A Cultural History of German Romanticism

Steven D. Martinson
Fall 2019
Mondays |  
9 AM - 12 PM
September 23, 30, October 7, 14, 21, 28, November 4, 18, December 2, and 9, 2019
Course Format: Hybrid
Location: Main Campus
Tuition: $235

Romanticism embraces love and sensuality, but it includes much more. The romantic movement powerfully affected all forms of literature and the arts, and even science. In this seminar we investigate several texts in historical, political, philosophical, literary, musical, artistic, and scientific contexts. A particularly interesting component of German romanticism is that women opened salons, which expanded the circulation of romantic ideals and practices in the public sphere. In music Schumann, Schubert, the later Beethoven, and Richard Wagner wrote powerful compositions that have lastingly shaped not only German cultural history but numerous cultures worldwide. Unfortunately, romanticism’s search for origins, fascination with the Middle Ages, and emphasis on the German Volk were appropriated by the Nazis. Fortunately, the creative energy of the most salient aspects of German Romanticism has been sustained and rightly admired.

Registration Opens Online: Monday, August 12, 2019 at 8AM (AZ Time)

Required Reading

No textbook is required. All readings and class materials will be distributed to students electronically.

Meet Your Instructor

Professor Emeritus

STEVE MARTINSON is Professor Emeritus of German Studies. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Washington. Following appointments at Northwestern University (1977-80) and UCLA (1980-88), he joined the faculty of the University of Arizona, retiring in spring 2019. His main scholarly research is on the literature and culture of the German eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries (enlightenment, classicism, and romanticism).

Location

POETRY CENTER
Dorothy Rubel Room
1508 E Helen
Tucson, AZ 85721
United States

Located on the SE corner of Helen Street and Vine Avenue, one block north of Speedway and three blocks west of Campbell Ave.

Street map image of Poetry Center

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