GER2011 : M for Murder: Crime, Law and Justice in Modern German Literature and Film (Inactive)
GER2011 : M for Murder: Crime, Law and Justice in Modern German Literature and Film (Inactive)
- Inactive for Year: 2024/25
- Module Leader(s): Prof. Beate Muller
- Owning School: Modern Languages
- Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus
Semesters
Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.
Semester 1 Credit Value: | 10 |
Semester 2 Credit Value: | 10 |
ECTS Credits: | 10.0 |
European Credit Transfer System | |
Pre-requisite
Modules you must have done previously to study this module
Pre Requisite Comment
N/A
Co-Requisite
Modules you need to take at the same time
Co Requisite Comment
Level C German, or equivalent.
Aims
In consonance with the overall aims of degrees offered in the SML, this module aims to build on skills and knowledge gained at Stage 1, to introduce students to a topic-centred, in-depth study of modern German films, literature, and culture.
This module explores the ways in which murder has been represented in modern German literature and film, focusing on representations of murder created or set round about the first half of the 20th century. Murder, as the ultimate transgressive act, is shown to be a testing ground for questions about the legal framework of a given society, the integrative and normative force of such a framework, and the power relations played out in transgressions and restitutions of the law. Examples from both film and literature cover a range of differently motivated murders, ranging from social causes or economic pressures to killings born of ideological reasons, as well as to murders brought about by mental illness or psychological factors. By analysing these killings in their social and political contexts, the changing approaches to dealing with crime in modern German societies will emerge, which will allow for both a typology and a cultural & political historiography of extreme transgression.
The module will be partly taught in German, partly in English. The exam will be in German. The essay will be in English.
Outline Of Syllabus
The module will take as its starting point the following questions: a) what can motivate criminal transgressions such as murders; b) how societies have been, and are responding, to such crimes and the people who committed them; c) what representations of serious crime in literature and film tell us about the values of society related to law, its transgression, justice and restitution of the social order disrupted by crime.
The films we will watch are: Fritz Lang’s M (1931) and Michael Haneke’s Das weiße Band (2009).
The literary texts we will read are: Franz Kafka’s story “In der Strafkolonie” (1919) and Bertolt Brecht’s play Die Maßnahme (1930). Further texts will be made available as appropriate.
We will compare and contrast the representations of crime and their motivations in these films and texts, exploring similarities and differences over time and across different socio-political contexts.
Learning Outcomes
Intended Knowledge Outcomes
Students will learn
• to reflect on differences and similarities between filmic and literary depictions of murder, thus increasing their awareness of genre-related specifics;
• to identify, compare and contrast differently motivated murders;
• to engage critically with the function(s) of represented murder in the primary sources studied;
• to relate the represented murders to their socio-political, cultural, and ideological backgrounds, both in terms of diegetic and the heterodiegetic aspects;
• to carry out the appropriate research and guided reading necessary for preparing for classroom discussion and for completing the assessment tasks;
• to work closely with the chosen films and texts, both in English and in German.
Intended Skill Outcomes
Students will
• learn and practice the close reading of modern German literary and film classics for their representations of the theme of serious crime and the responses this brings about;
• increase their awareness of and ability to compare and contrast films and literary texts;
• improve and practice their ability to carry out guided reading and research on a specific topic / text / film;
• improve and practice their ability to think independently and critically about a specific topic;
• improve and practice their ability to engage with a given topic for assessment purposes.
Teaching Methods
Teaching Activities
Category | Activity | Number | Length | Student Hours | Comment |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 12 | 1:00 | 12:00 | partly taught face-to-face on campus, partly online delivery, as appropriate |
Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 30 | 1:00 | 30:00 | N/A |
Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Small group teaching | 18 | 1:00 | 18:00 | Face to face seminars on campus |
Structured Guided Learning | Structured research and reading activities | 37 | 1:00 | 37:00 | To include pre-and post-lecture reading |
Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Drop-in/surgery | 3 | 1:00 | 3:00 | N/A |
Guided Independent Study | Independent study | 100 | 1:00 | 100:00 | N/A |
Total | 200:00 |
Jointly Taught With
Code | Title |
---|---|
GER2111 | M for Murder: Crime, Law and Justice in Modern German Literature and Film - Part 1 |
Teaching Rationale And Relationship
The scheduled teaching and learning activities will introduce students to legal and philosophical concepts to do with crime, law, and justice, as well as to the background of individual texts and films on the syllabus.
The non-synchronous teaching and learning activities will provide the students with opportunities to practice critical engagement with the primary sources by focusing on the module’s key topic and by reading these primary sources with the help of analytical concepts gleaned from selected secondary sources.
Evaluation from last year showed that a majority of students appreciated the online elements as part of the module contact hours.
Independent study activities will enable students to read primary and secondary sources in preparation for classroom activities and for assessment purposes.
The module will be partly taught in German, partly in English. This will ensure that students practice their German while English can function as a meta-language to enhance the intellectual quality of discussions.
Reading Lists
Assessment Methods
The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners
Exams
Description | Length | Semester | When Set | Percentage | Comment |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Written Examination | 60 | 1 | A | 30 | The exam will consist of a 500 word commentary (to be written in German). The target language performance will not be marked. |
Other Assessment
Description | Semester | When Set | Percentage | Comment |
---|---|---|---|---|
Essay | 2 | M | 70 | A 2,000 word essay to be written in English. Submission week: 35 |
Formative Assessments
Formative Assessment is an assessment which develops your skills in being assessed, allows for you to receive feedback, and prepares you for being assessed. However, it does not count to your final mark.
Description | Semester | When Set | Comment |
---|---|---|---|
Written exercise | 1 | M | The commentary will enable students to practice writing a commentary on an excerpt from a core text in preparation for the exam. |
Assessment Rationale And Relationship
The exam will ask students to write a commentary, in German, on a selected passage from one of the literary texts or on a scene from one of the films. This will test students’ ability to read a primary source closely and to write about it in German.
The essay will test students' ability to analyse and critically engage with selected core texts / films.
Timetable
- Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
- GER2011's Timetable
Past Exam Papers
- Exam Papers Online : www.ncl.ac.uk/exam.papers/
- GER2011's past Exam Papers
General Notes
N/A
Welcome to Newcastle University Module Catalogue
This is where you will be able to find all key information about modules on your programme of study. It will help you make an informed decision on the options available to you within your programme.
You may have some queries about the modules available to you. Your school office will be able to signpost you to someone who will support you with any queries.
Disclaimer
The information contained within the Module Catalogue relates to the 2024 academic year.
In accordance with University Terms and Conditions, the University makes all reasonable efforts to deliver the modules as described.
Modules may be amended on an annual basis to take account of changing staff expertise, developments in the discipline, the requirements of external bodies and partners, and student feedback. Module information for the 2025/26 entry will be published here in early-April 2025. Queries about information in the Module Catalogue should in the first instance be addressed to your School Office.