GERM 364 - Migration, Then and Now

Like few other countries, Germany exemplifies how the migrant is the political figure of our time (Thomas Nail), exploding our image of “national” culture and putting flight and movement, rather than citizens and the state, in the focus of cultural scholarship. In this course, we will explore the political reality and the cultural imaginary of migration both to and from Germany in the 20th- and 21st centuries. In addition to working with course materials, students conduct remote interviews with professionals in Germany who work with or on migrants. Possible discussion topics include: “Gastarbeiter” in Germany since the 1960s; refugees and asylum in Germany; German immigration to the US; refugees from National Socialism; Hannah Arendt’s critique of human rights; flight and expulsion of ethnic Germans from Eastern Europe after WWII; so-called “second generation” immigrants in contemporary society, culture, and politics; the Willkommenskultur in 2015 and its aftermath; current initiatives in Germany for and by migrants. Taught in German. Prerequisite(s):

GERM 308

or GERM 309; or completion of Macalester’s or another approved study abroad program; or permission of instructor. Offered fall term of odd-numbered years. (4 Credits)