AIFS Partnership Programs: Faculty-Led Study Abroad Programs

Courses

Film 101: Introduction to Film
Next to Hollywood, Germany has been home to one of the most influential and important film industries in the world. Indeed, during the 1920s and early 1930s, it was the undisputed center of cinematic creativity and quality. At the center of this center was Berlin, or more specifically, a studio on the outskirts of Berlin in Babelsberg. Babelsberg was a government-supported studio complex (which we will visit!) that was designed to advance German filmmaking before and during WWII and East German filmmaking after the war. While German filmmakers developed numerous technical innovations here, their most essential achievement was the development of cinema as an art, transcending its role as a provider of novelty and entertainment. As we will be examining film as art, we can easily use German films and film clips almost exclusively to illustrate in detail the technical elements of film (form, narrative structure, mise-en-scène, cinematography, editing, sound), as well as investigate how films can make us see, then feel and think differently.

Additionally, films often reveal aspects of national or regional culture and can also reflect back to us certain situations around certain moments in time (Zeitgeist!). They most definitely present how filmmakers see their own culture and how they want us to see their own culture. Thus, they can provide us with great insight into the historical and contemporary culture of Germany and in particular the city of Berlin. The films that we will see in their entirety, and the films which you will be required to analyze in detail, will all be by German directors. They will cover several genres and will even include an East German Western infused by communist ideology. Guess who rides off into the sunset!

Music 105 – Music Appreciation
Which composer got into a knife fight with a bassoonist because he played too many wrong notes? Which composer spent 3 ½ years on tour starting at the age of seven? Which composer’s final work was dictated to him by angelic-voiced spirits? Which composer considered his audience a congregation and started the practice of extinguishing the lights in theaters and concert halls? Which composer wrote songs extolling the virtues of gangsters (no, not Snoop Dogg!) that have been performed in both the most gilded opera houses and the sleaziest bars? These colorful characters were J.S. Bach, W.A. Mozart, Robert Schumann, Richard Wagner and Kurt Weill – all of whom were German-speaking composers with close connections to Berlin!

This course will explore the extremely varied and rich history of Western art or composed music, popularly and somewhat inaccurately (our first discussion!) referred to as the “Western Classical Tradition.” Because we are lucky enough to be situated in Berlin, we will focus most intensely on the musical contributions of the composers and performers of this region. Actually, this would probably be the case if you were to take an introductory musicology course anywhere in the world, especially if you were discussing the music of the 19th, 20th or 21st centuries. What is even more exciting is that we will be in the most musically innovative, dynamic and vibrant city on the face of the planet at the very moment it is exploding with all kinds of new sounds! As genre boundaries are constantly being blurred in this contemporary music, we will necessarily undertake some Jazz and World Music studies, as well as some informal investigations of House, Techno and Trance sounds. I will arrange for the class to attend numerous concerts of music throughout the quarter. All of these concerts will be preceded by scholarly preparation and will require the writing of musical reviews after the performance. Therefore, while the course will be much more about music as a socio-cultural phenomenon throughout history than a course on music theory, you will be required to become familiar with some critical vocabulary and basic elements of this music for the purposes of analysis. But do not despair – Berlin offers the possibility of becoming profoundly educated in matters of music while at the same time having a lot of fun!

SOC 101 – Introduction to Sociology – Imagining Berlin (5-credits)
Why do you believe the things you do? To what extent does our culture determine who and what we are able to become? How does our exposure to institutions, such as media, shape how we understand our place in the social world? How does American society differ from German society? Do cities have a culture of their own? What can we learn about German culture from deep and wide-ranging exploration of Berlin, from the stretch of Berlin’s modern history to the graffiti that is currently displayed across its walls? The answers to these and related questions involves using our sociological imaginations—our understanding of the reciprocal relationship between self and society—to gather and synthesize data, draw conclusions, and, where possible, make generalizations about social patterns. In this interactive course, we will shop, eat, drink, visit flea markets, farmers markets, neighborhoods, museums, the Reichstag and cultural events to better understand Berlin’s complex and ever-changing culture and thereby gain insights into the construction of our own cultural norms, values, beliefs and way of life.

SOC 201 – Social Problems – Lessons from the most bombed city on earth (5-credits)
Have you ever wondered how people in other societies understand the social issues that are currently being debated in the United States, issues like immigration, gender, sexuality, race, social class and religious freedom? What can we learn about social life by comparing ways in which societies define and approach social problems? Using the German capital, Berlin, as our cultural canvas, we will examine how major systems of power, such as racism, sexism, classism and heterosexism, are interrelated and result in numerous social problems. We will explore ways in which social problems are part of the organization of German society and systems and use our newly acquired knowledge to better understand and address our own society’s social issues. Our research-based, scientific perspective will rely extensively on the use of street ethnography, an approach that focuses on interacting with public exterior spaces, streets, parks, lakes, rivers, buildings and such neighborhood spaces as cafes, grocery stores and shops. Course material will consist of academic readings, contemporary readings drawn from German news outlets, lectures, films, neighborhood exploration, outings with ethnographic participants, interviews, photography and student-led research projects.