Ateneo - UPO

GERMAN CULTURE AND INTERMEDIALITY: GRAPHIC NOVELS ON THE THIRD REICH

- Shigeru Mizuki, Hitler. Non-commercial Italian edition. It will be made available by the lecturer.
- Ingrid Sabish, Heiner Lünstedt, Sophie Scholl e la Rosa Bianca, Lindau, 2023. Available in the library.
-Art Spiegelmann, Maus, Einaudi, 2020-2021. Available in the library.
- David Sala, Il giocatore scacchi. Dalla novella di Stefan Zweig, Gallucci, 2022. Available in the library.
- Stefan Zweig, La novella degli scacchi, con testo a fronte, BUR, 2013. Available in the library.
- Other comics or literary works that will be uploaded on DIR.

By means of face-to-face teaching (1,5CFU) and self-study (4,5CFU), the course aims to enable students to develop the ability to outline the fundamental principles of comic theory and techniques, and to analyse the graphic novels studied in relation to the concepts of intermediality and memory. Students studying German as part of their curriculum will also be able to present their arguments in German. A more advanced objective is to equip students with the necessary skills to make critical, and indeed personal, observations, and to develop the ability to analyse the course’s central themes. The learning outcomes are consistent with the specific learning outcomes of the degree programme.

A good knowledge of German is required for LCT students studying German as part of their degree programme. There are no prerequisites for LCT students who are not studying German as part of their degree programme or who are from other degree programmes.

Lectures, critical reading, text analysis and the use of multimedia resources will enable students to achieve the expected learning outcomes.

Further information will be provided at the start of the course and published in the course programme on DIR. The registration on DIR is required. Please check the teacher's page on Upobook regularly.
Non-attending students are requested to contact the teacher in order to get their detailed program by mail. The preparation of the non-attendance programme is necessary in order to obtain the 6CFU foreseen for the module, which also includes either the 30 hours of lectures or the reading of substitute materials to be carried out in an equal number of hours.
Please read the texts before we will analyze them in the lessons, so you will be able to better understand the explanations and to participate in the discussion.
Students with physical disabilities, Learning Disabilities or Special Education Needs can request specific services and tools via the Staff Sviluppo e Coordinamento Carriere e Servizi alle Studentesse e agli Studenti, consulting the University webpage: https://www.uniupo.it/en/services/services-students-physical-or-learning-disabilities
Students with disabilities, learning disabilities or special education needs, once they have contacted the University Staff, can refer to the tutor in charge of the course to define the examination modalities, concerning academic aspects.

The assessment consists of an oral examination in Italian and German, which serves the dual purpose of verifying both the students’ level of knowledge and understanding of the course content – including through reference to the critical bibliography indicated by the lecturer – and of assessing their independent judgement, learning ability, communication skills in Italian and German, as well as their proficiency in translating from German into Italian.
The questions will focus on the following points, corresponding to the knowledge and skills set out in the learning outcomes:
- assessment of the historical and cultural context of National Socialism, the fundamentals of the comic, and knowledge of the texts discussed in class or studied in critical literature.
Students on the LCT programme who are studying German as a core subject will be examined in German on the sections covered in German during lectures: 50% of the exam mark, of which 10% relates to the German-language section.
For students not on the LCT programme or who are not studying German as a core subject: 40% of the exam mark.
- assessment of the ability to analyse and interpret texts, to express critical judgements – including original ones – to analyse the graphic novels on the syllabus, and to develop a specific critical discourse on individual topics or texts that relates to the central themes of the course: 50 per cent of the exam mark.
For students not enrolled on the LCT programme or who do not study German as part of their curriculum: 60% of the exam mark.

The course aims to provide the basic tools for approaching the reading of graphic novels from a theoretical and critical perspective, with a greater awareness of the history of the ‘ninth art’, as well as the techniques and tools it employs. Following an introductory first part of the course, we will analyse a number of graphic novels dealing with one of the most tragically significant periods in German culture and history: the Third Reich. Biographies (of Hitler and his opponents), accounts of the Holocaust and cross-media adaptations of exile literature will enable us to explore and discuss in depth the reworking of the past through cross-media and multimodal approaches.

The expected learning outcomes are consistent with those specific to the degree programme. In order to achieve the minimum pass mark (60 %) students are required to demonstrate:
KNOWLEDGE:
Knowledge of the theoretical foundations and analytical tools relating to comics, as well as the specific characteristics of the graphic novels analysed and the critical literature provided by the lecturer.
SKILLS:
The ability to analyse graphic novels in terms of both text and imagery, to present the central themes clearly, with reference to the historical and cultural context of the works in relation to intermediality, and using appropriate critical vocabulary.
The ability to present arguments in German for LCT students studying German as a curricular language.
The advanced level corresponds to 85% and is achieved through more in-depth knowledge and skills, as well as a higher level of critical depth and clarity of presentation.
The maximum mark (100%) is awarded for an excellent level of knowledge and skills.