After defining the distinction between „serious“ culture and „popular“ („mass“) culture, the course will discuss differences and commonalities between East and West German popular culture, as well as the defining characteristics of German culture after unification. Students will watch, listen to and discuss prominent movies, musical recordings and literature while focusing on, among other things, the importance of spectator sports, - especially football („soccer“) - for the development of German national identity, and the specific role of popular music for shaping „alternative“ cultures in both Germanys. The course will end with a discussion of the so-called „Spaßkultur“ (fun culture), “Kulturindustrie” in post-unification Germany. Students will also visit popular culture events in Berlin
Prerequisites:
None
Learning outcomes:
Students should:
- Understand the term „Pop culture“ and its meaning in Germany
- Have a general overview and understanding about the development of pop culture in Germany after WW II
- Make a presentation about a prominent figure, genre or subject in German pop culture
- Have experienced first hand a German pop culture event and be able to critically analyze it
Method of presentation:
Lectures, student presentations, film and music clips, discussions
- Preparation of materials for discussion in class
- Oral presentation of a chosen topic in German pop culture
- Participation in excursions to important pop culture sites
- Participation and demonstration of critical thinking skills during class and discussions
Required work and form of assessment:
Final grades are based on a midterm (20%), a final examination (30%), a class presentation (30%), and oral participation throughout the course (20%).
content:
Week 1
Introduction to the topic, work assignment. Concepts and genres: popular culture, cultural industry, mass culture. The historical-political context of German popular culture.
Week 2
West German society after the war: between Americanization and Anti-Americanism? German „Schlager“ vs. US-American Pop music. Jazz and Rock n’ roll in the 50’s.
The culture of the “Groschenhefte”. The youth-magazine BRAVO. The East German post war society: antifascist
new beginning.
Films: Ehe der Maria Braun, Karbid und Sauerampfer, Die Halbstarken
Week 3
Subjects and their comparative cultural representations: The division of Germany and the Wall. Coming to terms with Nazism. Jews and Germans. Gender and homosexuality.
Films: Coming out, Schtonk, Sonnenallee, Alles auf Zucker.
Week 4
Popular culture in East Germany. The efforts of the government to ward off West German influences, the effort to come up with its own cultural ideals. Cultural change in the GDR. Plays, films and books by young authors. Tramps, freaks and hippies: alternative life styles and cultures. East German rock music and songwriters.
Films: Documentaries on DDR-Rockmusik, Spur der Steine, Die Legende von Paul und Paula, Die Leiden des jungen W.
Week 5
Song writers in East and West Germany. GDR: Oktoberklub. Festival des politischen Liedes. Karls Enkel. Artists who played a role in both Germanys: Bettina Wegener, the case of Wolf Biermannn. FRG: Udo Lindenberg,
Heinz Rudolf Kunze, Herbert Grönemeyer, Marius Müller Westernhagen, Reinhard Mey.
Week 6
The “68 movement“ in the FRG and its meaning for the cultural change. Clash of the generations, anti- authoritarian revolt and protesting the Vietnam War. Rock music and hippies, sexual liberation and feminism.
Films: Dokus über Studenten -und Jugendrevolte.
Week 7
The 70s and 80s in West Germany. The aftermath of the “68 movement“: The case of Joschka Fischer. The Red
Army Faction (RAF).
Films: Männer, Die bleierne Zeit, Deutschland im Herbst, Heimat.
Week 8
The East German revolution and the collapse of the GDR. Opposition and cultural visions of true socialism. Slogans of November 89.
Films: Konzertfilme / Documentaries.
Week 9
Popular culture in unified Germany. The filming of unified Germany. Soccer and its meaning for German
national identity. Soccer and racism. Soccer fans. The miracle of Bern and the German miracle of the World Cup in 2006. Press reports of the World Cup.
Films: Lola rennt, Good-bye, Lenin, Das Wunder von Bern, Das Wunder von Bern - Die wahre Geschichte.
