore together how German music changes and which historical contexts are reflected in popular music. We will look at selected artists and songs from German music history and discuss their cultural and musicological meanings. The course deals with German music history and its most formative works. The focus is on the period from 1920 to the present. The aim is to bring together historical developments with their manifestations music and to discuss which changes, especially in popular music, can be identified and analyzed musicologically. We will look at compositions, song lyrics and historical backgrounds in order to gain an understanding of the developments that led us to the forms of contemporary German music.