The German Language Today

GERM20221 The German Language Today 20 Semester 1 Undergraduate Level 2 Wiebke Brockhaus-Grand Unit coordinator German Studies 1 FHEQ level (Framework for Higher Education Qualifications) ' Middle part of Bachelors ' European Credit Transfer & Accumulation System Rating : 10.0 Languages never stand still – they constantly change and evolve in response to the needs of language users. This course gives students and opportunity to explore what has been happening to German in recent decades, ranging from the strong influence of English on German vocabulary to the question of how modern German can accommodate gender equality and politeness conventions, taking in recent developments in word and sentence structure on the way. And we also cast a glance across political borders, investigating German in Austria and Switzerland today. This course unit acknowledges that all languages change over time and that every period in the “lifetime” of a language has certain typical properties. It asks what characterises the German language of today and attempts to answer this question mainly on the basis of written texts (especially from popular science publications and national papers).We begin by considering linguistic data providing an indication of how broad a range of varieties may be labelled ‘German’. What shape the German language (for our purposes, the standard variety used within Germany) takes today in terms of syntactic, morphological and lexical properties (and their interdependence) is our next topic. To help us explore this, we will contrast post-1945 German with forms of the language from earlier centuries, using some very basic methods of statistical analysis. The discussion of lexical developments in recent decades brings us straight to our next topic, the influx of Anglicisms and the current efforts by purist organisations to limit their use. In this context, we ask whether the threat to the German language, as perceived by these groups, is in fact real.We then shift our focus towards two other areas of modern usage, taking a look at that aspect of politeness which in German is reflected by the personal pronouns du and Sie, and also exploring whether German is a sexist language, as has often been claimed. Following this, we briefly review the 1998 spelling reform, focussing particularly on its aims and the extent to which these have actually been reached. This discussion will provide us with another opportunity to explore the general public’s attitudes to (perceived) language change.We conclude the course unit with a discussion of the choices German-speakers make to indicate their social affiliations and how the forms of the language are shaped by the social conditions under which it is used, when turning our attention to the German language in Switzerland (which we contrast with what we find in Austria and Germany). <ul> <li> To expand students’ knowledge of a range of different varieties of German as well of the syntax, morphology and lexis of present-day Standard German</li> <li> To deepen awareness of the social elements of linguistic communication in German, especially in the context of gender equality and politeness</li> <li> To explore ways of evaluating language change in light of the current influence of English on German lexis, syntax and morphology</li> <li> On successful completion of the course unit, students will be able to think and write critically about a range of topics relating to the special characteristics of the German language today.</li></ul> On successful completion of the course unit, students will be able to:a)      show an appreciation of the range of varieties of Germanb)      discuss the difficulties of defining ‘the German language’c)      list and discuss the most important trends in present-day German syntax, morphology and lexisd)      comment on the syntactic, morphological and lexical properties of a given text and relate these to the concepts of Zeitstil, Personalstil and Gattungsstile)      critically discuss the current movement towards linguistic purism in German-speaking countriesf)       discuss the usage of du and Sie and the difficulties associated with choosing between the two pronounsg)      discuss the question of whether German could be viewed as a sexist language and how its users could express themselves in ways that reflect gender equality more successfullyh)      outline the guiding principles behind the 1998 spelling reform and, in the light of the key changes it has brought about, comment critically on its success in achieving the stated aimsi)       discuss the concept of diglossia with reference to German-speaking Switzerland and contrast the diglossic situation with the Standard-with-dialects set-up found in Austria and Germany The course unit will provide opportunities for students to enhance their ability to<ul> <li> apply specific linguistic concepts to real-world language data;</li> <li> read and interpret statistical data generated through the quantitative analysis of texts</li></ul> On successful completion of the course unit, students will be able to:<ul> <li> through reading, seminar discussion, and the writing of a project report, demonstrate the skills of information-gathering, interpretation, and the construction of a lucid argument, both visually and in writing</li> <li> decide on the most appropriate means of representing statistical data graphically and produce suitable charts</li></ul> Other On successful completion of the course unit, students will have further developed the following skills or competencies: ¿ language skills ¿ intercultural awareness ¿ sensitivity to gender inequality and gender-neutral language use ¿ ability to critically interpret statistical information ¿ project planning and implementation ¿ organising and chairing meetings; drafting agendas and writing minutes ¿ numeracy 0 Other 100% <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse;width:130pt" width="172"> <tbody> <tr height="80" style="height:60.0pt"> <td class="xl66" height="80" style="height:60.0pt;width:65pt" width="86"> Exam</td> <td align="right" class="xl68" style="border-left:none;width:65pt" width="86"> 40%</td> </tr> </tbody></table><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse;width:130pt" width="172"> <tbody> <tr height="80" style="height:60.0pt"> <td class="xl66" height="80" style="height:60.0pt;width:65pt" width="86"> Group project report</td> <td align="right" class="xl66" style="border-left:none;width:65pt" width="86"> 60%</td> </tr> </tbody></table>   <table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="width:662px;" width="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width:321px;"> Feedback method</td> <td style="width:340px;"> Formative or Summative</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:321px;"> Face-to-face feedback on group project (by appointment)</td> <td style="width:340px;"> Formative</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:321px;"> Face-to-face feedback on group project plan</td> <td style="width:340px;"> Formative</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:321px;"> Written feedback on group project report</td> <td style="width:340px;"> Formative and summative</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:321px;"> Feedback on exam technique and subject competence to students who submit their answer to an exam question from a previous year</td> <td style="width:340px;"> Formative</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:321px;"> Written and, where possible, face-to-face feedback on exam (on request)</td> <td style="width:340px;"> Summative</td> </tr> </tbody></table>  GERM10040 Introduction to German Linguistics Pre-Requisite Compulsory Available as Free Choice (UG) or to other programmes (PG)?Yes, subject to adequate German language skills and willingness to acquire basic concepts in syntax and morphology independently Y <ol> <li> Besch, Werner. 1998. Duzen, Siezen, Titulieren. Zur Anrede im Deutschen heute und gestern. 2nd edn. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck und Ruprecht.</li> <li> Braun, Peter. 1998. Tendenzen in der deutschen Gegenwartssprache: Sprachvarietäten. 4th edn. Stuttgart: Kohlhammer.</li> <li> Clyne, Michael. 1995. The German language in a changing Europe. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.</li> <li> Gardt, Andreas & Bernd Hüppauf (eds.). 2004. Globalization and the future of German. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.</li> <li> Hellinger, Marlis. 1995. Language and gender. In Patrick Stevenson (ed.), The German language and the real world, 281-316. Oxford: Clarendon Press.</li> <li> Hoberg, Rudolf (ed.). 2002. Deutsch – Englisch – Europäisch. Impulse für eine neue Sprachpolitik. Mannheim: Dudenverlag.</li> <li> Russ, Charles V. J. 1994. The German language today: a linguistics introduction. London: Routledge.</li> <li> Steffens, Doris. 2012. Bufdis und Anderes: Neues im Wortschatz 2011. IDS Sprachreport 2/2012. 2-7.</li> <li> Steffens, Doris & Doris al-Wadi. 2015. Neuer Wortschatz: Neologismen im Deutschen 2001-2010. 3rd edn. Mannheim: Institut für Deutsche Sprache.</li> <li> Stevenson, Patrick. 1997. The German-speaking world: a practical introduction to sociolinguistic issues. London: Routledge.</li> <li> Wray, Alison & Aileen Bloomer. 2012. Projects in linguistics and language studies: a practical guide to researching language. 3rd edn. London: Routledge.</li></ol>  Tutorials 33 0 167