Week 10
Fun culture, „Volksmusik” and soap operas, TV-shows and talk shows. New media and alternative cultures, graffiti and street art, multicultural rap and poetry slamming.
Required readings:
A reader will be provided.
Recommended readings:
Glaser, Hermann. Kleine deutsche Kulturgeschichte von 1945 bis heute. Frankfurt/M 2004.
Graf, Christian. Rocklexikon Deutschland. Die deutsche Musikszene in mehr als 700 Stichworten. Berlin 2002. Grass, Günter. Mein Jahrhundert. Göttingen 1999.
Hobsch. Manfred (Hg.) Liebe, Tanz und 1000 Schlagerfilme. Berlin 1999
Hügel, Hans-Otto (Hg.). Handbuch Populäre Kultur. Stuttgart 2003
Jäger, Manfred. Kultur und Politik in der DDR. Köln 1994.
Links, Christoph. My Generation. Berlin: Cocker, Dylan, Lindenberg und die verlorene Zeit, 1991. Maase, Kaspar. Bravo Amerika. Hamburg: Erkundungen zur Jugendkultur in den 50er Jahren, 1992.
Maase, Kaspar. Grenzenloses Vergnügen. Der Aufstieg der Massenkultur 1850 – 1970. Hamburg 1997.
Rauhut, Michael. Beat in der Grauzone. DDR-Rock 1964 bis 1972 – Politik und Alltag. Berlin 1993.
Rauhut, Michael and Thomas Kochan. Bye, bye, Lübben City. Bluesfreaks, Tramps und Hippies in der DDR. Berlin: Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf, 2004.
Rutschky, Michael. Wie wir Amerikaner wurden. Eine deutsche Entwicklungsgeschichte. Berlin 2004. Schmidt-Joos, Siegfried and Wolf Kampmann (Hg.). Pop-Lexikon. Hamburg 2002.
Seeßlen, Georg. Tanz den Adolf Hitler. Faschismus in der populären Kultur. Berlin 2001. Steinert, Heinz. Kulturindustrie. Münster 2002.
Wicke, Peter and Lothar Müller. Rockmusik und Politik. Analysen, Interviews und Dokumente. Berlin 1996.
Novels
Braun, Volker. Das ungezwungene Leben Kasts. Hensel, Jana. Wir Zonenkinder. Hamburg 2004. Loest, Erich. Es geht seinen Gang.
Schlesinger, Klaus. Alte Filme.
Stefan, Verena. Häutungen.
Wander, Maxi. Guten Morgen. Du Schöne.
Music
Hans Albers
Roy Black
Wolf Biermann
Bushido
Einstürzende Neubauten
Herbert Grönemeyer
Nina Hagen
Heino Keimzeit Manfred Krug
Heinz Rudolf Kunze Udo Lindenberg Peter Maffay
Massiv
Reinhard Mey Gerhard Schöne Silly
Sportfreunde Stiller
Ton, Steine, Scherben
Bettina Wegener
Marius Müller Westernhagen
Films
Alles auf Zucker (Dani Levy, 2004)
Die bleierne Zeit (Margarethe von Trotta, 1981) Coming Out (Heiner Carow, 1989)
Deutschland im Herbst (Alf Brustellin and Hans Peter Cloos, 1978) Du bist nicht allein (Bernd Böhlich, 2007)
Good-bye Lenin (Wolfgang Becker, 2003) Heimat (Dietmar Höss, 2003)
Das Leben der Anderen (Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, 2006) Die Legende von Paul und Paula (Heiner Carow, 1973)
Die Leiden des jungen W. (Egon Günther, 1976) Lola rennt (Tom Tykwer, 1998)
Männer (Doris Dörrie, 1985)
Schtonk (Helmut Dietl, 1992) Schwarze Schafe (Oliver Rihs, 2006)
Sommer vorm Balkon (Andreas Dresen, 2005) Sonnenallee (Leander Haußmann, 1999)
Spur der Steine (Frank Beyer, 1966)
Die Nachrichten (Matti Geschonneck, 2005)
Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum (Volker Schlöndorff and Margarethe von Trotta, 1975) Das Wunder von Bern (Sönke Wortmann, 2003)
After defining the distinction between „serious“ culture and „popular“ („mass“) culture, the course will discuss differences and commonalities between East and West German popular culture, as well as the defining characteristics of German culture after unification. Students will watch, listen to and discuss prominent movies, musical recordings and literature while focusing on, among other things, the importance of spectator sports, - especially football („soccer“) - for the development of German national identity, and the specific role of popular music for shaping „alternative“ cultures in both Germanys. The course will end with a discussion of the so-called „Spaßkultur“ (fun culture), “Kulturindustrie” in post-unification Germany. Students will also visit popular culture events in Berlin
