Zen Si Arta Fericirii Chris Prentiss

Modern Languages programmes
GERMAN STUDIES
Year one module information
BEGINNERS Not available at 80 credits
ADVANCED  German Core Advanced I and II (40 credits) Compulsory
 German Translation in Practice 1 Optional

(Wirtschaftsdeutsch 1)(20 credits)
 Writing Identities in the German-Speaking
World (20 credits)
 LC Tandem Learning German & English (20
credits)
This document relates to modules currently available. It is intended to provide prospective students with a general picture
of our offerings. Our research is constantly exploring new directions of study and therefore some courses, pathways,
languages, modules, topics within modules or exchange partners may be dropped and new ones offered in their place.
Year two module information

These are the modules available to current students:
BEGINNERS Not available at 80 credits
ADVANCED  German Core Advanced III (20 credits) Compulsory

 German Core Advanced IV and V (10
credits each)
OPTIONS These are the modules available to current Optional

students. Some changes may be made to Y2
optional modules during 2017-18.
 Translation in Practice 2 (German)

 German Language Project (20 credits)
 Introduction to German Cinema (10
credits)
 Knights, Maidens and Priests (10
credits)
 The German Political Parties & Party
Government (10 credits)
 Enlightenment Germany (10 credits)
 Cultures of Protest and Terror in West
Germany, 1967-1977 (10 credits)
 Representations of Women in Turn-of-
the-Century German Literature (10
credits)
 Post-War German Literature (10
credits)
The Year Abroad
As a student on a BA Modern Languages programme (including With Business Management), you

have the possibility of undertaking three types of activity on your year abroad. You can attend
classes at one of the universities with which we have an ERASMUS exchange agreement (NB some
institutions impose minimum standards of language, so not all University places will be open to all
students). At present for German, we have agreements with:
 Augsburg, Berlin (Humboldt University), Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, Erlangen, Frankfurt am Main,

Freiburg im Breisgau, Heidelberg, Kassel, Koblenz, Cologne, Mainz, München, Tübingen,
Vienna
Students may also spend their Year Abroad as a Language Assistant on a salaried placement in a
school (organised via the British Council; students of French, German, Italian and Spanish only.
Students may find a placement themselves using contacts available via friends, family, and their own
research, or apply for an opportunity organised by the Department of Modern Languages (NB you
cannot do a work placement in China, Japan or Russia). We ask beginners students to spend at
least one semester in a country where that language is spoken.
SPLITTING THE YEAR:
If you are studying one language, you can do:
 a year-long university placement

 one semester each in two universities (Russian only)
 a year-long teaching placement
 a one-semester work placement + a one-semester university placement
 a year-long work placement
If you are studying two languages, your options are:
 a year-long university placement + a summer vacation course

 one semester each in two universities in different countries
 a year-long teaching placement + a summer vacation course
 a one-semester work placement + a one-semester University placement
 two different work placements
If you are studying three languages, you can do:
 one semester each in two universities in different countries + a summer vacation course
 a one-semester work placement + a one-semester university placement + a summer vacation
course
 two different work placements + a summer vacation course
Year Four modules
These are the modules that are available to current students. Not all of the options listed above will
run in any given year. All students will take the Independent Study Module in Modern Languages in
one of their languages (20 credits).
 Core German Language (20 credits, compulsory)

 Oral presenting and Debating
 German-Language Cinema since 1960: Images of a Nation?
 From the Stasi to the Sandmännchen: Remembering the GDR in the United Germany
 Governance and Political Culture in Germany
 German First World War Writing
 Medieval German Epic and Romance
 Translation in Theory and Practice in Europe
 Oppositional Writing in Nazi Germany
 Sex, Seduction and Submission: Gender in German Literature from 1900 to Today
Year One Module Descriptions
German Core I – Advanced Democracy, Diversity, and Dynamism and Core II

