Natalie Eppelsheimer
Assistant Professor of German
Email: eppelshe@middlebury.edu
Phone: work802.443.5238
Office Hours: Mon 10:00-11:00 a.m.; Wed 12:15-1:30 p.m., and by appointment
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Courses
Courses offered in the past four years.
▲ indicates offered in the current term
▹ indicates offered in the upcoming term[s]
CMLT 0310 / GRMN 0310 - Holocaust in Literature ▹
Representing the Unthinkable: The Holocaust in Literature (in English)
Can the Holocaust be described in words? Can images represent the horrors of Auschwitz? In this seminar we will explore the literary and artistic representations of the Shoah, their mechanisms, tensions, and challenges. We will approach the issues of Holocaust representations by considering a significant array of texts that span genres, national literatures, time, narrative and poetic styles, and historical situations. Readings will include theoretical texts on witnessing, memory, post-memory, and trauma by authors such as Sherman Alexie, Jean Amery, Hannah Arendt, Ilan Avisar, Tadeusz Borowski, Paul Celan, Chaim Kaplan, Ruth Kluger, Primo Levi, Bernhard Schlink, Art Spiegelman, Peter Weiss, and Eli Wiesel. 3 hrs. sem.
Spring 2014
FYSE 1408 - Environmntl Literature/Justice ▲
Environmental Literature and Justice
In this seminar we will embark on an exploration of environmental issues in American literary narratives. We will look at the environmental movement in the U.S. and read, analyze, discuss, and write about texts such as: Carson’s landmark work of 20th century environmental consciousness-raising, Silent Spring; Steinbeck’s novel about Dust Bowl migrants, The Grapes of Wrath; Silko’s protest against uranium mining and nuclear testing on indigenous lands in Ceremony; and Callenbach’s vision of an ecologically sustainable world in Ecotopia. By considering these and several other texts, we will also investigate environmental issues through the lens of the environmental justice movement and take a closer look at today’s environmental inequalities, encompassing race, class, and gender. 3 hrs. sem.
Fall 2013
GRMN 0101 - Beginning German ▲
Beginning German
Geared toward quick and early proficiency in comprehension and free expression. Grammatical structures are practiced through group activities and situational exercises (e.g., role-playing games and partner interviews). Active class participation by students is required and will be counted toward the final grade. Since this is an integrated approach, there will be laboratory assignments but no special drill sections. Classes meet five times a week. Students take GRMN 0102 as their winter term course. 5 hrs. lect.
Fall 2010, Fall 2012, Fall 2013
GRMN 0102 - Beginning German Continued ▹
Beginning German Continued
This course is the intensive continuation of GRMN 0101 which will further the development of your language skills in an immersion-like environment, and will include bi-weekly cultural readings in English. Classes meet for two hours each morning, then lunch at the language tables, in addition to afternoon and evening activities (e.g. film screenings). Completion of this course is a prerequisite to enrollment in GRMN 0103. (GRMN 0101 or equivalent)
Winter 2011, Winter 2014
GRMN 0103 - Beginning German Continued ▹
Beginning German Continued
This course is a continuation of GRMN 0101 and 0102. Increased emphasis on communicative competence through short oral presentations and the use of authentic German language materials (videos, songs, slides). Introduction to short prose writings and other documents relating to contemporary German culture. Five class meetings per week. (GRMN 0101 plus winter term GRMN 0102, or equivalent) 5 hrs. lect.
Spring 2010, Spring 2011, Spring 2013, Spring 2014
GRMN 0201 - Intermediate German
Intermediate German
GRMN 0201/0202 is a culture-based intermediate language sequence that focuses students' attention on intercultural aspects of language acquisition, vocabulary expansion, reading and writing strategies, and a review of grammar. It moves from a focus on issues of individual identity and personal experiences to a discussion of Germany today (GRMN 0201), explores national identity in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, and supplies an overview of cultural history, literary achievements, and philosophical traditions in the German-speaking world (GRMN 0103 or equivalent) 4 hrs. lect.
Fall 2009
GRMN 0380 - Rethinking Literature
Rethinking Literature
This course focuses on the "literary" as a force within cultural discourse. A thorough understanding of literary periods and genres serves as the background for a critical investigation of modern theoretical approaches to literary texts. Discussing major works of German literature, students explore the notion of "literariness" in its various cultural contexts. (Formerly GRMN 0330) 3 hrs. lect/disc.
Spring 2013
GRMN 0411 - Holocaust in Film/ Art / Lit
Representing the Unthinkable: The Holocaust in Art and Literature
Since the end of World War II, historians, social scientists, and psychologists have tried to find reasons and explanations for the Holocaust in Germany. Yet these accounts cannot fully satisfy our quest for understanding. Can art and literature illuminate those dimensions left unanswered by historical and psychological approaches? This course presents an overview of Holocaust representations in art and literature. Examining paintings and films, and reading survivors' testimonies, novels, poetry, and even comics, we address the following questions: How can art and literature represent the Holocaust? How can words express Auschwitz? Can the Holocaust be represented at all? 3 hrs. sem.
Fall 2010
GRMN 0415 - Colonial Fantasies
Colonial Fantasies
Lasting from 1884 to 1918, Germany’s scramble for overseas territory began late and was relatively short lived. However, the nation’s lack of colonies did not keep Germans from fantasizing about faraway lands and their inhabitants. In this course we will explore such “Colonial Fantasies” in the realm of literature, film, and art. We will discuss Germany’s era of actual colonialism in Africa, representations of colonial life and political debates about the colonies, and traces of colonial thinking in contemporary Germany. We will also examine Germany's "Indianthusiasm", Indian hobbyist movements in Germany, and colonial endeavors and scientific expedition in South America. Readings will include texts by Kleist, Heine, Keller, May, Timm, Ayim, and Hahn-Hahn. 3 hrs sem.
Spring 2010
GRMN 0445 - Green Germany
Green” Germany
In this course we will examine the evolution of Germany's "green" tradition and the ways environmental issues have been expressed through language, literature, and culture from Romanticism until today. The first half of the semester will focus on major trends in the depiction and utilization of nature up to the 1960s. Then we will turn to contemporary environmental issues such as energy production and Germany's plans to decommission nuclear power plants, air and water pollution, green architecture, waste management, and food production. This course will draw on diverse sources, including literary, scientific, and political texts; films; works of art; and online resources on environmental issues. 3 hrs. sem./disc.
Fall 2012
GRMN 0500 - Independent Study ▲ ▹
Independent Study
(Approval only)
Fall 2009, Winter 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Winter 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2012, Winter 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Winter 2014, Spring 2014
GRMN 0700 - Senior Research ▲ ▹
Honors Project
(Approval only)
Fall 2009, Winter 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Winter 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2012, Winter 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Winter 2014, Spring 2014
INTL 0481 / GRMN 0481 / ITAL 0481 - Memory & National Identity
Memory Matters: National Identity in Contemporary Germany and Italy
In the course we will explore the crucial role of memory in the formation of national identity, and focus on the troubled remembrance of the Nazi period in Germany and the Fascist period in Italy. Using primary sources in their original language, students will study the ways in which the memory of this difficult past decisively informs contemporary national identity. Topics will include commemorative sites, national symbols, autobiographical memory, traumatic memory, and trans-generational memory. Classes will alternate between a plenary English session and discussions in either German or Italian. This course is equivalent to ITAL 0481 and GRMN 0481. 3 hrs. sem./disc.
Spring 2011