None
Students should:
- Understand the term „Pop culture“ and its meaning in Germany
- Have a general overview and understanding about the development of pop culture in Germany after WW II
- Make a presentation about a prominent figure, genre or subject in German pop culture
- Have experienced first hand a German pop culture event and be able to critically analyze it
Lectures, student presentations, film and music clips, discussions
- Preparation of materials for discussion in class
- Oral presentation of a chosen topic in German pop culture
- Participation in excursions to important pop culture sites
- Participation and demonstration of critical thinking skills during class and discussions
Final grades are based on a midterm (20%), a final examination (30%), a class presentation (30%), and oral participation throughout the course (20%).
Week 1
Introduction to the topic, work assignment. Concepts and genres: popular culture, cultural industry, mass culture. The historical-political context of German popular culture.
Week 2
West German society after the war: between Americanization and Anti-Americanism? German „Schlager“ vs. US-American Pop music. Jazz and Rock n’ roll in the 50’s.
The culture of the “Groschenhefte”. The youth-magazine BRAVO. The East German post war society: antifascist
new beginning.
Films: Ehe der Maria Braun, Karbid und Sauerampfer, Die Halbstarken
Week 3
Subjects and their comparative cultural representations: The division of Germany and the Wall. Coming to terms with Nazism. Jews and Germans. Gender and homosexuality.
Films: Coming out, Schtonk, Sonnenallee, Alles auf Zucker.
Week 4
Popular culture in East Germany. The efforts of the government to ward off West German influences, the effort to come up with its own cultural ideals. Cultural change in the GDR. Plays, films and books by young authors. Tramps, freaks and hippies: alternative life styles and cultures. East German rock music and songwriters.
Films: Documentaries on DDR-Rockmusik, Spur der Steine, Die Legende von Paul und Paula, Die Leiden des jungen W.
Week 5
Song writers in East and West Germany. GDR: Oktoberklub. Festival des politischen Liedes. Karls Enkel. Artists who played a role in both Germanys: Bettina Wegener, the case of Wolf Biermannn. FRG: Udo Lindenberg,
Heinz Rudolf Kunze, Herbert Grönemeyer, Marius Müller Westernhagen, Reinhard Mey.
Week 6
The “68 movement“ in the FRG and its meaning for the cultural change. Clash of the generations, anti- authoritarian revolt and protesting the Vietnam War. Rock music and hippies, sexual liberation and feminism.
Films: Dokus über Studenten -und Jugendrevolte.
Week 7
The 70s and 80s in West Germany. The aftermath of the “68 movement“: The case of Joschka Fischer. The Red
Army Faction (RAF).
Films: Männer, Die bleierne Zeit, Deutschland im Herbst, Heimat.
Week 8
The East German revolution and the collapse of the GDR. Opposition and cultural visions of true socialism. Slogans of November 89.
Films: Konzertfilme / Documentaries.
Week 9
Popular culture in unified Germany. The filming of unified Germany. Soccer and its meaning for German
national identity. Soccer and racism. Soccer fans. The miracle of Bern and the German miracle of the World Cup in 2006. Press reports of the World Cup.
Films: Lola rennt, Good-bye, Lenin, Das Wunder von Bern, Das Wunder von Bern - Die wahre Geschichte.
Week 10
Fun culture, „Volksmusik” and soap operas, TV-shows and talk shows. New media and alternative cultures, graffiti and street art, multicultural rap and poetry slamming.