– Advanced Nation, Populism, and Conflict
Our core modules, offering increased contact hours, will provide you with an introduction to the
knowledge and skills you need to become a Birmingham Languages Graduate. You will have the
opportunity to explore how German speakers have imagined and reimagined their world in the
course of the last two hundred years, drawing on a broad range of cultural, social and political
material. Key topics are expected to include the following:
 Germany’s Place in Europe;

 the German Economy since 1949;
 Migration in the German-Speaking Countries since 1949;
 Remembering the Past in the German-Speaking Countries since 1949;
 Nation & War in the German-Speaking Countries, 1815-1949;
 Ideas and Identities in the German-Speaking Countries, 1815-1949
You will develop a broad range of analytical skills across the breadth of German Studies, while also
achieving a base of core knowledge for future study, as well as developing your own ability to
communicate your ideas through the medium of German across the core skills of reading, writing,
listening and speaking.
Contact hours: 6 per week advanced (one interactive plenary and 5 seminar hours)
Assessment: a mixture of essay and project work (the first piece in English, the rest in the target
language), speaking-listening assessments, and a written examination.
Literatur und Gesellschaft in den deutschsprachigen Ländern (Literature

and Society in the German-speaking Countries) (final title tbc) (20 credits)
The principal subject matter will be a range of relatively brief texts from between the 1830s to the
present, consisting mainly of short stories, plays and poems. These will be examined as works of
literature, but also as texts documenting the variety of genres, periods, religious affiliations,
nationalities and regions within the German-speaking lands. The amount of weekly reading required
in preparation, initially very small, will gradually increase as students’ competence and confidence in
this respect increases. You will work on all four language skills as part of the module.
Assessments: one essay of 2,000 words (in English, 75%, to be submitted in April/May), plus one oral
presentation in German (either the recitation of a poem or the performance of a short dramatic
scene, 25%, in Semester 2).
Tandem Learning German & English (20 credits)

A native speaker of German is paired with a native or near-native speaker of English in order to learn
each other's language and cultural aspects of their respective home countries.
This module aims at developing your spoken and written proficiency as well as your intercultural
awareness and to support you in the acquisition of independent learning skills. Students will work
collaboratively with a native speaker partner for at least two hours per week, using bilingual
independent learning material for this purpose. You will be expected to exercise responsibility for
the organisation of your own learning, including negotiating objectives, time management,
monitoring of progress, maintaining contact with their partner and seeking and providing correction.
Assessment: 2 speaking assignments; 2 learner diaries; one 1000 word-report; self- and peer-
assessment
German Translation in Practice 1 (20 credits)

This course will provide an introduction to, primarily, German into English translation in a number of
consumer-oriented areas of German business, e.g. German-language commercials, branding and
marketing, company websites and instructions for consumers such as cooking recipes, leaflets
accompanying common medicines and simple DIY instructions. The emphasis will be on: a) the
development of intercultural sensitivity b) learning to use dictionaries and other vocabulary
resources, c) the production of texts of a near-professional standard, and d) the use of linguistic and
functionalist approaches to translation.
Assessment: a portfolio of 4 equally weighted translations (each approximately 300 words), taking
into account both intercultural and linguistic competence.
Year Two Module Descriptions
German Core III and IV – Advanced German-speaking Europe before

Germany/ German-Language Cultures and Societies in the Contemporary
World (20 credits semester 1 and 10 credits semester 2)
This module presents a fusion of linguistic competencies and content analysis to allow students to
continue developing a depth and breadth of subject expertise within German studies and explaining
the significance and relevance of that knowledge. In place of the traditional separation between
language and content in Modern Languages curricula, and through the interrelation of
comprehension, speaking, and writing, students on the module will develop their understanding and
expertise within German language in conjunction with a consistent focus on cultural awareness and
analysis. The module will build on the knowledge of key cultural concerns that students developed in
year 1; social, political, and historical phenomena; and linguistic skills relating to the German-
speaking world within and across global contexts and disciplines. Students will also hone skills sets in
critical thinking and research that will allow them to engage with and interrogate pressing socio-
political issues and cultural phenomena from local and global perspectives. Students will have
regular opportunities to use technology to understand language and culture, derived where possible
from teaching and research projects based in the Department of Modern Languages.
In semester two, there will be a consistent focus on cultural awareness, with specific reference to
living and working or studying in a German-speaking country. The module will build on knowledge
acquired in previous Core modules to prepare students for everyday interactions in the country
concerned, by enabling them to acquire a sophisticated understanding of relevant aspects of the
target culture.
Contact hours: in semester one, 6 per week (one interactive plenary and 5 seminar hours); in
semester two, 4 per week.
Assessment: coursework in the target language including a critical exercise and a digital project,
speaking-listening assessment and class test.
German Core V – Research Project (10 credits, semester 2)

