Berlin: Courses

HIST 3053

Berlin, Germany: From Empire to Republic (3ch) 

This course invites participants to explore Modern German history through the city of Berlin.  Three important transitions provide a framework for the course, which begins by tracing how Berlin rose from obscurity to become the capital of the German empire.  You will look at how Germany’s short-lived interwar democracy, centered in Berlin, dissolved into Hitler’s dictatorship.  You will explore the post-1945 occupation and division of Berlin and Germany, which ended in unexpected reunification.  Rather than assuming that events were preordained, the course emphasizes historical contingency.  Visits to key historical sites will challenges your assumptions about the relationship between the past and present, the everyday well-know historical moments.   Learning about the vibrant and diverse culture of the interwar era, for example, suggest that the roots of dictatorship are more complex than they first appear.  Seeing where the Berlin Wall ran underlines how remarkable it was that Germany reunified in 1990.  Understanding Berlin’s past contextualizes the present, and participants gain a deeper sense of Germany, and Europe today.

GER/WLCS 3025

From Castles to Graffiti: Berlin’s Art, Culture and Communities

This course aims to explore Berlin’s cultural identity through a study of its architecture, artistic treasures and the encounter with its inhabitants and institutions.  Using the city as a workshop, participants will investigate selected buildings representing architectural styles such as baroque, neo-classical, modernism and postmodernism, as well as public art and street art. The goal is to interpret buildings and places aesthetically and in view of their social and cultural purpose. While in Berlin, we will also visit museums focusing on the contribution of modernism in art and architecture to the characteristic modern feel of Berlin. In addition to this, we will visit entertainment venues, theatres and intellectual centres, explore neighbourhoods and parks, and meet with Berliners.  Students will gain an understanding of the role of cultural policy, diversity of communities, and counter culture. They will improve intercultural and cultural literacy and learn appreciating the contrasts and complexity of the city as an organism. Fieldtrips may include walking tours, the visits of architectural sites, museum and galleries, the Academy of Arts, a performance at an opera and/or theatre, daytrips to Potsdam, Leipzig or Dessau.