Alumni
Follow The Passion (German), Find the Career (Foreign Service)
Read The Story
German Studies
You will study the language, literature, culture, historical development and politics of German-speaking countries and emerge prepared for graduate school or a range of careers. Your professors will encourage you to study abroad in a German-speaking country. German studies concentrators spend at least one semester, and ideally a full year, in Germany.
Germany's important contemporary position, cultural legacy and turbulent history at the center of European affairs make it an important topic of study for a wide range of interests: language and literature, government and diplomacy, international trade, science and technology. German is one of the major official languages of the European Union and is recognized as an important language of business, particularly in Eastern Europe.
My favorite aspect of studying German at Hamilton had to be the free tutoring sessions offered by the school with native speakers. Freshman year, I was paired up with Daniela Pfister '09 and from there I began to enjoy learning the language! She put me at ease with her kind, encouraging manner and I always looked forward to our meetings. Talking with her got me excited to learn more vocabulary, pronounce words correctly and study certain words to use in our next tutoring session.
Emily Johnston — German studies major
Beyond the mandatory core courses in the language, students may choose from a wide selection of offerings in other departments, tapping into history, government, music, philosophy and more.
Careers After Hamilton
- William H. Laird Professor of German, Carleton College
- Webmaster, IBM Corp.
- Vice President, Deutsche Bank Americas
- Senior Vice President, Coca-Cola Company
- President, World Emergency Relief
- Head of Languages, St. Paul's School
- General Counsel, Westdeutsche Landesbank Girozentrale
- Director, International Technology Office, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- Director, Copyright, Public Broadcasting Service
- Designer, EuroEast Tours
- Bureau Chief, Financial Times
A Sampling of Courses
Dragons, Witches, Princesses: German and other Fairy Tales 152
The course is about "imaginary gardens with real toads in them" (Marianne Moore) and about "desir[ing] dragons with a profound desire" (J.R.R. Tolkien). It is about "Once upon a time" - a time that is on nobody's clock but exists in our collective memory. Extensive readings from the Brothers Grimm. Further readings from Perrault, de Beaumont, Hauff, Bechstein, Andersen, Hoffmann, MacDonald, Morris, Tolkien.Taught in English.
View All CoursesIntroduction to German Cinema 154F
Introduction to German cinema from the Weimar era to the present. Examination of seminal films from Fritz Lang’s M to Sebastian Schipper’s Victoria, we also explore Germany’s history from the 1930s to the twenty-first century. Emphasis on the medium’s relationship to history, propaganda, memory, identity, and entertainment. Close attention paid to the formal language and thematic preoccupations of expressionist and avant-garde cinema, fascist cinema, New German Cinema, and the New Berlin school. Works by filmmakers such as Riefenstahl, Herzog, Fassbinder, Petzold, and Akin.
View All CoursesMay the Forest Be with You: Ecology and Youth Literature 167
Examination of issues that address environment concerns popular in German-speaking nations from the conservative idealism of the late 19th century to the radical environmentalism of the 1960s. Close readings of texts informed by theory and other media such as film, music, and technology. The goal of this course is to better understand these works, the ecological questions they raise, and how they intersect with the culture(s), history, media, politics, economy, and identity in modern Europe.
View All CoursesThe Faust Legend 185
Study of the Faust legend and how it has been adapted over the centuries. Topics include the origins of Faust in the 15th century in its factual (Paracelsus and Johann Faust) and spiritual (alchemy and astronomy) dimensions; the Faust Book of 1587; Marlowe’s adaptation of the Faust story (The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus); Goethe’s Faust (The First Part of the Tragedy); operas by Gounod (Faust) and Boïto (Mefistofele); the film Mephisto by H. Mann/Szabò; and T. Mann’s Doctor Faustus.
View All CoursesFrom Empire to Republic: Twentieth-Century German Literature 420
Study and analysis of works spanning the era from 1871 to the beginning of the Second World War. Selections focus on literary and cultural changes including the Jahrhundertwende and the Weimar Republic. Authors include Fontane, Hauptmann, Trakl, Hofmannsthal, George, Schnitzler and Mann. Taught in German.
View All CoursesModern Literature of the German-Speaking Countries 440F
Study of post-1945 literature with focus on Austria, the emergence of two contrasting Germanies, and the Neuanschluss leading to unification. Texts by Bachmann, Bernhard, Böll, Grass, Seghers, Wolf and others. Taught in German.
View All CoursesToday and Tomorrow
