Introduction to German Literature and Thought

Harvard Extension School

HUMA E-134

Section 1

CRN 27020

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This is a survey course on major works in German literature, philosophy, and critique from the mid-eighteenth century to the twentieth century. Close reading of representative texts opens onto broader ramifications in cultural and intellectual history with further consideration of societal and political tensions. Periods and themes covered include the enlightenment and the rise of the bourgeoisie, romanticism, idealism, and the problem of identity; realism and nationhood; language and political crises; and the guilt, responsibility, and existential angst that mark the postwar period.

Registration Closes: January 22, 2026
Credits: 4

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Term

Spring Term 2026

Part of Term

Full Term

Format

Online

Credit Status

Graduate, Noncredit, Undergraduate

Section Status

Open

Instructor Info

John T. Hamilton, PhD

William R. Kenan Professor of German and Comparative Literature, Harvard University


Meeting Info

1/26 to 5/16

Participation Option: Online Asynchronous

In online asynchronous courses, you are not required to attend class at a particular time. Instead you can complete the course work on your own schedule each week.

Deadlines

Last day to register: January 22, 2026

Notes

The recorded lectures are from the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences companion course Comparative Literature 100X. Registered students can ordinarily live stream the lectures Mondays, 9-11:45 am starting January 26 or they can watch them on demand. The recorded sessions are typically available within a few hours of the end of class and no later than the following business day. Class sessions for this course may include students enrolled in the FAS companion course. Accordingly, when you participate in live class sessions, you will do so alongside both Division of Continuing Education (DCE) and FAS students. If you participate in a way that causes you to appear in recordings of the class, those recordings may be shown to DCE students enrolled in this course or FAS students enrolled in the companion course, according to the policies of the two schools on accessing recordings of class sessions.

Tuition

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All Sections of this Course

CRN Section # Participation Option(s) Instructor Section Status Meets Term Dates
27020 1 Online Asynchronous John Hamilton Open Jan 26 to May 16

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