Fachbereich 05: Sprache, Literatur, Kultur - Anglistik - Bachelor of Arts (Studienbeginn ab Wintersemester 2020/21)

This course is designed to introduce first-year students to the study of English and American literature. Among other things, we will deal with the analysis and interpretation of poetry, drama, prose texts, and film as well as theoretical approaches to literature. Furthermore, we will show you how to find secondary literature, how to quote literature, and how to compile a bibliography.

This lecture provides an overview of British literary history, one novel at a time. We will begin in the 18th century with Daniel Defoe, who is often credited with writing the first English novel, and end in the 21st century with Bernardine Evaristo, the first ever Black writer to have received the most prestigious British literary prize, the Booker. In between these two authors, we will move through the most important literary epochs and movements, from Romanticism, the Victorian Age, Modernism, Postmodernism and what lies beyond, to look at famous literary works and Britain’s most important authors. This approach also allows us to touch on questions of canon formation, and to think about the selection processes in the literary field that, still today, shape the reading lists of schools and universities. As the title suggests, we won’t read only books written by dead white men, but they will be prominently represented. The lecture will also touch on important approaches of literary studies, key concepts and literary theories that have shaped our understanding of the discussed novels. Take this lecture if you want to get an overview of British literary history, and idea of how the style of writing changed throughout the centuries, and to hear a little bit about the prominent cultural, social, and political concerns that provide the backgrounds of the different novels.
Among the texts discussed in this lecture are Daniel Defoe, Moll Flanders (1722), Mary Shelley, Frankenstein (1818), Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre (1847), Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness (1899), Virginia Woolf, Mrs Dalloway (1925), Julian Barnes, England, England (1998), and Bernardine Evaristo, Girl, Woman, Other (2019).

This course aims at familiarizing students with approaches to the study of human language in general and to the study of the English language in particular. Attention will be paid to important concepts and terminology from the core areas of theoretical linguistics (phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics) and to their relevance to the fields of applied linguistics, such as language acquisition, sociolinguistics and cognitive linguistics.

Exam / Modulabschlussprüfung (MAP): To be announced at the beginning of the semester

This course aims at familiarizing students with approaches to the study of human language in general and to the study of the English language in particular. Attention will be paid to important concepts and terminology from the core areas of theoretical linguistics (phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics) and to their relevance to the fields of applied linguistics, such as language acquisition, sociolinguistics and cognitive linguistics.

Exam / Modulabschlussprüfung (MAP): To be announced at the beginning of the semester

This course aims at familiarizing students with approaches to the study of human language in general and to the study of the English language in particular. Attention will be paid to important concepts and terminology from the core areas of theoretical linguistics (phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics) and to their relevance to the fields of applied linguistics, such as language acquisition, sociolinguistics and cognitive linguistics.

Exam / Modulabschlussprüfung (MAP): To be announced at the beginning of the semester

This course aims at familiarizing students with approaches to the study of human language in general and to English in particular. Attention will be paid to important concepts and terms of core areas of theoretical linguistics (phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics) and to their relevance to the fields of applied linguistics, such as language acquisition, sociolinguistics and computational linguistics.

Reading: Bernd Kortmann, English Linguistics: Essentials (Berlin: Cornelsen, 2020).
Registration: FlexNow
Graded credit: Regular attendance, active participation, a mini presentation and a pass in the Modulabschlussprüfung at the end of the lecture period.

This course aims at familiarizing students with approaches to the study of human language in general and to the study of the English language in particular. Attention will be paid to important concepts and terminology from the core areas of theoretical linguistics (phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics) and to their relevance to the fields of applied linguistics, such as language acquisition, sociolinguistics and cognitive linguistics.

Exam / Modulabschlussprüfung (MAP): To be announced at the beginning of the semester

The study of the history of the English language offers highly relevant insights into how the language has changed over the course of the centuries and into how the English language is structured and functions all around the world today. Therefore, we will pay particular attention to the different periods in the history of the English language, i.e. Old English, Middle English, Early Modern English, Late Modern English and Present-day English, in order to follow the structural changes on the levels of phonology, lexis, syntax and semantics that have led to the English language as we use it today.

Exam / Modulabschlussprüfung (MAP): To be announced at the beginning of the semester

The study of the history of the English language offers highly relevant insights into how the language has changed over the course of the centuries and into how the English language is structured and functions all around the world today. Therefore, we will pay particular attention to the different periods in the history of the English language, i.e. Old English, Middle English, Early Modern English, Late Modern English and Present-day English, in order to follow the structural changes on the levels of phonology, lexis, syntax and semantics that have led to the English language as we use it today.

Exam / Modulabschlussprüfung (MAP): To be announced at the beginning of the semester

This lecture course surveys the sounds of English, primarily those of American and British accents. The lecture focuses on the characteristic articulation of English sounds (esp. speech organs, sound classes, places and manners of articulation) as well as the systems used for the phonetic description of vowels and consonants. We will also have a look at phonemes and allophonic distribution, phonological processes and connected speech phenomena such as word stress and intonation. Attention is also paid to those areas of articulation that tend to be problematic for German speakers. Students will also learn to read and broadly transcribe English sounds using International Phonetic Association (IPA) transcription.

Course book:
Lorenz, Frank. 2013. Basics of phonetics and English phonology. With IPA transcription. 2nd. ed. Berlin: Logos Verlag. (available as e-book through universitay library)

Registration:
FlexNow.

Credit:
Graded: Final exam 100%

Final exam:
- ICB and Anglophone Studies (MAP): last week of lecture period, dates tba.
- all others: 11.02.2025

This lecture course surveys the sounds of English, primarily those of American and British accents. The lecture focuses on the characteristic articulation of English sounds (esp. speech organs, sound classes, places and manners of articulation) as well as the systems used for the phonetic description of vowels and consonants. We will also have a look at phonemes and allophonic distribution, phonological processes and connected speech phenomena such as word stress and intonation. Attention is also paid to those areas of articulation that tend to be problematic for German speakers. Students will also learn to read and broadly transcribe English sounds using International Phonetic Association (IPA) transcription.

Course book:
Lorenz, Frank. 2013. Basics of phonetics and English phonology. With IPA transcription. 2nd. ed. Berlin: Logos Verlag. (available as e-book through universitay library)

Registration:
FlexNow.

Credit:
Graded: Final exam 100%

Final exam:
- ICB and Anglophone Studies (MAP): last week of lecture period, dates tba.
- all others: 13.02.2025

This course offers an introduction into the qualitative and quantitative methods for analyzing English language structures on the various levels of linguistic description. We will not only provide an overview of these methods, but will also make sure that you have ample opportunities to practice their application to small-scale studies (with the help of data analysis software and simple statistical measures). We will also place an emphasis on how to discuss and present empirical findings.

Modulabschlussprüfung (MAP): To be announced at the beginning of the semester

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

This course focuses on the development of the students' general language skills. The aim is to work on language development and awareness with the focus on the four skills (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening), both in an integrated way but also separately. There will also be considerable work done and emphasis placed on the sub-skill of Vocabulary and also some work done on Grammar. With the ultimate goal of advanced communication, students will have to deal with different levels of texts and other media, through which various aspects of the language will be highlighted.

Focusing on the grammar of the English verb phrase (tense and aspect, modality, non-finite constructions), this course is designed to help students solidify and extend their grasp of core areas of English grammar and make the transition from upper intermediate level to lower advanced level (B2 to C1). Making this transition not only involves getting a firm grip on the essentials (structures already covered at school but all too often either forgotten or never properly mastered in the first place), it also involves adding some of those finer points that need to be mastered on the steep and thorny way to advanced language competence.

.Focusing on the grammar of the English verb phrase (tense and aspect, modality, non-finite constructions), this course is designed to help students solidify and extend their grasp of core areas of English grammar and make the transition from upper intermediate level to lower advanced level (B2 to C1). Making this transition not only involves getting a firm grip on the essentials (structures already covered at school but all too often either forgotten or never properly mastered in the first place), it also involves adding some of those finer points that need to be mastered on the steep and thorny way to advanced language competence.