This module allows students to focus on an area of specific interest to them and to produce a project
based on independent research. It will build on the research skills developed in the preceding Core
modules and give students basic skills in selecting and refining an area of study, supported by
feedback in seminars and tutorials, that will form the basis on which to build for the compulsory
Independent Study module in Final Year. In plenary sessions students will receive practical advice
and support on project management, research management, finding sources, methodology, and
crafting an argument. In small groups students will work on choosing and refining a topic, preparing
a proposal, and planning, with feedback from the tutor and peer review of formative work.
Individual tutorials will enable the student to discuss questions specific to their projects. A 2,500-
word project in English will be produced at the end of the module, along with a 500-word abstract in
the target language, thereby developing students’ academic writing skills in English as well as their
ability to summarise in the target language. Students of multiple languages will only undertake a
Research Project in one of their languages. In the other language(s) they will be able to take an
optional 10-credit module from the list available.
Contact: 8.5 hours (4 interactive plenary and 4 small group, plus 2 individual meetings with a tutor).
Assessment: research project in English and abstract (summary of the research project) in the target
language.
Translation in Practice 2 (German)

This module is a practical translation module, which will teach students how to translate a variety of
non-fiction texts from German into English. In semester one, the focus will be upon improving
decoding skills, since it is only possible to be a successful translator if you are a skilled reader of
German texts. We will cover complex sentence structures, discourse analysis, and lexical
development. Students will also be introduced to the professional computer-assisted translation
software TRADOS (a ‘CAT tool’). The University owns licences for this software, which we will be able
to use in class. In semester two, we will focus on encoding skills (translation technique, English
language skills) and revision/ post-editing processes. You will work on texts in groups and as
individuals, translating from German into English, and edit each other’s translations too. Students
will continue to develop their skills in using TRADOS.
Contact hours: six per week

Assessment: class test, annotated translation and editing task
Further modules in German to be confirmed. A listing of our current

offerings follows.
German Language Project
The course is designed for those who wish to concentrate on their language skills and combine them
with their interests and even hobbies. The project offers you the opportunity to work autonomously
and produce a newspaper/magazine or other type of publication with topics of your choice. The
‘publication’ will entail a number of different articles and could also have sections like leaders,
readers’ letters, ads, quizzes, or competitions. Your group will meet once every two weeks for
tutorials to concentrate on writing skills and practice spoken language. You also have regular access
to you tutor if individual help is needed. You can select a theme/topic for your publication and thus
develop different styles of writing and manipulate vocabulary relevant to your specialisation. It will
also allow you to gain knowledge of your specific subject area. Furthermore, this module aims to
enhance your ability to express yourselves in the target language through the preparation of an oral
presentation and discussion to be delivered at the end of the course.
Assessment: one written project and one oral exam
Introduction to German Cinema

Why was German cinema considered so innovative during the years of the Weimar Republic (1918-
33)? Why did Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels disapprove of some of Hitler’s pet film projects?
What role did film play in establishing a democratic Germany after 1945? How did film production
function in the communist German Democratic Republic? And how has German film developed since
reunification in 1990?
This module aims to answer all of these questions and more. Each week, we will spend time
discussing a major period in German film history and analysing one key film from each period.
Sessions are mainly student-led and discussion-based. A key focus of the course will be the analysis
of cinematic techniques, and you can expect to develop your skills in visual and textual analysis.
Assessment: one coursework essay and one short analysis of a film scene
Knights, Maidens and Priests