A reader will be provided.
Glaser, Hermann. Kleine deutsche Kulturgeschichte von 1945 bis heute. Frankfurt/M 2004.
Graf, Christian. Rocklexikon Deutschland. Die deutsche Musikszene in mehr als 700 Stichworten. Berlin 2002. Grass, Günter. Mein Jahrhundert. Göttingen 1999.
Hobsch. Manfred (Hg.) Liebe, Tanz und 1000 Schlagerfilme. Berlin 1999
Hügel, Hans-Otto (Hg.). Handbuch Populäre Kultur. Stuttgart 2003
Jäger, Manfred. Kultur und Politik in der DDR. Köln 1994.
Links, Christoph. My Generation. Berlin: Cocker, Dylan, Lindenberg und die verlorene Zeit, 1991. Maase, Kaspar. Bravo Amerika. Hamburg: Erkundungen zur Jugendkultur in den 50er Jahren, 1992.
Maase, Kaspar. Grenzenloses Vergnügen. Der Aufstieg der Massenkultur 1850 – 1970. Hamburg 1997.
Rauhut, Michael. Beat in der Grauzone. DDR-Rock 1964 bis 1972 – Politik und Alltag. Berlin 1993.
Rauhut, Michael and Thomas Kochan. Bye, bye, Lübben City. Bluesfreaks, Tramps und Hippies in der DDR. Berlin: Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf, 2004.
Rutschky, Michael. Wie wir Amerikaner wurden. Eine deutsche Entwicklungsgeschichte. Berlin 2004. Schmidt-Joos, Siegfried and Wolf Kampmann (Hg.). Pop-Lexikon. Hamburg 2002.
Seeßlen, Georg. Tanz den Adolf Hitler. Faschismus in der populären Kultur. Berlin 2001. Steinert, Heinz. Kulturindustrie. Münster 2002.
Wicke, Peter and Lothar Müller. Rockmusik und Politik. Analysen, Interviews und Dokumente. Berlin 1996.
Novels
Braun, Volker. Das ungezwungene Leben Kasts. Hensel, Jana. Wir Zonenkinder. Hamburg 2004. Loest, Erich. Es geht seinen Gang.
Schlesinger, Klaus. Alte Filme.
Stefan, Verena. Häutungen.
Wander, Maxi. Guten Morgen. Du Schöne.
Music
Hans Albers
Roy Black
Wolf Biermann
Bushido
Einstürzende Neubauten
Herbert Grönemeyer
Nina Hagen
Heino Keimzeit Manfred Krug
Heinz Rudolf Kunze Udo Lindenberg Peter Maffay
Massiv
Reinhard Mey Gerhard Schöne Silly
Sportfreunde Stiller
Ton, Steine, Scherben
Bettina Wegener
Marius Müller Westernhagen
Films
Alles auf Zucker (Dani Levy, 2004)
Die bleierne Zeit (Margarethe von Trotta, 1981) Coming Out (Heiner Carow, 1989)
Deutschland im Herbst (Alf Brustellin and Hans Peter Cloos, 1978) Du bist nicht allein (Bernd Böhlich, 2007)
Good-bye Lenin (Wolfgang Becker, 2003) Heimat (Dietmar Höss, 2003)
Das Leben der Anderen (Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, 2006) Die Legende von Paul und Paula (Heiner Carow, 1973)
Die Leiden des jungen W. (Egon Günther, 1976) Lola rennt (Tom Tykwer, 1998)
Männer (Doris Dörrie, 1985)
Schtonk (Helmut Dietl, 1992) Schwarze Schafe (Oliver Rihs, 2006)
Sommer vorm Balkon (Andreas Dresen, 2005) Sonnenallee (Leander Haußmann, 1999)
Spur der Steine (Frank Beyer, 1966)
Die Nachrichten (Matti Geschonneck, 2005)
Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum (Volker Schlöndorff and Margarethe von Trotta, 1975) Das Wunder von Bern (Sönke Wortmann, 2003)