Vienna and Berlin: Society, Politics and Culture from 1890 to the Present

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Courses / Modules / GERM2006 Vienna and Berlin: Society, Politics and Culture from 1890 to the Present

When you'll study it: Semester 1
CATS points: 15
ECTS points: 7.5
Level: Level 5
Module lead: Katherine Heady
Academic year: 2025-26

Module overview

This module will introduce you to the social, political and cultural history of Vienna and Berlin in the 20th century, German using a wide range of sources which will include literature, film and architecture. Topics covered may include the following: - The emergence of Vienna and Berlin and modern metropolises - Modernist culture in Vienna and Berlin - Jewish life in Vienna - The post-war division of Berlin and its aftermath - The legacy of the the Holocaust in post-war Berlin and Vienna

Aims and Objectives

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge and Understanding

Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

The main developments within the urban life of Vienna and Berlin during the long twentieth century
Techniques for analysing a variety of cultural artefacts
The variety of ways in which modernity affected the inhabitants of Vienna and Berlin in the early twentieth century

Transferable and Generic Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

Exercise independence and initiative
Use ICT to produce documents and other material using a computer
Communicate effectively and confidently in English
Use libraries, archives, learning resources and ICT to access relevant information

Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

Identify concepts and data relevant to the task in hand
Formulate and clarify critical questions
Select, synthesise and focus information from a range of sources
Apply knowledge and understanding and analysis critically to different topics

Learning and Teaching

Teaching and learning methods

Teaching methods include - lectures - seminars - independent study - group discussion - one-to-one tutorials

�� time
Type	Hours
Lecture	12
Independent ��	126
Seminar	12
Total study time	150

Resources & Reading list

Textbooks

Paul Cooke (2005). Representing East Germany since Unification: from Colonization to Nostalgia. Oxford: Berg.

Steven Beller (1989). Vienna and the Jews, 1867-1938: A Cultural History. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Brian Ladd (1997). Ghosts of Berlin. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Judith E. Berman (2006). Holocaust Agendas, Conspiracies and Industries? Issues and Debates in Holocaust Memorialization. London: Valentine Mitchell.

Günther Bischof (1997). Austrian Historical Memory and National Identity. New Brunswick: Transaction.

Andrea Reiter (2013). Contemporary Jewish Writing: Austria after Waldheim. New York: Routledge.

Iain Boyd-Whyte and David Frisby (eds) (2012). Metropolis Berlin: 1880-1940. Berkeley and Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press.

Nick Hodgin (2011). Screening the East: Heimat, Memory and Nostalgia in German Film since 1989. New York and Oxford: Berghahn.

Bill Niven and Chloe Paver (eds) (2010). Memorialization in Germany since 1945. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Assessment

Summative

This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Essay	60%
Individual Presentation	40%

Referral

This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Individual Presentation	40%
Essay	60%

Repeat

An internal repeat is where you take all of your modules again, including any you passed. An external repeat is where you only re-take the modules you failed.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Essay	60%
Individual Presentation	40%

Repeat Information

Repeat type: Internal & External

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