The module will study some short works from the medieval and early modern periods of German
literature: Hartmann von Aue’s Der arme Heinrich, Der Stricker’s Der Pfaffe Amis, and poems or
short pieces by Mechthild von Magdeburg, Oswald von Wolkenstein, and Martin Luther. These will
be analysed as literary texts, but also as sources of information about and criticism of medieval
culture and society. Particular emphasis will be placed on themes relating to the three social
groupings named in the title. The problematic but fruitful relationship between religious and secular
perspectives and stereotypes will be an especially important recurring theme.
Assessment: one coursework essay
Enlightenment Germany
The module will examine aspects of German culture and history in the long eighteenth century.
Students will study how the Enlightenment impacted upon German thought, culture and history in
the eighteenth century, transforming many aspects of life. We will examine the forces that resisted
the currents of Enlightenment, as well as the ways in which the Enlightenment produced some
unintended consequences, including the greatest upheaval of the eighteenth century, the French
Revolution. Other topics to be studied may include the rise of Prussia, the concept of enlightened
absolutism and the impact of Napoleon on Germany.
The German Political Parties & Party Government

Although the German constitution explicitly states that the political parties are only one of many
players in the political arena, the practice looks quite different. Indeed, political parties have become
the dominant force in German politics and society. Although heavily criticised, political life without
them seems inconceivable. The political party scene is undergoing some dramatic and rapid changes.
We have only recently experienced the transition from a stable system of three parties to a highly
volatile and dynamic multiparty system with multiple options. What are the underlying causes for
this rapid transformation? This course will help you understand how German politics 'ticks' and
enable you to assess developments and events more easily. The course assumes no prior knowledge
of politics and is suitable for those who wish to gain an insight into current affairs in Germany.
Cultures of Protest and Terror in West Germany, 1967-1977

The module will explore the history, politics and cultural memory of the West German student
movement and its violent offshoot, the Red Army Faction, during the period 1967–77. Materials
studied will include contemporary media reports and terrorist manifestos as well as a range of
cultural phenomena associated with protest and terrorism in West Germany in this period, such as
documentary and feature films and (semi-)fictional writings by Heinrich Böll, Bernhard Schlink and
others.
Assessment: one coursework essay and one presentation
Representations of Women in Turn-of-the-Century German Literature

Using a range of primary texts, you will study a selection of female writers and female figures in
German and Austrian literature in the late 19th century. Although it self-evidently cannot attempt to
cover the totality of ideas about women in this era, it will seek to enable you to develop an
understanding of and sensitivity towards the topic. The course will also develop your critical
understanding of the question of gender and gender theory and thus examine concepts about the
space of woman (in the family, in the state, in creation) and body image. The course attempts to
raise your awareness of gendered concepts which in various guises still inform women’s (as well as
men’s) self-image and actions today.
Post-War German Literature

Want to know more about how Germany developed and divided after the Second World War and
how this was reflected in and influenced the literature of the time? Feel you ought to know more
about two of the leading names in twentieth-century German writing, Heinrich Böll and Günter
Grass? Then this is the course for you. The module considers (West) German literature from 1945 to
the early 1960s and examines key literary developments against the background of wider political
and social developments, including the establishment of the Federal Republic, the Economic Miracle,
the building of the Berlin Wall and Germany’s troubled relationship with its Nazi past. All students
read a range of short texts, including one play, two short story collections and one short novel.
Year Four Module Descriptions

Core German Language (20 credits)
This module will offer practice and training in translation both into and from German with revision of
German grammar. It will also offer extensive instruction and practice in oral and essay-writing skills.
By the end of the module you should have achieved level C1/C2 of the Common European
Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).
Assessment: oral and written examination, class tests and assessed essay.
Oral Presentation and Debating

This module builds on and your skills in spoken German, gained during the year abroad, by
developing two important practical language skills. In the first semester you prepare a presentation
on your work during the year abroad work; and in Semester 2 you practise debating skills before
engaging in a group debate (chaired by a member of staff with a second member of staff present).
on an issue of contemporary relevance to Germany. Each of these tasks is supported by discussing
video examples, and by feedback on informal rehearsals.
Assessment: Oral presentation in class plus participation in a debate
Translation in Theory and Practice in Europe A and B

The course focuses on approaches to the theory and practice of translation in Europe. It addresses
the main areas of debate in Translation Theory and Translation Studies, with a historical survey of
key theoretical texts and comparative and contrastive analysis of translations into English. It also
covers key approaches, skills and resources available to the translator. It gives students the
opportunity to apply their knowledge to their own translation practice via the production of a
translation from their language of study into English accompanied by a critical and theoretically-
informed reflection on the translation.
Assessment: coursework essay and translation project
German-Language Cinema since 1960: Images of a Nation?

