Natalie Eppelsheimer
Associate Professor of German
eppelshe@middlebury.edu
work802.443.5238
Tues 1:30 -2:30 p.m.; Fri 12:15-1:15 p.m. and by appointment
FIC 225
Courses
Courses offered in the past four years.
▲ indicates offered in the current term
▹ indicates offered in the upcoming term[s]
GRMN6690 - Teaching Grmn Foreign Language
Methods of Teaching German as a Foreign Language
This course analyses and discusses various approaches to, and principles of teaching German language, culture and authentic materials, including literary and audiovisual texts. Particular emphasis will be given to the following issues: reflective practices, learning strategies, intercultural competence, classroom interaction, multiple literacy development, meaningful application of technology, and interactive teaching and learning. The discussion will be accompanied by activities and projects that can be implemented directly in the language and culture classroom.
Required texts: All materials will be made available via the course’s course managemet website. Pedagogy
Summer 2015 Language Schools, LS 6 Week Session
FYSE1408 - 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. CMP CW LIT
Fall 2013
FYSE1489 - Memory Matters
Memory Matters
In this seminar we will look at Holocaust memory cultures that have evolved in the U.S. and Germany and at the processes that have shaped our collective imaginations of the Shoah across time, space, and genres. Students will develop critical awareness of the power of stories and the importance of memory work in all of our lives. They will also reflect on their own roles in the transmission of memory and the formation of collective and national memory cultures. We will examine documentary and feature films, read survivors' testimonies and fictional accounts, comics, poetry, theoretical and historical reflections, and examine monuments, counter-monuments, and commemorative sites. 3 hrs. sem. CMP CW LIT
Spring 2017
GRMN0101 - 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. sem. LNG
Fall 2013, Fall 2014, Fall 2015, Fall 2016, Fall 2017
GRMN0102 - 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) LNG WTR
Winter 2014, Winter 2016
GRMN0103 - 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. LNG
Spring 2016, Spring 2017
GRMN0202 - Intermediate German Continued
Intermediate German Continued
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 0201) 4 hrs. sem. EUR LNG
Spring 2015
GRMN0310 / CMLT0310 - Literary Responses-Holocaust
Literary Responses to the Holocaust (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. 3hrs. sem. CMP EUR LIT
Spring 2016
GRMN0350 - Advanced Writing Workshop ▹
Advanced Writing Workshop
The goal of this course is to train students to present their thoughts, ideas, and arguments in correct, coherent, and effective writing. Students will practice writing several text forms that are required in higher education and, during study abroad. Students will also learn about format requirements for writing a longer term paper in German. Some class time will be used for creative, structured, or contemplative writing practice. Students will expand their active vocabulary and aim for a consistently high level of grammatical accuracy. Grammar topics will be covered within the context of writing, through targeted teaching of linguistic structures and peer-editing/peer-teaching sessions. (Formerly GRMN 0304) 3 hrs. sem. LNG
Fall 2015, Fall 2016, Fall 2017
GRMN0420 - EscapetoLife:Exile Experiences
Escape to Life: Exile and Refugee Experiences 1933-1945
In this course we will explore the experiences of those who fled persecution from Nazi Germany after 1933. Using literary texts, autobiographies, documentaries, photographs, and letters, we will follow escape routes through Europe and to overseas and will learn about international refugee politics, the “Kindertransporte,” and American journalist Varian Fry’s rescue network. Of special interest will be centers of exile culture in New York and Los Angeles/Hollywood, where famous intellectuals and artists such as Thomas and Heinrich Mann, Hannah Arendt , Bertolt Brecht, Marlene Dietrich, Billy Wilder, and many more found new or temporary homes and where many engaged in anti-Nazi advocacy writing. 3 hrs lect./disc. EUR LIT LNG
Fall 2014
GRMN0445 - Contemp Germany&Sustainability
Contemporary Germany & Sustainability (In German)
Already known as the country of poets and thinkers, Germany is becoming a land of ideas for sustainability and environmental innovation. In this course we will take a closer look at the origins of the German environmental movement and explore the three major components of sustainability–economy, society, and environment–in contemporary Germany. We will draw on political, literary, and scientific texts, films, works of art, and online resources while making frequent comparisons with global developments. Texts include Quaschning's Trash Sorters, Muesli Eaters, and Climate Protectors: We Germans and our Environment, and Wagenhofer’s We Feed the World. 3 hrs lect./disc. EUR LIT LNG
Spring 2015
GRMN0500 - Independent Study ▹
Independent Study
(Approval only)
Fall 2013, Winter 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Winter 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Winter 2016, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Winter 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018
GRMN0700 - Senior Research ▹
Honors Project
(Approval only)
Fall 2013, Winter 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Winter 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Winter 2016, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Winter 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018