The German Department provides its students with a thorough training in German language and culture, enabling them to interact freely and easily with German native speakers in all areas of linguistic competency. Students will acquire a fundamental understanding of the major cultural, social, and historical forces that have shaped German society, including significant developments in German literature, as well as the basic skills required for cultural and intercultural analysis.
Upon completion of a German major at Middlebury College students will be able to:
• actively engage in conversations and discussions with native speakers of German, ranging in complexity from sophisticated everyday conversations to a basic familiarity with abstract intellectual discourse;
• read and critically analyze authentic texts and materials from all areas of German Studies;
• produce written documents of sufficient consistent and reasonable clarity to be readily intelligible to an educated outside reader;
• upon the completion of the basic language sequence plus two 300- level courses (or equivalent), to attend and complete successfully courses within the regular academic curriculum of Johannes Gutenberg-Universität (Mainz) or Freie Universität (Berlin) via the C. V. Starr-Middlebury School in Germany.