The first semester is spent analysing the cinema of the divided Germany from 1960-1990. Topics
studied will include the legacy of the National Socialist era, the division of Germany and the feminist
movement in Germany. In West German cinema, we look at issues such as the development of the
New German Cinema, a movement associated with younger directors concerned to criticise -
amongst other things - the conservatism and oppression of West German society. We’ll also look at
some key films from the East German cinema, and examine how the communist authorities shaped
the filmmaking landscape in the German Democratic Republic. The second semester focuses on
post-1990 cinema in Germany and Austria. We will look at the question of whether contemporary
directors retain the same focus on political concerns. We will consider how the national past has
represented in more recent productions such as Der Untergang. Films will include examples from
the vibrant Turkish-German filmmaking scene and from the critically acclaimed Austrian auteur
cinema of recent years.
Assessment: coursework essay and end-of-year exam
From the Stasi to the Sandmännchen: Remembering the GDR in the United
Germany
In this module students will learn about the social, political and cultural processes of remembering
the German Democratic Republic (GDR) in contemporary Germany. We will study socio-political
debates surrounding the history and memory of East Germany (e.g., concepts of totalitarianism and
nostalgia, or the opening of the Stasi files), and the production of works of culture in this context
(e.g., the Stasi prison memorial in Berlin-Hohenschoenhausen, Henckel von Donnersmarck’s Das
Leben der Anderen, or Hensel’s Zonenkinder). We will consider the relationship between individual
memory, memories of different social groups and the creation of ‘official’ narratives about the past.
Our discussions will be grounded in memory and media studies theory, as well as political
approaches to the legacy of state socialism.
Governance and Political Culture in Germany

Germany defines itself as a parliamentary democracy based on the rule of law, social justice and
federalism. What does that actually mean in the theory and practice of the Federal Republic? How is
Germany governed and furthermore, have the underlying cultural conditions for a successful
democracy been met? The course aims to provide an overview and an analysis of Germany’s system
of government taking the main aspects of German governance and political culture into account.
Students are welcome and encouraged to pursue their particular interests and share their (gained)
expertise with all course participants.
German First World War Writing

The course (two hours per week) explores the various ways in which German writers attempted to
come to terms with the experience and aftermath of the First World War. Areas of discussion
include the literary qualities of German war writing, the presentation of life and death at the front,
the depiction of broader aspects of the conflict, military and civilian perceptions of the war, as well
as the political and cultural significance of German literature on the First World war in the period
1918-1933.
Medieval German Epic and Romance

This course explores in detail four of the most important and fascinating works of the High Middle
Ages. Aspects of Middle High German language will be considered, but the primary focus of the
course will be on a variety of literary aspects of the set texts. These will include social and religious
themes, characterization and the construction of identity, symbolism, narrative technique and
questions of genre.
Oppositional Writing in Nazi Germany

Was public opposition and dissent possible in the so-called totalitarian Nazi state? Somewhat
surprisingly, there is quite a large body of texts suggesting that it was. This module explores
oppositional discourses in private writings and “between the lines”in published texts in the Nazi era.
You are given introductory lectures on the political and social background of the period, cultural
policy between 1933 and 1945, and the problems faced by oppositional writers during this period,
and on the problematic concept of “inner emigration” in the critical literature since 1945. After a
guided session reading “between the lines”, you are introduced to a range of individual authors,
their biographies and their works, and relevant secondary literature, to explore the methods by
which dissent was placed in the public sphere.
Assessment: coursework essay and presentation
Sex, Seduction and Submission: Gender in German Literature from 1900 to

