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At the University of Erfurt, the study of American Literature is embedded in the BA Program “Anglistik/Amerikanistik” as well as interlinked with the BA and MA “Literaturwissenschaft.”

The study of US literature at the University of Erfurt is designed to offer training in the interpretation and evaluation of literary texts in their socio-historical and cultural contexts. The teaching of formal analysis and aesthetic appreciation is therefore conjoined with larger questions about the culture in which the text was produced as well as about the cultures in which we are receiving it today. We cover American literature in its historical scope (from the colonial period to the present) as well as from diverse thematic and methodological angles. At the heart of our inquiry are questions of gender, class, race and ethnicity as well as nationhood and transnationality. The cathexis of literature with media, visual, digital, performance and urban studies caters to the needs of students professionalizing for increasingly intermedial and technological work environments. Great emphasis is put on training our students in close reading and critical thinking and on inspiring them to exchange their views and critiques in ardent and constructive dialogue. All courses are held in English.