History and Culture in the German-Speaking World – An Introduction

Year
0
Academic year
2019-2020
Code
01011763
Subject Area
Área Científica do Menor
Language of Instruction
Portuguese
Mode of Delivery
Face-to-face
Duration
SEMESTRIAL
ECTS Credits
6.0
Type
Elective
Level
1st Cycle Studies

Recommended Prerequisites

Not applicable.

Teaching Methods

The diachronic approach that underlies this curricular unit will be divided in moments of greater lecturing character (for which both teacher and students will be responsible) and moments of collective analysis and debate of various texts and documents related to the themes in question.

Learning Outcomes

This curricular unit, with a propaedeutical character, aims at familiarizing students with the historical and cultural specificity of the German-speaking countries through the centuries, always taking into account the wider context of the European culture.
By the end of the semester, students should be able to:
1. identify and comment on texts and other documents related to the unit’s main topics;
2. relate the various cultural contexts with one another, analyzing them critically and in a historical perspectivation;
3. analyze and present the discussed themes, showing intellectual autonomy, synthesizing capacity, argumentation skills and high proficiency in oral and written expression;
4. show that they have developed attitudes of intellectual curiosity and rigor, as well as critical and emancipated thought.

Work Placement(s)

No

Syllabus

I Geopolitical aspects of the German-speaking countries in the present time.
II Historical and cultural aspects of the evolution of the German-speaking countries:
1. From the germanic tribes to the Holy Roman Empire of German Nation.
2. Old Swiss Confederacy.
3. Reformation. Thirty Years War. Absolutism.
4. Enlightenment and the rise of the middle classes.
5. Napoleonic Wars. Romanticism and the liberal and national values.
6. European Restoration. Liberal Revolution.
7. The formation of the Second German Empire and the “Bismarck Era”.
8. The Austro-Hungarian Empire under Franz Josef.
9. Modernism.
10. William II and the First World War.
11. The republican experiences.
12. Expressionism.
13. Hitler and the Second World War.
14. The “Cold War” and the formation of the two German states.
15. German Reunification.
The syllabus may vary from one edition to the other, depending on the academic staff member in charge of the curricular unit.

Head Lecturer(s)

Rogério Paulo da Costa Madeira

Assessment Methods

Assessment
Participation in the classes’ debates, short presentations of texts and other documents: 25.0%
Frequency: 25.0%
Exam: 50.0%

Bibliography

Beller, S. (2007). A Concise History of Austria. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Beutin, W. et al. (1993-94). História da Literatura Alemã das Origens à Actualidade. Lisboa: Apáginastantas, Cosmos.

Burns, R. (ed.) (1995). German Cultural Studies. An Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Church, C. H., Head, R. C. (2013). A Concise History of Switzerland. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Kitchen, M. (2006). A History of Modern Germany. 1800-2000. Malden (MA): Blackwell.

Müller, H. (2002). Schlaglichter der deutschen Geschichte. Bonn: bpb.

Opitz, A. et al. (1998). Sociedade e Cultura Alemãs. Lisboa: Univ. Aberta.

Scheidl, L., Melo, I. A., Ribeiro, A. S. (1996). Dois Séculos de História Alemã. Política, Sociedade e Cultura (3.ª ed.). Coimbra: Minerva.