Today
This seminar explores the women’s life writing in German literature in the period between the turn
of the 20th century and post 1989. It explores the relationship between aspirations and biographies
as well as the ways in which some of the most significant women of this period expressed
themselves. Selected texts by a range of women writers engaging in different genres will be
discussed. The course is intended to help students gain a historical perspective on the diversity of
women’s writing in the period and on the key topics, be they negotiated directly or indirectly: the
place of ‘woman’ in society, the relationship with ‘man’, and the role of relationships in defining
one’s identity.
HISPANIC STUDIES (40 credits)
We are updating
This is an exciting time for Modern Languages at Birmingham. Last year, our language sections
scored 96% and upwards for Overall Satisfaction in the National Student Survey, but we don’t want
to rest on our laurels so we are updating our curriculum because we are always looking to improve
our degree courses to ensure you have the best possible experience as a student.
For 2017 entry, we will be introducing an expanded target-language core module in year one
which, while it entails a slight reduction in the option choices available, will offer greater breadth of
study so that you get to sample everything that the discipline has to offer. Our aspiration is that at
the end of the four years with us, you will be a subject expert in the language(s) you have chosen to
study, able to discuss, fluently and confidently, the big themes that relate to your chosen discipline.
The University has recently appointed new Professors in 3 different languages, a purpose-built
Interpreting Suite is due to open for use by the Department in 2017-2018, and further
developments in the curriculum and staffing are planned over 2017.
Please bear in mind that while we are developing our curriculum, the information contained in the
following pages will be subject to change. We ask you to bear with us, and please do contact us if
there is anything that you want to ask.
What does ‘Hispanic’ mean?

We call ourselves a Hispanic Studies department because we don’t restrict
ourselves to studying the Spanish of Spain. Come to Birmingham, and you
can learn about Latin America, the Spanish Caribbean, Portugal and Catalonia
too. You can also learn Catalan and Portuguese alongside Castilian Spanish.
The language and content provision is excellent, including some very sophisticated
modules embedding a multidisciplinary approach involving history, politics, society,
literature and culture and the outcomes reflect high levels of attainment. The work
produced suggests excellent and really motivating teaching that is up to date with the
state of knowledge and thought in the field.
Professor Omar García, External Examiner, 2016
Your students are very very happy with the course, and many of them are brilliant! It's
been really, really enjoyable, reading the work they've produced, and seeing the
impacts of research-enhanced teaching, and some fantastic innovation in many of the
culture options and the translation pathway. In the context of what is going on in the
rest of Britain and Ireland this is really leading-edge stuff.
Dr Helena Buffery, External Examiner, 2016
Year one module information

BEGINNERS Spanish Core Beginners I and II (40 credits) Compulsory
ADVANCED Spanish Core Advanced I and II (40 credits) Compulsory
Year two module information

Spanish Core Advanced or Beginners III (20 credits) Compulsory
Spanish Core Advanced or Beginners IV and V (10 credits each)
The Year Abroad
As a student on a BA Modern Languages programme (including With Business Management), you

have the possibility of undertaking three types of activity on your year abroad. You can attend
classes at one of the universities with which we have an ERASMUS exchange agreement (NB some
institutions impose minimum standards of language, so not all University places will be open to all
students). At present for Spanish, we have agreements with:
 SPAIN: Alcalá de Henares, Almería, Barcelona (Universitat Autónoma de Barcelona and

Universitat de Barcelona), Cáceres, Cádiz, Granada, Huelva, Madrid, Málaga, Murcia, Oviedo,
Salamanca, Santiago de Compostela, Seville, Valencia, Vitoria-Gasteiz, and Zaragoza
 SPANISH-SPEAKING LATIN AMERICA: Buenos Aires (Argentina), Santiago (Chile), Guadalajara,

Monterrey, Puebla and Veracruz (Mexico), Quito (Ecuador), Montevideo (Uruguay)
 PORTUGAL & BRAZIL: Lisbon, Coimbra (Portugal); Florianópolis, São Paulo (Brazil)
Students may also spend their Year Abroad as a Language Assistant on a salaried placement in a
school (organised via the British Council; students of French, German, Italian and Spanish only.
Students may find a placement themselves using contacts available via friends, family, and their own
research, or apply for an opportunity organised by the Department of Modern Languages (NB you
cannot do a work placement in China, Japan or Russia). We ask beginners students to spend at
least one semester in a country where that language is spoken.
SPLITTING THE YEAR:
If you are studying one language, you can do:
 a year-long university placement

