16905

SoSe 20: Reading the City

Susanne Scharnowski

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Subject: The city has frequently been described as a ‘text’ that, like a book, can be read and interpreted, or even as a ‘palimpsest’ with multiple textual layers from different historical periods. But: what kind of ‘literacy’, that is: what knowledge and observational skills does it take to ‘read’ a city? How can we understand an unfamiliar environment, find the traces of history and interpret the signs of social and cultural change? Berlin in particular is a city which is hard to read: Although it is a place where German, European and even world history has been written, the city has often been described as a city without any connection to history and tradition. So how do we ‘read’ a city that is the epitome of modernity? Program: In this course, we will look at exemplary ways of reading and understanding the city, taking into account theoretical approaches as well as literary and filmic representations of Berlin. If the lockdown continues throughout the semester, students will have to rely on the “virtual” city in the form of films, texts and images; should we return to the campus, students will be able to engage with the actual cityscape. In any case, the course aims to develop students’ ‘urban literacy’ as well as reflecting upon their perceptions and expectations. Students will learn to perform a critical analysis of the ‘text’ of the city and a critical assessment of different ways in which it is represented in literature and film. With some luck, one seminar session will take place in the cityscape of Berlin, where we will establish our “reading skills”. Is this course suitable for you? This course is open to students from all academic fields. Nevertheless, you should be prepared to study a number of academic texts in English from the social sciences and cultural studies as well as literary texts (German authors in English translation), and you should be interested in analysing and interpreting cultural and social phenomena. Workload and Assessment: In order to obtain 5 ECTS credits, you will have to have studied the course materials and engaged with them (an average of 15-20 pages of English texts per week); answer some questions online and submit some written work, and pass the final examination. close