Department of English
Course Title: 0501 Syntax
Course Description
Syntax is the part of grammar which deals with the ways words are combined into sentences. We will first look at some key concepts in syntax from a structuralist perspective, starting with smaller syntactic units such as the word and the notion of different word classes. Phrases are another key concept syntactically superordinate to words, which function as constituents in clauses. In this context, it will be of pivotal importance to keep the dichotomy of form and function in mind. Apart from analysing different types of clauses (and sentences) and different ways of ordering elements in a clause (and a sentence), we will also examine the semantic roles of clause elements to discover the close connection between syntax and meaning. We will then briefly look into other approaches to syntax (valency grammar, functional sentence perspective, generative grammar), before we explore syntactic variation in selected varieties of English and the differences between spoken and written grammars.
Faculty
Faculty of Languages, Literature, Culture
Institute
English Department
Lecturer
Dr. Tobias Bernaisch
Study Period (dd/mm/yy)
13/04/2023 - 14/07/2023
Mode and Time
Asynchronous (recorded)
Online Tool for Teaching
Stud.IP, Webex
Language of Instruction
English
Target Group
Bachelor, Master
Prerequisites
Englisch B2
ECTS
6
Course Title: 0502 Cultural Wars and Media Matters: An Introduction to Cultural and Media Studies
Course Description
This lecture introduces students to topics such as how literary studies and philology came to embrace the analysis of cultural phenomena such as sports as well as media interpretation and theory. Central concepts and methods of cultural and media studies will be introduced and illustrated in case studies. This work will lead us into discussions of gender, sexuality, diversity, and social hierarchies as well.
Faculty
Faculty of Languages, Literature, Culture
Institute
English Department
Lecturer
Prof. Dr. Greta Olson
Study Period (dd/mm/yy)
12/04/2023-12/07/2023
Mode and Time
Synchronous (live), Time (CET): Wed. 06.00 p.m. - 08.00 p.m.
Online Tool for Teaching
Cisco Webex / BigBlueButton
Language of Instruction
English
Target Group
Bachelor, Master
Prerequisites
Abilitiy to follow and write in academic English.
ECTS
3
Course Title: 0504 History of the English Language (Group A)
Course Description
The study of the history of the English language offers highly relevant insights into how the language has changed over the course of the centuries and into how the English language is structured and functions all around the world today. Therefore, we will pay particular attention to the different periods in the history of the English language, i.e. Old English, Middle English, Early Modern English, Late Modern English and Present-day English, in order to follow the structural changes on the levels of phonology, lexis, syntax and semantics that have led to the English language as we use it today.
Faculty
Faculty of Languages, Literature, Culture
Institute
English Department
Lecturer
Dr. Barbara Ann Güldenring
Study Period (dd/mm/yy)
13/4/2023 - 14/07/2023
Mode and Time
Tuesdays
Synchronous: 03.00 p.m. - 04.00 p.m.
Asynchronous (recorded)
Online Tool for Teaching
Studip and Ilias
Language of Instruction
English
Target Group
Bachelor, Master
Prerequisites
English B2 (CEFR)
ECTS
5
Course Title: 0505 History of the English Language (Group B)
Course Description
The study of the history of the English language offers highly relevant insights into how the language has changed over the course of the centuries and into how the English language is structured and functions all around the world today. Therefore, we will pay particular attention to the different periods in the history of the English language, i.e. Old English, Middle English, Early Modern English, Late Modern English and Present-day English, in order to follow the structural changes on the levels of phonology, lexis, syntax and semantics that have led to the English language as we use it today.
Faculty
Faculty of Languages, Literature, Culture
Institute
English Department
Lecturer
Dr. Barbara Ann Güldenring
Study Period (dd/mm/yy)
13/4/2023 - 14/07/2023
Mode and Time
Thursdays
Synchronous: 03.00 p.m. - 04.00 p.m.
Asynchronous (recorded)
Online Tool for Teaching
Studip and Ilias
Language of Instruction
English
Target Group
Bachelor, Master
Prerequisites
English B2 (CEFR)
ECTS
5
Course Title: 0508 Public Relations Writing (Group b)
Course Description
The aim of this seminar is to help students develop good writing and editing skills that are essential for public relations professionals. Students will build their public relations writing skills by learning more about the strategies and styles of different forms of public relations writing (e.g. press releases, fact sheets, Twitter posts, etc.), analysing real-life PR cases and messages, and by producing various types of public relations messages on their own. Thus, after taking this class, students will be able to
tailor the content, style and format of messages based on a specific target audience and specific objectives,
write successful and professional public relations messages in a variety of different forms and
critically evaluate public relation situations.
