In his diaries analysing the German language during the Nazi period, the German philologist Victor Klemperer notes how certain words are of such importance to a given historical period that they actually reflect the thinking of an era, a claim that forms the basis for this thesis. Based on a combination of Key Word Analysis and Critical Discourse Analysis, enhanced by applying Discourse Semantics and History of Concepts, the paper analyses the usage of the term Flüchtling (refugee) in German media during the autumn of 1989, how it is used during this period and how studying this usage provides the reader with access to the mentality of the German public at the time.
After describing the relevant theories and methods, the thesis describes the development of the term refugee, both semantically and in legal terms. The international conventions that form the basis for the international legal understanding of the term are presented as well as the applicable German legal framework. It is shown that the term indeed constitutes a key word, and through a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods, the usage and connotational shift of refugee is presented in text and tables.
The findings are that while the general perception of the German media (and the population) during the summer were neutral to negative, the general euphoria in West Germany about the events in the GDR led to a more positive perception, that culminated in October. After the opening of the Wall in November, refugees all but disappear from the news reporting, and when they are mentioned, it is with the same negative connotation as during the summer.
From an ingenious fool to the Grail King: the significance of courtly love in Wolfram’s Parzival
The focus of this thesis lies on the doctrines in courtly behavior, a multifaceted system of chivalric norms and behaviors often referred to as the knightly virtue system based on the literature of the early and high Middle Ages. The aim of this thesis is to study the different aspects, such as religious, military, courtly and romantic, of the knightly virtue system. The romantic aspect of the knightly ideal is given particular attention, as it is the focus of this paper.
The word minne is the bearer of the romantic aspect and is central in Wolfram’s von Eschenbach Parzival which is the main source studied. The following issues are discussed in more detail: how the knightly ideal is presented in Wolfram’s epic and to what extent the minne affects the development of Parzival to the Grail king. In the course of this thesis it will also be shown that the romantic aspect is the most influential aspect of the knightly virtue system and that this particular aspect truly defines an ideal knight.
In this Thesis three different versions of the Medea myth are analysed. They stem from the Antique, the 19th century and the 20th century, respectively. Analyses are made of how the female image of Medea is portrayed and if different historical perceptions of woman are being projected in the female image of Medea. The development of the myth and the drama is also being presented showing how it can influence the image of Medea.
In Euripides version from the Antique, Medea is shown as both a human and with a more supernatural side. This is also typical for myths from these times. However, what sets Euripides apart from other stories from that age is that it contains a female protagonist with a strong character. In Franz Grillparzers story from the 19th century, Medea is still portrayed having a strong and independent nature, albeit no longer with supernatural properties. Instead she is driven by traditional human romantic characteristics displayed by her love towards Jason. In the version written by Christa Wolf, Medea is portrayed as a strong independent woman as in the other versions, albeit misunderstood by the society surrounding her. Her emancipated character becomes evident by the cultural differences displayed by Medea on one hand and society on the other hand. Also, Christa Wolf rewrites the myth into a novel and incorporates other aspects to the story such as a profound Scapegoat theme, by some described as a rewriting of the myth by incorporating personal experiences into the story.
However, the main character of Medea - her independence and strong character is a common denominator in all the three stories.
When first encountering an unknown dialect or accent listeners may first have problems understanding what is being said. However, studies show that listeners are able to adopt to a speaker's pronunciation during the course of conversation. In the current study, German, Swedish and Finnishstudents listened to a 15 minute text in German modified to simulate a new dialect. Subsequently they performed a lexical decision task where words according to this dialect appeared. Results from these tasks showed that German mother tongue speakers failed to adapt to the dialect. However, Swedish subjects did adopt. Finnish mother tongue speakers on the otherhand, did not seem to adopt to the same extent as the swedes. The results suggest, that the different results between Germans, Swedes and Finns are induced by different perception and language approach in mother tongue speakers and L2-learners. The language perception System seams to be more flexible in L2-Learners whereas it is more static in mother tonguespeakers of the same language. Furthermore it is suggested, that different phonological structures between the mother tongues of L2-learners have different implications on the adaption to speech in the foreign language. If the phonological structure of one mother tongue language differs much from the foreign language to be learned, phonological adaptation seams to be more difficult.
Das digitale Spielen hat in den letzten Jahren stetig zugenommen und scheint heute ein selbstverständlicher Teil im alltäglichen Leben vieler Menschen zu sein. Eine deutliche Verbindung zwischen der digitalen Welt und der englischen Sprache ist zu beobachten, und man kann sich fragen, ob es immer so war.
Ziel der Arbeit ist es, die Verwendung von Anglizismen in der digitalen Computerspiel- und Videospielwelt zu untersuchen, um herauszufinden, ob und inwiefern sich eine zunehmende Globalisierung in der Domäne des digitalen Spielens nachweisen lässt. Dazu wird der Sprachgebrauch ausgewählter Benutzer-Kommentare eines deutschen Spieleforums aus dem Jahr 2013 (teilweise auch vom Beginn des Jahres 2014) und der von 2004 untersucht. Die grundlegende Frage lautet: Wie unterscheidet sich der Gebrauch von Anglizismen in der digitalen Spielwelt, wenn man die Situation heute mit der von 2004 vergleicht?
This essay examines the use of geographic places (cities, countries, regions) in Judith Hermanns short story collection Nichts als Gespenster. As is being shown in the essay, the function of these places is in connection to the main conflicts and themes of the seven different stories a crucial part of Hermanns narrative.
Denne artikel belyser undfangelses- og fødselsparadigmet i forhold til forskellige videnskabelige felter (antropologi, biologi, filosofi og æstetik) og viser, på hvilken måde generative kategorier er bestemmende for Herman Bangs poetik i Det hvide Hus (1898) og Det graa Hus (1901). I husenes æstetiske rum mødes den dyriske natur- og den metafysiske kultursfære og gestaltes i teksternes hovedfigurer. Bedste/Ur-Faderen (undfangelse) og moderen (fødsel) indsætter sig selv som familieoverhoveder hinsides det driftsstyrede lystprincip og præsenterer deres sublime modbilleder: imens bedstefaderen tegner erkendelsens og det erkendtes filosofiske diskurs gennem øjets medium, legemliggør moderen kunstens og musikkens æstetiske diskurs ved hjælp af stemmens medium – begge modforestillinger til undfangelse og fødsel.
This essay examines the autobiographical aspects of Ingeborg Bachmanns novel Malina. The novel is discussed as unconventional autobiography, which through its narrative form calls the foundations of this genre into question. Memory, which is inevitably connected to autobiographical writing, is also examined and discussed as a major theme in the novel. The two main characters Ich and Malina are discussed as representatives for two different modes of remembrance.
In this paper, myth and work on myth is understood as work on reflective discourse. At a certain point of history, mythological configurations figure the dark side, the inherent ‘wound’ of their contemporary reflective discourse. This hypothesis is examined in a reading of Heiner Müller's arrangement of the myth of Philoctetes. Here, the impossibility to re-integrate the excluded Philoctetes into the Greek society corresponds to the aporia of modern (post) Kantian enlightenment, that is, to the problem of how the self-enlightening subject can create a difference to itself under the presupposition of the self. Thus, Müller's work on myth does not serve one of the two opposing 20th century ideologies, but critically explores the epistemic basis of those ideologies.