 one semester each in two universities (Russian only)
 a year-long teaching placement
 a one-semester work placement + a one-semester university placement
 a year-long work placement
If you are studying two languages, your options are:
 a year-long university placement + a summer vacation course

 one semester each in two universities in different countries
 a year-long teaching placement + a summer vacation course
 a one-semester work placement + a one-semester University placement
 two different work placements
If you are studying three languages, you can do:
 one semester each in two universities in different countries + a summer vacation course
 a one-semester work placement + a one-semester university placement + a summer vacation
course
 two different work placements + a summer vacation course
Year Four modules
These are the modules that are available to current students. Not all of the options listed above will
run in any given year. All students will take the Independent Study Module in Modern Languages in
one of their languages (20 credits).
 Advanced Spanish Language
 Translation Theory & Practice (Compulsory for students taking 100 credits)
 Advanced Catalan Language (for students who took Catalan in Y1 & Y2)
 Catalan Language & Literature (for students who started Catalan in Y2)
 Advanced or intermediate Portuguese (depending on level attained in Y2)
 Advanced Spanish Linguistics
 Spanish Caribbean: History & Literature + US Latino: Spanish Caribbean
 Contemporary Spanish Film from Fiction
 Social and Political Processes in Contemporary Latin America
 Twentieth-century Brazilian Fiction
 Children and Teenagers in Spanish Literature
 Reimagining the World: Cervantes, Lope and the Baroque
 Trapped in Spain: Writing Twentieth-century Imprisonment

 Contemporary Portuguese Fiction
 Gender debates in Contemporary Spanish Culture
 The Sublime and the Grotesque in Catalan Culture
Year One module descriptions
Spanish Core I and II – Advanced or Beginners: Hispanic Cultures in Global

Contexts
NB Advanced and Beginner students will be taught separately, except in the weekly interactive
plenary session in English.
Our core modules, offering increased contact hours, will provide you with an introduction to the
knowledge and skills you need to become a Birmingham Languages Graduate. You will have the
opportunity to explore the key ideas that have shaped the Spanish-speaking world: the key cultural
movements, the social, political, and historical phenomena, and the linguistic issues. You will do all
this through the medium of Spanish, and using the latest technology, to develop your understanding
and expertise within the language, so that you increase your ability to express complex ideas and
conduct challenging conversations. We will also work to develop your critical thinking and study
methods skills, so that you can engage with the breadth and depth of Spanish studies in future
years.
Contact hours: 6 per week advanced or 8 for beginners (one interactive plenary and 5/7 seminar
hours)
Assessment: a mixture of essay and project work (the first piece in English, the rest in the target
language), speaking-listening assessments, and a written examination.
Year two module descriptions
Spanish Core III and IV – Advanced or Beginners: Hispanic Cultures in

Global Contexts (20 credits semester 1 and 10 credits semester 2)
NB Advanced and Beginner students will be taught separately, except in the weekly interactive
plenary session in English.
This module presents a fusion of linguistic competencies and content analysis to allow students to
continue developing a depth and breadth of subject expertise within Hispanic studies and explaining
the significance and relevance of that knowledge. In place of the traditional separation between
language and content in Modern Languages curricula, and through the interrelation of
comprehension, speaking, and writing, students on the module will develop their understanding and
expertise within Spanish language in conjunction with a consistent focus on cultural awareness and
analysis. The module will build on the knowledge of key cultural concerns that students developed in
year 1; social, political, and historical phenomena; and linguistic skills relating to the Spanish-
speaking world within and across global contexts and disciplines. Students will also hone skills sets in
critical thinking and research that will allow them to engage with and interrogate pressing socio-
political issues and cultural phenomena from local and global perspectives. Students will have
regular opportunities to use technology to understand language and culture, derived where possible
from teaching and research projects based in the Department of Modern Languages.
In semester two, there will be a consistent focus on cultural awareness, with specific reference to
living and working or studying in a Spanish-speaking country. The module will build on knowledge
acquired in previous Core modules to prepare students for everyday interactions in the country
concerned, by enabling them to acquire a sophisticated understanding of relevant aspects of the
target culture.
Contact hours: in semester one, 6 per week advanced and 8 hours per week beginners (one
interactive plenary and 5/7 seminar hours); in semester two, 4 per week.
Assessment: coursework in the target language including a critical exercise and a digital project,
speaking-listening assessment and class test.
Spanish Core V – Research Project (10 credits, semester 2)

