German History Through Cinema

Catalog description

Films create historical imaginaries, while themselves also being historical artifacts. This interdisciplinary course investigates how recent German-language cinema (since c. 2000) has thematized and reimagined 20th- and 21st-century German history. How have filmmakers tackled topics such as World War II, the postwar years, divided Germany, reunification, national identity, social inequality and injustice, the experience of migration, and European unity? Directors' approaches to depicting history are diverse, surprising, and often deeply personal. This class provides you with the opportunity to learn about the past and present in Germany, while reflecting on the relationship between film and history. Possible directors to include: Fatih Akin, Ruth Beckermann, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, Alexander Kluge, Caroline Link, Christian Petzold, Margarethe von Trotta, and Wim Wenders. Taught in German.