.Focusing on the grammar of the English verb phrase (tense and aspect, modality, non-finite constructions), this course is designed to help students solidify and extend their grasp of core areas of English grammar and make the transition from upper intermediate level to lower advanced level (B2 to C1). Making this transition not only involves getting a firm grip on the essentials (structures already covered at school but all too often either forgotten or never properly mastered in the first place), it also involves adding some of those finer points that need to be mastered on the steep and thorny way to advanced language competence.

Focusing on the grammar of the English verb phrase (tense and aspect, modality, non-finite constructions), this course is designed to help students solidify and extend their grasp of core areas of English grammar and make the transition from upper intermediate level to lower advanced level (B2 to C1). Making this transition not only involves getting a firm grip on the essentials (structures already covered at school but all too often either forgotten or never properly mastered in the first place), it also involves adding some of those finer points that need to be mastered on the steep and thorny way to advanced language competence.

.Focusing on the grammar of the English verb phrase (tense and aspect, modality, non-finite constructions), this course is designed to help students solidify and extend their grasp of core areas of English grammar and make the transition from upper intermediate level to lower advanced level (B2 to C1). Making this transition not only involves getting a firm grip on the essentials (structures already covered at school but all too often either forgotten or never properly mastered in the first place), it also involves adding some of those finer points that need to be mastered on the steep and thorny way to advanced language competence.

This course focuses on developing students' communicative competence in the domains of listening and speaking in academic settings at level C1 CEFRL. Students will develop and practice effective listening strategies for the global, selective and detailed decoding of aural input, specifically in academic settings (e.g. lectures), including appropriate note-taking skills. They will practice speaking fluently and eloquently in appropriate registers, specifically when contributing to academic discussions and delivering presentations. They will extend their subject-specific as well as general academic vocabulary and consolidate their knowledge of grammatical structures characteristic of academic registers.

This course focuses on developing students' communicative competence in the domains of listening and speaking in academic settings at level C1 CEFRL. Students will develop and practice effective listening strategies for the global, selective and detailed decoding of aural input, specifically in academic settings (e.g. lectures), including appropriate note-taking skills. They will practice speaking fluently and eloquently in appropriate registers, specifically when contributing to academic discussions and delivering presentations. They will extend their subject-specific as well as general academic vocabulary and consolidate their knowledge of grammatical structures characteristic of academic registers.

This course focuses on developing students' communicative competence in the domains of listening and speaking in academic settings at level C1 CEFRL. Students will develop and practice effective listening strategies for the global, selective and detailed decoding of aural input, specifically in academic settings (e.g. lectures), including appropriate note-taking skills. They will practice speaking fluently and eloquently in appropriate registers, specifically when contributing to academic discussions and delivering presentations. They will extend their subject-specific as well as general academic vocabulary and consolidate their knowledge of grammatical structures characteristic of academic registers.

This course focuses on developing students' communicative competence in the domains of listening and speaking in academic settings at level C1 CEFRL. Students will develop and practice effective listening strategies for the global, selective and detailed decoding of aural input, specifically in academic settings (e.g. lectures), including appropriate note-taking skills. They will practice speaking fluently and eloquently in appropriate registers, specifically when contributing to academic discussions and delivering presentations. They will extend their subject-specific as well as general academic vocabulary and consolidate their knowledge of grammatical structures characteristic of academic registers.

This course focuses on developing students' communicative competence in the domains of listening and speaking in academic settings at level C1 CEFRL. Students will develop and practice effective listening strategies for the global, selective and detailed decoding of aural input, specifically in academic settings (e.g. lectures), including appropriate note-taking skills. They will practice speaking fluently and eloquently in appropriate registers, specifically when contributing to academic discussions and delivering presentations. They will extend their subject-specific as well as general academic vocabulary and consolidate their knowledge of grammatical structures characteristic of academic registers.

This course focuses on developing students' communicative competence in the domains of listening and speaking in academic settings at level C1 CEFRL. Students will develop and practice effective listening strategies for the global, selective and detailed decoding of aural input, specifically in academic settings (e.g. lectures), including appropriate note-taking skills. They will practice speaking fluently and eloquently in appropriate registers, specifically when contributing to academic discussions and delivering presentations. They will extend their subject-specific as well as general academic vocabulary and consolidate their knowledge of grammatical structures characteristic of academic registers.

Does Taylor Swift use more terms of endearment in her lyrics than Justin Bieber? How do people in Sri Lanka address each other? Do women hedge their statements more often than men?

With a view to finding answers to these questions and understanding how speakers of English – as well as speakers of other languages – communicate with one another, the empirical analysis of authentic language data via linguistic corpora, i.e. text collections from song lyrics, face-to-face conversation or other textual resources, has become a generally accepted standard. In order to be in a position to devise empirical answers to some of the above questions and perspectives on English and its different varieties, several steps need to be taken and we will take them together in the course of this class.

The sequencing of a full-fledged corpus-linguistic analysis structures this class. We will familiarise ourselves with characteristics of linguistic corpora and techniques of corpus compilation and annotation. Subsequently, we will focus on how to extract data from linguistic corpora and how to add information we deem relevant for its analysis. In a last step, we will explore how different statistical approaches can help us profile central trends in our data to find answers to the questions we set out to tackle. To facilitate the individual steps, we will become acquainted with tools for corpus creation and annotation, software for corpus querying as well as for statistical analysis.

Exam date: 12 February 2025
Term paper deadline: 15 March 2025

This seminar aims to explore how mental health and identity are represented in graphic novels and picture books. To this end, we will familiarize ourselves with basic narrative techniques and stylistic devices in the graphic novel before further diving into media analysis.

As this seminar centers on the discussion of graphic novels and picture books and their representation of mental health and the search for identity, participants are expected to be willing to purchase at least one graphic novel of their choosing for analysis. While the lecturer will bring several texts to the sessions in order to provide students with some initial examples, students may be asked to either find examples at the university library or purchase primary texts of their choosing to prepare the unconference as well as an abstract for their term papers. At the same time, any necessary secondary literature will be made available digitally via Stud.IP.

With this course being taught in four sessions, students are expected to fulfill regular course attendance, active in-class participation, and submission of assignments in preparation for the respective session. Additionally, participants are asked to ensure access to a copy of a graphic novel or picture book of their choice for individual work sessions and in-class group assignments (digital copies are accepted).

Some of the graphic novels and picture books we will be discussing include but are not limited to Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home (2006), Grayson Lee White’s Dotson (2023), Debbie Tung’s Everything is Okay (2022), and Zoe Thorogood’s It’s Lonely at the Centre of the Earth (2023). Additional secondary literature will include Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics. The Invisible Art (1994) as well as Julia Abel and Christian Klein's (Eds.) Comics und Graphic Novels. Eine Einführung (2016).

From political discourse to the stories we tell about ourselves, the skepticism regarding truth, facts, and authenticity made prominent by post-structuralist and post-modernist thought appears to be of unprecedented relevance online. Theorists have been attempting to come to terms with these issues with a constantly expanding range of concepts, be it the diagnosis of a post-truth era (McIntyre 2018) or the assessment that we are dealing with bullshit (Frankfurt 2005), to only name two examples. Whatever might be the case, we seem to be witnessing a veritable paradigm shift in how facts are constructed, circulated, and contested that calls for critical study and reflection.

In this seminar, we will
- Engage with some of the theoretical foundations for why the line between fact and fiction seems to be becoming increasingly blurred;
- survey some of the complementary notions in which what is untrue can be conceptualized (fake news, inauthenticity, mis- and disinformation, bullshit, alternative facts, clickbait and engagement farming, etc.)
- theorize and model how platform ecologies and economies might be contributing to the proliferation of content that is at the very least indifferent to truth;
- investigate some of the realms in which contested facts have wide-reaching consequences (from political pundits to influencers shaping our political participation and consumption habits, to Brexit, January 6, and the discursive strategies of the international populist right, as well as the emergent challenges of generative AI for knowledge and truth);
- explore ways of combating and resisting the ongoing undermining of truth online we are affected by variously.