Faculty
Faculty of Languages, Literature, Culture
Institute
English Department
Lecturer
Damaris Schäfer
Study Period (dd/mm/yy)
13/04/2023 - 13/07/2023
Mode and Time
Synchronous (live), Time (CET): Thursday 10:15 am
Online Tool for Teaching
Ilias, BigBlueButton, Stud.IP
Language of Instruction
English
Target Group
Master
Prerequisites
Advanced English knowledge (Level C1)
ECTS
5
Course Title: 0509 Phonetics and Phonology
Course Description
This lecture surveys the sounds of English, primarily those of British and American. We will focus on the articulation of English sounds, including speech organs and the production of vowels and consonants, as well as the system used for the phonetic description of speech sounds, the International Phonetic Alphabet IPA. We will also have a look at phonemes, the smallest sound units of a language, and the distribution of their variants. Another unit will deal with phenomena of connected speech, such as the mutual influence between neighbouring sounds, word stress and intonation. Students will also learn to read and transcribe spoken English using the IPA transcription.
There will be one introductory online meeting at the beginning of the semester. After that, this course will be asynchronous.
Course book: Lorenz, Frank. 2013. Basics of phonetics & English phonology. With IPA transcription. 2nd. ed. Berlin: Logos Verlag.
Faculty
Faculty of Languages, Literature, Culture
Institute
English Department
Lecturer
Prof. Dr. Magnus Huber
Study Period (dd/mm/yy)
11/04/2023 - 14/07/2023
Mode and Time
Asynchronous (recorded)
Online Tool for Teaching
ILIAS
Language of Instruction
English
Target Group
Bachelor, Master of English
Prerequisites
Introduction to english linguistics; Sufficient English skills
ECTS
2
Course Title: 0512 Contemporary British Short Stories – Close Readings
Course Description
This class will revisit the genre of the short story and focus on selected short stories by British writers of the 21st century. Through a series of close readings, we will analyse and discuss this short fiction in class taking into account a variety of thematic concerns: love, gender, climate change, dystopian visions of the future as well as metafiction. The seminar is also meant to hone your close-reading skills, as short stories demand particular attention to detail. The set book for this class is: The Penguin Book of the Contemporary British Short Story, selected and introduced by Philip Hensher. London: Penguin, 2018. [ISBN: 978-0-141-98621-0] Please make sure that you have a copy of this book at the beginning of the term. This class will be held online and involve a mixture of synchronous and asynchronous teaching.
Faculty
Faculty of Languages, Literature, Culture
Institute
English Department
Lecturer
Prof. Dr. Joanna Rostek
Study Period (dd/mm/yy)
11/04/2023 - 14/07/2023
Mode and Time
Synchronous (live), Time (CET): Tuesday 16.15 - 17.45
Asynchronous (recorded)
Online Tool for Teaching
Big Blue Button, Stud.IP
Language of Instruction
English
Target Group
Master
Prerequisites
C1 English & prior university-level classes in Anglophone Literature and/or Literary Studies in English
ECTS
Depends on the chosen module
Course Title: 0513 Theory into Practice: Using Literary and Cultural Theory in Your Research
Course Description
Post-structuralism? Deconstruction? New Historicism? Psychoanalytic criticism? In this class, we will recall what these and other concepts in literary and cultural theory mean and how you can use them for your research. For some students, terms such as ‘theory’ and ‘method’ evoke unpleasant connotations, as they sound complicated, abstract, and removed from the spontaneous enjoyment of literary texts, films, or TV series. One of the aims of this class is to recall why theories and methods are indispensable for academic work and how your own projects can benefit from them. Each week, we will take a look at a different theoretical approach and practice with the help of concrete examples and assignments how to ‘use’ it. You will also have the opportunity to present a current project (thesis, term paper, etc.), which we will jointly discuss with a view to how literary and cultural theories can help you develop your ideas further.
You must have a copy of the following text (make sure that you have the newest, i.e. fourth, edition):
Barry, Peter. Beginning Theory: An Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory. 4th ed. Manchester: Manchester UP, 2017. [ISBN: 978-1526121790]
Please make sure that you have a copy of this book at the beginning of the term. This class will involve a mixture of synchronous and asynchronous teaching.
Faculty
Faculty of Languages, Literature, Culture
Institute
English Department
Lecturer
Prof. Dr. Joanna Rostek
Study Period (dd/mm/yy)
11/04/2023 - 14/07/2023
Mode and Time
Synchronous (live), Uhrzeit (CET): Tuesday 18.15 - 19.45
Asynchronous (recorded)
Online Tool for Teaching
Big Blue Button, Stud.IP
Language of Instruction
English
Target Group
Master
Prerequisites
C1 English & prior university-level classes in Anglophone Literature and/or Literary Studies in English
ECTS
Depends on the chosen module