GERST 1102

FWS: Disorderly Subjects: Building, Breaking, and Remaking Culture

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2014-2015.

What might be revolutionary about the power of writing to rearrange what society considers 'normal'? How can stories change our view of events?  This course will explore theoretical discussions about modern revolutions (Arendt, Kant, Marx) as well as cinematic and literary examples (Kleist, Porumboiu, Hensel, Wolf) to watch as language builds, disrupts, and rearranges social orders. Through critical engagement with these texts, we will investigate how power works in society and experiment with the potential of language to remake the worlds it names. Formal essay assignments will draw on textual analysis and critical discussion of course readings to help you practice effective academic writing and develop your own world-making writing skills.

When Offered Spring.

Satisfies Requirement First-Year Writing Seminar.

Comments No knowledge of German is expected.

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