German Politics and Culture in the European Context - 20068

POLS 215  explores, among other things, the impact of social history on contemporary politics, the structures and values that shape politics in different countries, and the impact of these factors on contemporary public policies. Questions such as what constitutes Europe? in the face of a more extensive European integration process force the peoples of the continent to examine historical roots and contemporary cultures.

GER 276  or GER 376  examines the political, social and cultural metamorphoses of a city with a special focus on the intercultural crossroads in literature, film, music, and architecture. The course investigates how new identities and memories are formed and how these processes are influencing the policies and politics of contemporary German/European governments.

Students who take both courses benefit from the macro and micro perspectives these courses offer: whereas they acquire a critical eye with which they will analyze and compare various forms of government and politics in Europe in one course, they are asked in the other to apply their critical faculties to deepen their understanding of the subsequential impact the political and policy changes have on the cultural and social surroundings in the everyday life of the citizens and vice versa.