Seminar: The Great Depression - Details

Seminar: The Great Depression - Details

Close message box
You are not logged into Stud.IP.

General information

Course name Seminar: The Great Depression
Course number ANG.05272.04,
Semester SoSe 2026
Current number of participants 30
expected number of participants 30
Home institute Institut für Anglistik und Amerikanistik
Courses type Seminar in category Offizielle Lehrveranstaltungen
Next date Monday, 18.05.2026 12:15 - 13:45, Room: Seminarraum 3 [AKStr.35] (Angl.)
Lehrsprache(n) Deutsch

Module assignments

Comment/Description

The Great Depression resonates strangely with our present moment: economic instability and precarity, political realignments and rising aggression, ecological crisis, and a growing hostility toward those deemed "other." Beginning with the so-called Black Friday in 1929, the Great Depression led the US and the world economy into a long-lasting and devastating crisis. Wealth on an unprecedented scale was destroyed, leaving millions impoverished and destitute. Beyond its economic, social, and political upheavals, the Great Depression also challenged foundational "myths" of American culture, such as the self-made man and the frontier myth and American agrarianism. In this course, we will examine the Great Depression from multiple angles, with a particular focus on how cultural texts of the era negotiated its causes, effects, and consequences. We will look at works from the Federal Theatre Project, public murals, photography, and film to understand how art and media represented and was shaped by this period in American cultural history.

At the beginning of the course, I will provide you with a list of extensive reading materials.

Modulleistung: Klausur (BA, LA Gym), Hausarbeit (LA Sekundar)
Studienleistungen: Forum entries (weekly), session protocol, being the member of an "expert team" during one session

Admission settings

The course is part of admission "Anmeldung gesperrt (global)".
The following rules apply for the admission:
  • Admission locked.