Frankfurt, Harry G. (2005). On Bullshit. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
McIntyre, Lee (2018). Post-Truth. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press

This course will act as an introduction to cognitive linguistics – a field of linguistic study concerned with the relationship between cognition and language. We will first discuss some of the main assumptions, concepts and commitments that characterize cognitive linguistic study. From there, we will focus on the two main frameworks: 1) cognitive semantics (with a special emphasis on conceptual metaphor and 2) cognitive approaches to grammar.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

In this course, we will explore the fascinating intersection of language and the digital world, focusing on how the internet reshapes the way we communicate and share information.

We will look into the dynamics of online discourse, exploring how language is used in different social media contexts, such as the informal, fast-paced exchanges on Twitter/X, the visually driven communication on Instagram, and the community-oriented discussions on Reddit.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

This class will be devoted to exploring the English language from the perspective of language change. In doing so, it will take a diachronic approach to studying the English language. Along with a review of the structural changes occurring throughout the periods of English (from Old English to Present-Day English), we will also put emphasis on various theories, major concepts, socio-historical conditions and various other areas of study that go into a linguistic account of how language changes.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 12, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

IMPORTANT: PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS COURSE ONLY STARTS IN THE THIRD WEEK OF THE SEMESTER, I.E., ON 29 OCTOBER 2024.

Sociolinguistics is the study of the relationship between language (use) and society. By examining how different people use language in different social circumstances, sociolinguists can learn about how language works, how social relationships work in a community, and how social identities can be conveyed and constructed through language use. In this seminar, students will learn about the factors that determine the different forms of a language by zooming in on regional, social, and functional variation of English.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP [students receive access code during the first seminar session].

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, active participation in class, completion of weekly reading and/or exercise assignments, oral presentation.

Graded credit: In addition to the above, a final exam or a term paper.

Exam period: Final exam on 11 February 2025; deadline for term paper submission on 15 March 2025.

The English language has spread globally since British overseas expansions started in the 17th century, which has given rise to a range of different varieties all around the world. In this seminar, we will start our journey around the world (and its Englishes) on the British Isles and move on to North America, the Caribbean, Australasia, South East Asia, South Asia and Africa. In the course of this seminar, we will engage with theory and research on the evolution and expansion of world Englishes. We will focus on different first language, second language and learner varieties of English in the above-mentioned regions and outline similarities and differences between these varieties on various linguistic levels by also taking into account the social and historical circumstances under which the language varieties emerged.

Credit: Exam (13 February 2025) or portfolio
Registration: Please register with FlexNow

This course will act as an introduction to cognitive linguistics – a field of linguistic study concerned with the relationship between cognition and language. We will first discuss some of the main assumptions, concepts and commitments that characterize cognitive linguistic study. From there, we will focus on the two main frameworks: 1) cognitive semantics (with a special emphasis on conceptual metaphor and 2) cognitive approaches to grammar.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

In this course, we will explore the fascinating intersection of language and the digital world, focusing on how the internet reshapes the way we communicate and share information.

We will look into the dynamics of online discourse, exploring how language is used in different social media contexts, such as the informal, fast-paced exchanges on Twitter/X, the visually driven communication on Instagram, and the community-oriented discussions on Reddit.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

This class will be devoted to exploring the English language from the perspective of language change. In doing so, it will take a diachronic approach to studying the English language. Along with a review of the structural changes occurring throughout the periods of English (from Old English to Present-Day English), we will also put emphasis on various theories, major concepts, socio-historical conditions and various other areas of study that go into a linguistic account of how language changes.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 12, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

IMPORTANT: PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS COURSE ONLY STARTS IN THE THIRD WEEK OF THE SEMESTER, I.E., ON 29 OCTOBER 2024.

Sociolinguistics is the study of the relationship between language (use) and society. By examining how different people use language in different social circumstances, sociolinguists can learn about how language works, how social relationships work in a community, and how social identities can be conveyed and constructed through language use. In this seminar, students will learn about the factors that determine the different forms of a language by zooming in on regional, social, and functional variation of English.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP [students receive access code during the first seminar session].

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, active participation in class, completion of weekly reading and/or exercise assignments, oral presentation.

Graded credit: In addition to the above, a final exam or a term paper.

Exam period: Final exam on 11 February 2025; deadline for term paper submission on 15 March 2025.

The English language has spread globally since British overseas expansions started in the 17th century, which has given rise to a range of different varieties all around the world. In this seminar, we will start our journey around the world (and its Englishes) on the British Isles and move on to North America, the Caribbean, Australasia, South East Asia, South Asia and Africa. In the course of this seminar, we will engage with theory and research on the evolution and expansion of world Englishes. We will focus on different first language, second language and learner varieties of English in the above-mentioned regions and outline similarities and differences between these varieties on various linguistic levels by also taking into account the social and historical circumstances under which the language varieties emerged.

Credit: Exam (13 February 2025) or portfolio
Registration: Please register with FlexNow

This course will act as an introduction to cognitive linguistics – a field of linguistic study concerned with the relationship between cognition and language. We will first discuss some of the main assumptions, concepts and commitments that characterize cognitive linguistic study. From there, we will focus on the two main frameworks: 1) cognitive semantics (with a special emphasis on conceptual metaphor and 2) cognitive approaches to grammar.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

In this course, we will explore the fascinating intersection of language and the digital world, focusing on how the internet reshapes the way we communicate and share information.

We will look into the dynamics of online discourse, exploring how language is used in different social media contexts, such as the informal, fast-paced exchanges on Twitter/X, the visually driven communication on Instagram, and the community-oriented discussions on Reddit.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

This class will be devoted to exploring the English language from the perspective of language change. In doing so, it will take a diachronic approach to studying the English language. Along with a review of the structural changes occurring throughout the periods of English (from Old English to Present-Day English), we will also put emphasis on various theories, major concepts, socio-historical conditions and various other areas of study that go into a linguistic account of how language changes.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 12, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

IMPORTANT: PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS COURSE ONLY STARTS IN THE THIRD WEEK OF THE SEMESTER, I.E., ON 29 OCTOBER 2024.

Sociolinguistics is the study of the relationship between language (use) and society. By examining how different people use language in different social circumstances, sociolinguists can learn about how language works, how social relationships work in a community, and how social identities can be conveyed and constructed through language use. In this seminar, students will learn about the factors that determine the different forms of a language by zooming in on regional, social, and functional variation of English.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP [students receive access code during the first seminar session].

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, active participation in class, completion of weekly reading and/or exercise assignments, oral presentation.

Graded credit: In addition to the above, a final exam or a term paper.

Exam period: Final exam on 11 February 2025; deadline for term paper submission on 15 March 2025.

The English language has spread globally since British overseas expansions started in the 17th century, which has given rise to a range of different varieties all around the world. In this seminar, we will start our journey around the world (and its Englishes) on the British Isles and move on to North America, the Caribbean, Australasia, South East Asia, South Asia and Africa. In the course of this seminar, we will engage with theory and research on the evolution and expansion of world Englishes. We will focus on different first language, second language and learner varieties of English in the above-mentioned regions and outline similarities and differences between these varieties on various linguistic levels by also taking into account the social and historical circumstances under which the language varieties emerged.

Credit: Exam (13 February 2025) or portfolio
Registration: Please register with FlexNow

This seminar aims to explore how mental health and identity are represented in graphic novels and picture books. To this end, we will familiarize ourselves with basic narrative techniques and stylistic devices in the graphic novel before further diving into media analysis.

As this seminar centers on the discussion of graphic novels and picture books and their representation of mental health and the search for identity, participants are expected to be willing to purchase at least one graphic novel of their choosing for analysis. While the lecturer will bring several texts to the sessions in order to provide students with some initial examples, students may be asked to either find examples at the university library or purchase primary texts of their choosing to prepare the unconference as well as an abstract for their term papers. At the same time, any necessary secondary literature will be made available digitally via Stud.IP.

With this course being taught in four sessions, students are expected to fulfill regular course attendance, active in-class participation, and submission of assignments in preparation for the respective session. Additionally, participants are asked to ensure access to a copy of a graphic novel or picture book of their choice for individual work sessions and in-class group assignments (digital copies are accepted).

Some of the graphic novels and picture books we will be discussing include but are not limited to Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home (2006), Grayson Lee White’s Dotson (2023), Debbie Tung’s Everything is Okay (2022), and Zoe Thorogood’s It’s Lonely at the Centre of the Earth (2023). Additional secondary literature will include Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics. The Invisible Art (1994) as well as Julia Abel and Christian Klein's (Eds.) Comics und Graphic Novels. Eine Einführung (2016).

From political discourse to the stories we tell about ourselves, the skepticism regarding truth, facts, and authenticity made prominent by post-structuralist and post-modernist thought appears to be of unprecedented relevance online. Theorists have been attempting to come to terms with these issues with a constantly expanding range of concepts, be it the diagnosis of a post-truth era (McIntyre 2018) or the assessment that we are dealing with bullshit (Frankfurt 2005), to only name two examples. Whatever might be the case, we seem to be witnessing a veritable paradigm shift in how facts are constructed, circulated, and contested that calls for critical study and reflection.

In this seminar, we will
- Engage with some of the theoretical foundations for why the line between fact and fiction seems to be becoming increasingly blurred;
- survey some of the complementary notions in which what is untrue can be conceptualized (fake news, inauthenticity, mis- and disinformation, bullshit, alternative facts, clickbait and engagement farming, etc.)
- theorize and model how platform ecologies and economies might be contributing to the proliferation of content that is at the very least indifferent to truth;
- investigate some of the realms in which contested facts have wide-reaching consequences (from political pundits to influencers shaping our political participation and consumption habits, to Brexit, January 6, and the discursive strategies of the international populist right, as well as the emergent challenges of generative AI for knowledge and truth);
- explore ways of combating and resisting the ongoing undermining of truth online we are affected by variously.

Frankfurt, Harry G. (2005). On Bullshit. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
McIntyre, Lee (2018). Post-Truth. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press

In this course, we will deal with a particularly exciting genre of Victorian literature, the sensation novel. In the 1860s, this quickly rising new genre caused more than just a stir in the literary scene. It came upon the Victorian literary landscape like an earthquake that shook and tumbled about its power structures, moralities and value system. Against this background, the genre of the sensation novel offers us a particularly interesting and insightful perspective into just that – Victorian society and the values at its core that kept the boundaries between class, gender, and race intact. In particular, we will look at the way these values shape the idea of femininity/masculinity and family as the social institutions that lie at the heart of Victorian society.
In this class, we will read a famous example of the Victorian sensation novel vis-à-vis a Neo- (or sometimes also called Retro-) Victorian novel that challenges the Victorian take on gender, sexuality, and morality. Comparing these two novels, we might be able to understand a bit better the allure of this genre, but also the danger that it emanated, which caused so many debates among Victorian critics. The course offers an introduction to the genre of the sensation novel, as well as a repetition of the most important tools and concepts of literary analysis, and will give you an opportunity to hone your narratological skills. It will also provide an introduction into feminist literary criticism and key concepts of gender studies.
We will read two novels in this class, and discuss some further examples (you are welcome to also make suggestions). Please get your own copy of these novels before the beginning of term.
Elizabeth Braddon, Lady Audley’s Secret (1865)
Sarah Waters, Fingersmith (2002)
Further reading will be made available during the semester.

This seminar aims to explore how mental health and identity are represented in graphic novels and picture books. To this end, we will familiarize ourselves with basic narrative techniques and stylistic devices in the graphic novel before further diving into media analysis.

As this seminar centers on the discussion of graphic novels and picture books and their representation of mental health and the search for identity, participants are expected to be willing to purchase at least one graphic novel of their choosing for analysis. While the lecturer will bring several texts to the sessions in order to provide students with some initial examples, students may be asked to either find examples at the university library or purchase primary texts of their choosing to prepare the unconference as well as an abstract for their term papers. At the same time, any necessary secondary literature will be made available digitally via Stud.IP.

With this course being taught in four sessions, students are expected to fulfill regular course attendance, active in-class participation, and submission of assignments in preparation for the respective session. Additionally, participants are asked to ensure access to a copy of a graphic novel or picture book of their choice for individual work sessions and in-class group assignments (digital copies are accepted).

Some of the graphic novels and picture books we will be discussing include but are not limited to Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home (2006), Grayson Lee White’s Dotson (2023), Debbie Tung’s Everything is Okay (2022), and Zoe Thorogood’s It’s Lonely at the Centre of the Earth (2023). Additional secondary literature will include Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics. The Invisible Art (1994) as well as Julia Abel and Christian Klein's (Eds.) Comics und Graphic Novels. Eine Einführung (2016).

From political discourse to the stories we tell about ourselves, the skepticism regarding truth, facts, and authenticity made prominent by post-structuralist and post-modernist thought appears to be of unprecedented relevance online. Theorists have been attempting to come to terms with these issues with a constantly expanding range of concepts, be it the diagnosis of a post-truth era (McIntyre 2018) or the assessment that we are dealing with bullshit (Frankfurt 2005), to only name two examples. Whatever might be the case, we seem to be witnessing a veritable paradigm shift in how facts are constructed, circulated, and contested that calls for critical study and reflection.

In this seminar, we will
- Engage with some of the theoretical foundations for why the line between fact and fiction seems to be becoming increasingly blurred;
- survey some of the complementary notions in which what is untrue can be conceptualized (fake news, inauthenticity, mis- and disinformation, bullshit, alternative facts, clickbait and engagement farming, etc.)
- theorize and model how platform ecologies and economies might be contributing to the proliferation of content that is at the very least indifferent to truth;
- investigate some of the realms in which contested facts have wide-reaching consequences (from political pundits to influencers shaping our political participation and consumption habits, to Brexit, January 6, and the discursive strategies of the international populist right, as well as the emergent challenges of generative AI for knowledge and truth);
- explore ways of combating and resisting the ongoing undermining of truth online we are affected by variously.

Frankfurt, Harry G. (2005). On Bullshit. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
McIntyre, Lee (2018). Post-Truth. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press

In this course, we will deal with a particularly exciting genre of Victorian literature, the sensation novel. In the 1860s, this quickly rising new genre caused more than just a stir in the literary scene. It came upon the Victorian literary landscape like an earthquake that shook and tumbled about its power structures, moralities and value system. Against this background, the genre of the sensation novel offers us a particularly interesting and insightful perspective into just that – Victorian society and the values at its core that kept the boundaries between class, gender, and race intact. In particular, we will look at the way these values shape the idea of femininity/masculinity and family as the social institutions that lie at the heart of Victorian society.
In this class, we will read a famous example of the Victorian sensation novel vis-à-vis a Neo- (or sometimes also called Retro-) Victorian novel that challenges the Victorian take on gender, sexuality, and morality. Comparing these two novels, we might be able to understand a bit better the allure of this genre, but also the danger that it emanated, which caused so many debates among Victorian critics. The course offers an introduction to the genre of the sensation novel, as well as a repetition of the most important tools and concepts of literary analysis, and will give you an opportunity to hone your narratological skills. It will also provide an introduction into feminist literary criticism and key concepts of gender studies.
We will read two novels in this class, and discuss some further examples (you are welcome to also make suggestions). Please get your own copy of these novels before the beginning of term.
Elizabeth Braddon, Lady Audley’s Secret (1865)
Sarah Waters, Fingersmith (2002)
Further reading will be made available during the semester.

The aim of Business English I is to familiarize students with various forms of communication in business settings, with an aim to hone students’ competence in effective, audience-oriented and professional English-language communication. In the course of the semester, students should manage to complete an oral and written portfolio, focusing on various communication goals and using various communicative approaches, registers, types, and channels/communication technologies (meetings, letters, memos, emails, etc.). Intercultural aspects of professional communication are also addressed in the course. In addition to the written, listening and oral tasks during this class, students complete a final written exam at the end of the semester in which they are given a set of assignments to apply the concepts learned during the semester.

Required reading: Texts will be made available on Stud.IP.

Prerequisites for attending: Successful completion of the module Introductory Language and Communication Course.

Credit: Active participation + written and oral portfolio + final exam (10 February 2025)

The aim of Business English I is to familiarize students with various forms of communication in business settings, with an aim to hone students’ competence in effective, audience-oriented and professional English-language communication. In the course of the semester, students should manage to complete an oral and written portfolio, focusing on various communication goals and using various communicative approaches, registers, types, and channels/communication technologies (meetings, letters, memos, emails, etc.). Intercultural aspects of professional communication are also addressed in the course. In addition to the written, listening and oral tasks during this class, students complete a final written exam at the end of the semester in which they are given a set of assignments to apply the concepts learned during the semester.

Required reading: Texts will be made available on Stud.IP.

Prerequisites for attending: Successful completion of the module Introductory Language and Communication Course.

Credit: Active participation + written and oral portfolio + final exam (10 February 2025)

The aim of Business English II is to familiarize students with the language of fundamental business concepts such as entrepreneurship, management, corporate culture, production, business strategy, marketing, finances and the relationship of businesses with their major stakeholders. On the basis of this newly acquired subject knowledge, students are to develop a business plan throughout the semester. In addition, students will manage to "pitch" their business proposals in a persuasive oral presentation. Students are also required to listen to their classmates' presentations and act as mock potential investors. As a final assessment at the end of the semester, students complete a written exam.

Reading: Texts will be made available on StudIP.
Credit: Active Participation + Business Plan + Business Pitch + Final Exam (11 February 2025)

This seminar aims to explore how mental health and identity are represented in graphic novels and picture books. To this end, we will familiarize ourselves with basic narrative techniques and stylistic devices in the graphic novel before further diving into media analysis.

As this seminar centers on the discussion of graphic novels and picture books and their representation of mental health and the search for identity, participants are expected to be willing to purchase at least one graphic novel of their choosing for analysis. While the lecturer will bring several texts to the sessions in order to provide students with some initial examples, students may be asked to either find examples at the university library or purchase primary texts of their choosing to prepare the unconference as well as an abstract for their term papers. At the same time, any necessary secondary literature will be made available digitally via Stud.IP.

With this course being taught in four sessions, students are expected to fulfill regular course attendance, active in-class participation, and submission of assignments in preparation for the respective session. Additionally, participants are asked to ensure access to a copy of a graphic novel or picture book of their choice for individual work sessions and in-class group assignments (digital copies are accepted).

Some of the graphic novels and picture books we will be discussing include but are not limited to Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home (2006), Grayson Lee White’s Dotson (2023), Debbie Tung’s Everything is Okay (2022), and Zoe Thorogood’s It’s Lonely at the Centre of the Earth (2023). Additional secondary literature will include Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics. The Invisible Art (1994) as well as Julia Abel and Christian Klein's (Eds.) Comics und Graphic Novels. Eine Einführung (2016).

In this course, we will deal with a particularly exciting genre of Victorian literature, the sensation novel. In the 1860s, this quickly rising new genre caused more than just a stir in the literary scene. It came upon the Victorian literary landscape like an earthquake that shook and tumbled about its power structures, moralities and value system. Against this background, the genre of the sensation novel offers us a particularly interesting and insightful perspective into just that – Victorian society and the values at its core that kept the boundaries between class, gender, and race intact. In particular, we will look at the way these values shape the idea of femininity/masculinity and family as the social institutions that lie at the heart of Victorian society.
In this class, we will read a famous example of the Victorian sensation novel vis-à-vis a Neo- (or sometimes also called Retro-) Victorian novel that challenges the Victorian take on gender, sexuality, and morality. Comparing these two novels, we might be able to understand a bit better the allure of this genre, but also the danger that it emanated, which caused so many debates among Victorian critics. The course offers an introduction to the genre of the sensation novel, as well as a repetition of the most important tools and concepts of literary analysis, and will give you an opportunity to hone your narratological skills. It will also provide an introduction into feminist literary criticism and key concepts of gender studies.
We will read two novels in this class, and discuss some further examples (you are welcome to also make suggestions). Please get your own copy of these novels before the beginning of term.
Elizabeth Braddon, Lady Audley’s Secret (1865)
Sarah Waters, Fingersmith (2002)
Further reading will be made available during the semester.

This seminar aims to explore how mental health and identity are represented in graphic novels and picture books. To this end, we will familiarize ourselves with basic narrative techniques and stylistic devices in the graphic novel before further diving into media analysis.

As this seminar centers on the discussion of graphic novels and picture books and their representation of mental health and the search for identity, participants are expected to be willing to purchase at least one graphic novel of their choosing for analysis. While the lecturer will bring several texts to the sessions in order to provide students with some initial examples, students may be asked to either find examples at the university library or purchase primary texts of their choosing to prepare the unconference as well as an abstract for their term papers. At the same time, any necessary secondary literature will be made available digitally via Stud.IP.

With this course being taught in four sessions, students are expected to fulfill regular course attendance, active in-class participation, and submission of assignments in preparation for the respective session. Additionally, participants are asked to ensure access to a copy of a graphic novel or picture book of their choice for individual work sessions and in-class group assignments (digital copies are accepted).

Some of the graphic novels and picture books we will be discussing include but are not limited to Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home (2006), Grayson Lee White’s Dotson (2023), Debbie Tung’s Everything is Okay (2022), and Zoe Thorogood’s It’s Lonely at the Centre of the Earth (2023). Additional secondary literature will include Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics. The Invisible Art (1994) as well as Julia Abel and Christian Klein's (Eds.) Comics und Graphic Novels. Eine Einführung (2016).

In this course, we will deal with a particularly exciting genre of Victorian literature, the sensation novel. In the 1860s, this quickly rising new genre caused more than just a stir in the literary scene. It came upon the Victorian literary landscape like an earthquake that shook and tumbled about its power structures, moralities and value system. Against this background, the genre of the sensation novel offers us a particularly interesting and insightful perspective into just that – Victorian society and the values at its core that kept the boundaries between class, gender, and race intact. In particular, we will look at the way these values shape the idea of femininity/masculinity and family as the social institutions that lie at the heart of Victorian society.
In this class, we will read a famous example of the Victorian sensation novel vis-à-vis a Neo- (or sometimes also called Retro-) Victorian novel that challenges the Victorian take on gender, sexuality, and morality. Comparing these two novels, we might be able to understand a bit better the allure of this genre, but also the danger that it emanated, which caused so many debates among Victorian critics. The course offers an introduction to the genre of the sensation novel, as well as a repetition of the most important tools and concepts of literary analysis, and will give you an opportunity to hone your narratological skills. It will also provide an introduction into feminist literary criticism and key concepts of gender studies.
We will read two novels in this class, and discuss some further examples (you are welcome to also make suggestions). Please get your own copy of these novels before the beginning of term.
Elizabeth Braddon, Lady Audley’s Secret (1865)
Sarah Waters, Fingersmith (2002)
Further reading will be made available during the semester.

From political discourse to the stories we tell about ourselves, the skepticism regarding truth, facts, and authenticity made prominent by post-structuralist and post-modernist thought appears to be of unprecedented relevance online. Theorists have been attempting to come to terms with these issues with a constantly expanding range of concepts, be it the diagnosis of a post-truth era (McIntyre 2018) or the assessment that we are dealing with bullshit (Frankfurt 2005), to only name two examples. Whatever might be the case, we seem to be witnessing a veritable paradigm shift in how facts are constructed, circulated, and contested that calls for critical study and reflection.

In this seminar, we will
- Engage with some of the theoretical foundations for why the line between fact and fiction seems to be becoming increasingly blurred;
- survey some of the complementary notions in which what is untrue can be conceptualized (fake news, inauthenticity, mis- and disinformation, bullshit, alternative facts, clickbait and engagement farming, etc.)
- theorize and model how platform ecologies and economies might be contributing to the proliferation of content that is at the very least indifferent to truth;
- investigate some of the realms in which contested facts have wide-reaching consequences (from political pundits to influencers shaping our political participation and consumption habits, to Brexit, January 6, and the discursive strategies of the international populist right, as well as the emergent challenges of generative AI for knowledge and truth);
- explore ways of combating and resisting the ongoing undermining of truth online we are affected by variously.

Frankfurt, Harry G. (2005). On Bullshit. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
McIntyre, Lee (2018). Post-Truth. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press

From political discourse to the stories we tell about ourselves, the skepticism regarding truth, facts, and authenticity made prominent by post-structuralist and post-modernist thought appears to be of unprecedented relevance online. Theorists have been attempting to come to terms with these issues with a constantly expanding range of concepts, be it the diagnosis of a post-truth era (McIntyre 2018) or the assessment that we are dealing with bullshit (Frankfurt 2005), to only name two examples. Whatever might be the case, we seem to be witnessing a veritable paradigm shift in how facts are constructed, circulated, and contested that calls for critical study and reflection.

In this seminar, we will
- Engage with some of the theoretical foundations for why the line between fact and fiction seems to be becoming increasingly blurred;
- survey some of the complementary notions in which what is untrue can be conceptualized (fake news, inauthenticity, mis- and disinformation, bullshit, alternative facts, clickbait and engagement farming, etc.)
- theorize and model how platform ecologies and economies might be contributing to the proliferation of content that is at the very least indifferent to truth;
- investigate some of the realms in which contested facts have wide-reaching consequences (from political pundits to influencers shaping our political participation and consumption habits, to Brexit, January 6, and the discursive strategies of the international populist right, as well as the emergent challenges of generative AI for knowledge and truth);
- explore ways of combating and resisting the ongoing undermining of truth online we are affected by variously.

Frankfurt, Harry G. (2005). On Bullshit. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
McIntyre, Lee (2018). Post-Truth. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press

This seminar aims to explore how mental health and identity are represented in graphic novels and picture books. To this end, we will familiarize ourselves with basic narrative techniques and stylistic devices in the graphic novel before further diving into media analysis.

As this seminar centers on the discussion of graphic novels and picture books and their representation of mental health and the search for identity, participants are expected to be willing to purchase at least one graphic novel of their choosing for analysis. While the lecturer will bring several texts to the sessions in order to provide students with some initial examples, students may be asked to either find examples at the university library or purchase primary texts of their choosing to prepare the unconference as well as an abstract for their term papers. At the same time, any necessary secondary literature will be made available digitally via Stud.IP.

With this course being taught in four sessions, students are expected to fulfill regular course attendance, active in-class participation, and submission of assignments in preparation for the respective session. Additionally, participants are asked to ensure access to a copy of a graphic novel or picture book of their choice for individual work sessions and in-class group assignments (digital copies are accepted).

Some of the graphic novels and picture books we will be discussing include but are not limited to Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home (2006), Grayson Lee White’s Dotson (2023), Debbie Tung’s Everything is Okay (2022), and Zoe Thorogood’s It’s Lonely at the Centre of the Earth (2023). Additional secondary literature will include Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics. The Invisible Art (1994) as well as Julia Abel and Christian Klein's (Eds.) Comics und Graphic Novels. Eine Einführung (2016).

This course acts as an introduction to alternations, i.e. linguistic choice contexts. As the course title suggests, we will be using a world Englishes approach to investigate (mainly syntactic) linguistic alternations. To this end, we will explore the following questions: What is a (syntactic) alternation and what are examples? How are linguistic choices different in different varieties of English? And how can we explore alternations multifactorially?

Reading: Reading material will be made available on Stud.IP [password available in first session].
Registration: Via FlexNow.
Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments.
Graded credit: The above and a final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: 11 February 2025
Term Paper Deadline: 31 March 2025

This course will act as an introduction to cognitive linguistics – a field of linguistic study concerned with the relationship between cognition and language. We will first discuss some of the main assumptions, concepts and commitments that characterize cognitive linguistic study. From there, we will focus on the two main frameworks: 1) cognitive semantics (with a special emphasis on conceptual metaphor and 2) cognitive approaches to grammar.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

Dialectology in theory and practice draws from all levels of linguistic description and has lingusitic variation in focus. Dialectal varieties of a language like English present us with a fascinating opportunity to study regional variation on the sound, grammatical, lexcial, pragmatic as well as conceptual levels. Dialectology also presents us with interesting theoretical debates that affect the linguistic field as a whole. In this class, we will focus on answering the following questions:
What is dialectology? Which contributions has it made to the field of linguistics and how has it evolved or challenges previously held notions about language?
How do dialectologists work? Which methods are commonly employed, including linguistic atlases and corpus-based dialectology?
Which insights can be gained by studying dialect variation and relatedness?
Which dialects have most prominently been studied and where are there research gaps we can fill?

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, group presentation, active participation in class

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

In this course, we will explore the fascinating intersection of language and the digital world, focusing on how the internet reshapes the way we communicate and share information.

We will look into the dynamics of online discourse, exploring how language is used in different social media contexts, such as the informal, fast-paced exchanges on Twitter/X, the visually driven communication on Instagram, and the community-oriented discussions on Reddit.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

This class will be devoted to exploring the English language from the perspective of language change. In doing so, it will take a diachronic approach to studying the English language. Along with a review of the structural changes occurring throughout the periods of English (from Old English to Present-Day English), we will also put emphasis on various theories, major concepts, socio-historical conditions and various other areas of study that go into a linguistic account of how language changes.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 12, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

IMPORTANT: PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS COURSE ONLY STARTS IN THE THIRD WEEK OF THE SEMESTER, I.E., ON 29 OCTOBER 2024.

Sociolinguistics is the study of the relationship between language (use) and society. By examining how different people use language in different social circumstances, sociolinguists can learn about how language works, how social relationships work in a community, and how social identities can be conveyed and constructed through language use. In this seminar, students will learn about the factors that determine the different forms of a language by zooming in on regional, social, and functional variation of English.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP [students receive access code during the first seminar session].

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, active participation in class, completion of weekly reading and/or exercise assignments, oral presentation.

Graded credit: In addition to the above, a final exam or a term paper.

Exam period: Final exam on 11 February 2025; deadline for term paper submission on 15 March 2025.

The English language has spread globally since British overseas expansions started in the 17th century, which has given rise to a range of different varieties all around the world. In this seminar, we will start our journey around the world (and its Englishes) on the British Isles and move on to North America, the Caribbean, Australasia, South East Asia, South Asia and Africa. In the course of this seminar, we will engage with theory and research on the evolution and expansion of world Englishes. We will focus on different first language, second language and learner varieties of English in the above-mentioned regions and outline similarities and differences between these varieties on various linguistic levels by also taking into account the social and historical circumstances under which the language varieties emerged.

Credit: Exam (13 February 2025) or portfolio
Registration: Please register with FlexNow

Epicentres in World Englishes are regional varieties of English that exhibit structural influences on neighbouring Englishes, i.e. it has – for instance – repeatedly been shown that Indian English can be regarded as influencing other varieties in South Asia such as Sri Lankan or Pakistani English. Epicentral configurations can consequently be found in South Asia, but also in Southeast Asia as well as in Australia and potentially in other parts of the world. The regional focus of this class is thus on Australasia and the notion of linguistic epicentres provides the framework against which the regional varieties are going to be presented.

In the course of this class, we will introduce central models describing the evolution of postcolonial/non-native varieties of English (e.g. Moag 1982; Kachru 1985; Schneider 2003, 2007) and discuss the notion of a linguistic epicentre in the World Englishes paradigm. Against this background and on the basis of structural and sociohistorical evidence, we will discuss the development and present-day structure-related as well as sociolinguistic profile of a selection of varieties in Australasia. Methodologically, we will explore different ways of a) empirically studying the structures and usage patterns that profile each of these Australasian Englishes in a unique way and b) trying to delineate epicentral configurations.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ‘Introduction to English Linguistics’ course.

Reading: Reading material will be provided on closed reserve in the department library or will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and an oral presentation, which may involve group activities and class discussions, or a written report.
Graded credit: In addition to the above, a final exam or a term paper.

Exam period: Final exam on 13 February 2025; deadline for term paper submission: 15 March 2025.

This course acts as an introduction to alternations, i.e. linguistic choice contexts. As the course title suggests, we will be using a world Englishes approach to investigate (mainly syntactic) linguistic alternations. To this end, we will explore the following questions: What is a (syntactic) alternation and what are examples? How are linguistic choices different in different varieties of English? And how can we explore alternations multifactorially?

Reading: Reading material will be made available on Stud.IP [password available in first session].
Registration: Via FlexNow.
Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments.
Graded credit: The above and a final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: 11 February 2025
Term Paper Deadline: 31 March 2025

This course will act as an introduction to cognitive linguistics – a field of linguistic study concerned with the relationship between cognition and language. We will first discuss some of the main assumptions, concepts and commitments that characterize cognitive linguistic study. From there, we will focus on the two main frameworks: 1) cognitive semantics (with a special emphasis on conceptual metaphor and 2) cognitive approaches to grammar.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

Dialectology in theory and practice draws from all levels of linguistic description and has lingusitic variation in focus. Dialectal varieties of a language like English present us with a fascinating opportunity to study regional variation on the sound, grammatical, lexcial, pragmatic as well as conceptual levels. Dialectology also presents us with interesting theoretical debates that affect the linguistic field as a whole. In this class, we will focus on answering the following questions:
What is dialectology? Which contributions has it made to the field of linguistics and how has it evolved or challenges previously held notions about language?
How do dialectologists work? Which methods are commonly employed, including linguistic atlases and corpus-based dialectology?
Which insights can be gained by studying dialect variation and relatedness?
Which dialects have most prominently been studied and where are there research gaps we can fill?

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, group presentation, active participation in class

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

In this course, we will explore the fascinating intersection of language and the digital world, focusing on how the internet reshapes the way we communicate and share information.

We will look into the dynamics of online discourse, exploring how language is used in different social media contexts, such as the informal, fast-paced exchanges on Twitter/X, the visually driven communication on Instagram, and the community-oriented discussions on Reddit.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

This class will be devoted to exploring the English language from the perspective of language change. In doing so, it will take a diachronic approach to studying the English language. Along with a review of the structural changes occurring throughout the periods of English (from Old English to Present-Day English), we will also put emphasis on various theories, major concepts, socio-historical conditions and various other areas of study that go into a linguistic account of how language changes.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 12, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

IMPORTANT: PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS COURSE ONLY STARTS IN THE THIRD WEEK OF THE SEMESTER, I.E., ON 29 OCTOBER 2024.

Sociolinguistics is the study of the relationship between language (use) and society. By examining how different people use language in different social circumstances, sociolinguists can learn about how language works, how social relationships work in a community, and how social identities can be conveyed and constructed through language use. In this seminar, students will learn about the factors that determine the different forms of a language by zooming in on regional, social, and functional variation of English.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP [students receive access code during the first seminar session].

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, active participation in class, completion of weekly reading and/or exercise assignments, oral presentation.

Graded credit: In addition to the above, a final exam or a term paper.

Exam period: Final exam on 11 February 2025; deadline for term paper submission on 15 March 2025.

The English language has spread globally since British overseas expansions started in the 17th century, which has given rise to a range of different varieties all around the world. In this seminar, we will start our journey around the world (and its Englishes) on the British Isles and move on to North America, the Caribbean, Australasia, South East Asia, South Asia and Africa. In the course of this seminar, we will engage with theory and research on the evolution and expansion of world Englishes. We will focus on different first language, second language and learner varieties of English in the above-mentioned regions and outline similarities and differences between these varieties on various linguistic levels by also taking into account the social and historical circumstances under which the language varieties emerged.

Credit: Exam (13 February 2025) or portfolio
Registration: Please register with FlexNow

Epicentres in World Englishes are regional varieties of English that exhibit structural influences on neighbouring Englishes, i.e. it has – for instance – repeatedly been shown that Indian English can be regarded as influencing other varieties in South Asia such as Sri Lankan or Pakistani English. Epicentral configurations can consequently be found in South Asia, but also in Southeast Asia as well as in Australia and potentially in other parts of the world. The regional focus of this class is thus on Australasia and the notion of linguistic epicentres provides the framework against which the regional varieties are going to be presented.

In the course of this class, we will introduce central models describing the evolution of postcolonial/non-native varieties of English (e.g. Moag 1982; Kachru 1985; Schneider 2003, 2007) and discuss the notion of a linguistic epicentre in the World Englishes paradigm. Against this background and on the basis of structural and sociohistorical evidence, we will discuss the development and present-day structure-related as well as sociolinguistic profile of a selection of varieties in Australasia. Methodologically, we will explore different ways of a) empirically studying the structures and usage patterns that profile each of these Australasian Englishes in a unique way and b) trying to delineate epicentral configurations.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ‘Introduction to English Linguistics’ course.

Reading: Reading material will be provided on closed reserve in the department library or will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and an oral presentation, which may involve group activities and class discussions, or a written report.
Graded credit: In addition to the above, a final exam or a term paper.

Exam period: Final exam on 13 February 2025; deadline for term paper submission: 15 March 2025.

This course acts as an introduction to alternations, i.e. linguistic choice contexts. As the course title suggests, we will be using a world Englishes approach to investigate (mainly syntactic) linguistic alternations. To this end, we will explore the following questions: What is a (syntactic) alternation and what are examples? How are linguistic choices different in different varieties of English? And how can we explore alternations multifactorially?

Reading: Reading material will be made available on Stud.IP [password available in first session].
Registration: Via FlexNow.
Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments.
Graded credit: The above and a final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: 11 February 2025
Term Paper Deadline: 31 March 2025

This course will act as an introduction to cognitive linguistics – a field of linguistic study concerned with the relationship between cognition and language. We will first discuss some of the main assumptions, concepts and commitments that characterize cognitive linguistic study. From there, we will focus on the two main frameworks: 1) cognitive semantics (with a special emphasis on conceptual metaphor and 2) cognitive approaches to grammar.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

Dialectology in theory and practice draws from all levels of linguistic description and has lingusitic variation in focus. Dialectal varieties of a language like English present us with a fascinating opportunity to study regional variation on the sound, grammatical, lexcial, pragmatic as well as conceptual levels. Dialectology also presents us with interesting theoretical debates that affect the linguistic field as a whole. In this class, we will focus on answering the following questions:
What is dialectology? Which contributions has it made to the field of linguistics and how has it evolved or challenges previously held notions about language?
How do dialectologists work? Which methods are commonly employed, including linguistic atlases and corpus-based dialectology?
Which insights can be gained by studying dialect variation and relatedness?
Which dialects have most prominently been studied and where are there research gaps we can fill?

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, group presentation, active participation in class

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

In this course, we will explore the fascinating intersection of language and the digital world, focusing on how the internet reshapes the way we communicate and share information.

We will look into the dynamics of online discourse, exploring how language is used in different social media contexts, such as the informal, fast-paced exchanges on Twitter/X, the visually driven communication on Instagram, and the community-oriented discussions on Reddit.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

This class will be devoted to exploring the English language from the perspective of language change. In doing so, it will take a diachronic approach to studying the English language. Along with a review of the structural changes occurring throughout the periods of English (from Old English to Present-Day English), we will also put emphasis on various theories, major concepts, socio-historical conditions and various other areas of study that go into a linguistic account of how language changes.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 12, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

IMPORTANT: PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS COURSE ONLY STARTS IN THE THIRD WEEK OF THE SEMESTER, I.E., ON 29 OCTOBER 2024.

Sociolinguistics is the study of the relationship between language (use) and society. By examining how different people use language in different social circumstances, sociolinguists can learn about how language works, how social relationships work in a community, and how social identities can be conveyed and constructed through language use. In this seminar, students will learn about the factors that determine the different forms of a language by zooming in on regional, social, and functional variation of English.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP [students receive access code during the first seminar session].

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, active participation in class, completion of weekly reading and/or exercise assignments, oral presentation.

Graded credit: In addition to the above, a final exam or a term paper.

Exam period: Final exam on 11 February 2025; deadline for term paper submission on 15 March 2025.

The English language has spread globally since British overseas expansions started in the 17th century, which has given rise to a range of different varieties all around the world. In this seminar, we will start our journey around the world (and its Englishes) on the British Isles and move on to North America, the Caribbean, Australasia, South East Asia, South Asia and Africa. In the course of this seminar, we will engage with theory and research on the evolution and expansion of world Englishes. We will focus on different first language, second language and learner varieties of English in the above-mentioned regions and outline similarities and differences between these varieties on various linguistic levels by also taking into account the social and historical circumstances under which the language varieties emerged.

Credit: Exam (13 February 2025) or portfolio
Registration: Please register with FlexNow

Epicentres in World Englishes are regional varieties of English that exhibit structural influences on neighbouring Englishes, i.e. it has – for instance – repeatedly been shown that Indian English can be regarded as influencing other varieties in South Asia such as Sri Lankan or Pakistani English. Epicentral configurations can consequently be found in South Asia, but also in Southeast Asia as well as in Australia and potentially in other parts of the world. The regional focus of this class is thus on Australasia and the notion of linguistic epicentres provides the framework against which the regional varieties are going to be presented.

In the course of this class, we will introduce central models describing the evolution of postcolonial/non-native varieties of English (e.g. Moag 1982; Kachru 1985; Schneider 2003, 2007) and discuss the notion of a linguistic epicentre in the World Englishes paradigm. Against this background and on the basis of structural and sociohistorical evidence, we will discuss the development and present-day structure-related as well as sociolinguistic profile of a selection of varieties in Australasia. Methodologically, we will explore different ways of a) empirically studying the structures and usage patterns that profile each of these Australasian Englishes in a unique way and b) trying to delineate epicentral configurations.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ‘Introduction to English Linguistics’ course.

Reading: Reading material will be provided on closed reserve in the department library or will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and an oral presentation, which may involve group activities and class discussions, or a written report.
Graded credit: In addition to the above, a final exam or a term paper.

Exam period: Final exam on 13 February 2025; deadline for term paper submission: 15 March 2025.

This course acts as an introduction to alternations, i.e. linguistic choice contexts. As the course title suggests, we will be using a world Englishes approach to investigate (mainly syntactic) linguistic alternations. To this end, we will explore the following questions: What is a (syntactic) alternation and what are examples? How are linguistic choices different in different varieties of English? And how can we explore alternations multifactorially?

Reading: Reading material will be made available on Stud.IP [password available in first session].
Registration: Via FlexNow.
Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments.
Graded credit: The above and a final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: 11 February 2025
Term Paper Deadline: 31 March 2025

This course will act as an introduction to cognitive linguistics – a field of linguistic study concerned with the relationship between cognition and language. We will first discuss some of the main assumptions, concepts and commitments that characterize cognitive linguistic study. From there, we will focus on the two main frameworks: 1) cognitive semantics (with a special emphasis on conceptual metaphor and 2) cognitive approaches to grammar.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

Dialectology in theory and practice draws from all levels of linguistic description and has lingusitic variation in focus. Dialectal varieties of a language like English present us with a fascinating opportunity to study regional variation on the sound, grammatical, lexcial, pragmatic as well as conceptual levels. Dialectology also presents us with interesting theoretical debates that affect the linguistic field as a whole. In this class, we will focus on answering the following questions:
What is dialectology? Which contributions has it made to the field of linguistics and how has it evolved or challenges previously held notions about language?
How do dialectologists work? Which methods are commonly employed, including linguistic atlases and corpus-based dialectology?
Which insights can be gained by studying dialect variation and relatedness?
Which dialects have most prominently been studied and where are there research gaps we can fill?

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, group presentation, active participation in class

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

In this course, we will explore the fascinating intersection of language and the digital world, focusing on how the internet reshapes the way we communicate and share information.

We will look into the dynamics of online discourse, exploring how language is used in different social media contexts, such as the informal, fast-paced exchanges on Twitter/X, the visually driven communication on Instagram, and the community-oriented discussions on Reddit.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

This class will be devoted to exploring the English language from the perspective of language change. In doing so, it will take a diachronic approach to studying the English language. Along with a review of the structural changes occurring throughout the periods of English (from Old English to Present-Day English), we will also put emphasis on various theories, major concepts, socio-historical conditions and various other areas of study that go into a linguistic account of how language changes.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 12, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

IMPORTANT: PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS COURSE ONLY STARTS IN THE THIRD WEEK OF THE SEMESTER, I.E., ON 29 OCTOBER 2024.

Sociolinguistics is the study of the relationship between language (use) and society. By examining how different people use language in different social circumstances, sociolinguists can learn about how language works, how social relationships work in a community, and how social identities can be conveyed and constructed through language use. In this seminar, students will learn about the factors that determine the different forms of a language by zooming in on regional, social, and functional variation of English.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP [students receive access code during the first seminar session].

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, active participation in class, completion of weekly reading and/or exercise assignments, oral presentation.

Graded credit: In addition to the above, a final exam or a term paper.

Exam period: Final exam on 11 February 2025; deadline for term paper submission on 15 March 2025.

The English language has spread globally since British overseas expansions started in the 17th century, which has given rise to a range of different varieties all around the world. In this seminar, we will start our journey around the world (and its Englishes) on the British Isles and move on to North America, the Caribbean, Australasia, South East Asia, South Asia and Africa. In the course of this seminar, we will engage with theory and research on the evolution and expansion of world Englishes. We will focus on different first language, second language and learner varieties of English in the above-mentioned regions and outline similarities and differences between these varieties on various linguistic levels by also taking into account the social and historical circumstances under which the language varieties emerged.

Credit: Exam (13 February 2025) or portfolio
Registration: Please register with FlexNow

Epicentres in World Englishes are regional varieties of English that exhibit structural influences on neighbouring Englishes, i.e. it has – for instance – repeatedly been shown that Indian English can be regarded as influencing other varieties in South Asia such as Sri Lankan or Pakistani English. Epicentral configurations can consequently be found in South Asia, but also in Southeast Asia as well as in Australia and potentially in other parts of the world. The regional focus of this class is thus on Australasia and the notion of linguistic epicentres provides the framework against which the regional varieties are going to be presented.

In the course of this class, we will introduce central models describing the evolution of postcolonial/non-native varieties of English (e.g. Moag 1982; Kachru 1985; Schneider 2003, 2007) and discuss the notion of a linguistic epicentre in the World Englishes paradigm. Against this background and on the basis of structural and sociohistorical evidence, we will discuss the development and present-day structure-related as well as sociolinguistic profile of a selection of varieties in Australasia. Methodologically, we will explore different ways of a) empirically studying the structures and usage patterns that profile each of these Australasian Englishes in a unique way and b) trying to delineate epicentral configurations.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ‘Introduction to English Linguistics’ course.

Reading: Reading material will be provided on closed reserve in the department library or will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and an oral presentation, which may involve group activities and class discussions, or a written report.
Graded credit: In addition to the above, a final exam or a term paper.

Exam period: Final exam on 13 February 2025; deadline for term paper submission: 15 March 2025.

This course acts as an introduction to alternations, i.e. linguistic choice contexts. As the course title suggests, we will be using a world Englishes approach to investigate (mainly syntactic) linguistic alternations. To this end, we will explore the following questions: What is a (syntactic) alternation and what are examples? How are linguistic choices different in different varieties of English? And how can we explore alternations multifactorially?

Reading: Reading material will be made available on Stud.IP [password available in first session].
Registration: Via FlexNow.
Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments.
Graded credit: The above and a final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: 11 February 2025
Term Paper Deadline: 31 March 2025

This course will act as an introduction to cognitive linguistics – a field of linguistic study concerned with the relationship between cognition and language. We will first discuss some of the main assumptions, concepts and commitments that characterize cognitive linguistic study. From there, we will focus on the two main frameworks: 1) cognitive semantics (with a special emphasis on conceptual metaphor and 2) cognitive approaches to grammar.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, completion of reading and homework assignments, active participation in class and comprehension quizzes on Ilias.

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper.

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025

Dialectology in theory and practice draws from all levels of linguistic description and has lingusitic variation in focus. Dialectal varieties of a language like English present us with a fascinating opportunity to study regional variation on the sound, grammatical, lexcial, pragmatic as well as conceptual levels. Dialectology also presents us with interesting theoretical debates that affect the linguistic field as a whole. In this class, we will focus on answering the following questions:
What is dialectology? Which contributions has it made to the field of linguistics and how has it evolved or challenges previously held notions about language?
How do dialectologists work? Which methods are commonly employed, including linguistic atlases and corpus-based dialectology?
Which insights can be gained by studying dialect variation and relatedness?
Which dialects have most prominently been studied and where are there research gaps we can fill?

Prerequisites: Successful completion of the ?Introduction to English Linguistics? course.

Reading: Reading material will be made available for download via Stud.IP.

Registration: Please register with FlexNow.

Ungraded credit: Regular attendance, group presentation, active participation in class

Graded credit: A final exam or a term paper

Exam Date: Feb. 13, 2025
Term Paper Deadline: March 31, 2025