This module allows students to focus on an area of specific interest to them and to produce a project
based on independent research. It will build on the research skills developed in the preceding Core
modules and give students basic skills in selecting and refining an area of study, supported by
feedback in seminars and tutorials, that will form the basis on which to build for the compulsory
Independent Study module in Final Year. In plenary sessions students will receive practical advice
and support on project management, research management, finding sources, methodology, and
crafting an argument. In small groups students will work on choosing and refining a topic, preparing
a proposal, and planning, with feedback from the tutor and peer review of formative work.
Individual tutorials will enable the student to discuss questions specific to their projects. A 2,500-
word project in English will be produced at the end of the module, along with a 500-word abstract in
the target language, thereby developing students’ academic writing skills in English as well as their
ability to summarise in the target language. Students of multiple languages will only undertake a
Research Project in one of their languages. In the other language(s) they will be able to take an
optional 10-credit module from the list available.
Contact: 8.5 hours across the module (4 interactive plenary and 4 small group, plus 2 individual
meetings with a tutor)
Assessment: research project in English and abstract (summary of the research project) in the target
language.

Zen Si Arta Fericirii Chris Prentiss

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Modern Languages programmes

Year one module information

BEGINNERS Not available at 80 credits

ADVANCED  German Core Advanced I and II (40 credits) Compulsory

 German Translation in Practice 1 Optional

Year two module information

BEGINNERS Not available at 80 credits

ADVANCED  German Core Advanced III (20 credits) Compulsory

OPTIONS These are the modules available to current Optional

 Translation in Practice 2 (German)

The Year Abroad

As a student on a BA Modern Languages programme (including With Business Management), you

 Augsburg, Berlin (Humboldt University), Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, Erlangen, Frankfurt am Main,

SPLITTING THE YEAR:

If you are studying one language, you can do:

 a year-long university placement

If you are studying two languages, your options are:

 a year-long university placement + a summer vacation course

If you are studying three languages, you can do:

Year Four modules

 Core German Language (20 credits, compulsory)

Year One Module Descriptions

German Core I – Advanced Democracy, Diversity, and Dynamism and Core II

 Germany’s Place in Europe;

Literatur und Gesellschaft in den deutschsprachigen Ländern (Literature

Tandem Learning German & English (20 credits)

German Translation in Practice 1 (20 credits)

Year Two Module Descriptions

German Core III and IV – Advanced German-speaking Europe before

German Core V – Research Project (10 credits, semester 2)

Translation in Practice 2 (German)

Contact hours: six per week

Further modules in German to be confirmed. A listing of our current

German Language Project

Introduction to German Cinema

Knights, Maidens and Priests

Assessment: one coursework essay

The German Political Parties & Party Government

Cultures of Protest and Terror in West Germany, 1967-1977

Representations of Women in Turn-of-the-Century German Literature

Post-War German Literature

Year Four Module Descriptions

Oral Presentation and Debating

Translation in Theory and Practice in Europe A and B

German-Language Cinema since 1960: Images of a Nation?

Governance and Political Culture in Germany

German First World War Writing

Medieval German Epic and Romance

Oppositional Writing in Nazi Germany

Sex, Seduction and Submission: Gender in German Literature from 1900 to

HISPANIC STUDIES (40 credits)

What does ‘Hispanic’ mean?

Year one module information

BEGINNERS Spanish Core Beginners I and II (40 credits) Compulsory

ADVANCED Spanish Core Advanced I and II (40 credits) Compulsory

Year two module information

The Year Abroad

As a student on a BA Modern Languages programme (including With Business Management), you

 SPAIN: Alcalá de Henares, Almería, Barcelona (Universitat Autónoma de Barcelona and

 SPANISH-SPEAKING LATIN AMERICA: Buenos Aires (Argentina), Santiago (Chile), Guadalajara,

SPLITTING THE YEAR:

If you are studying one language, you can do:

 a year-long university placement

If you are studying two languages, your options are: