German Intellectual History: Labyrinths of Literature

In literature and art, dance and architecture the labyrinth delineates a path through time and space. This path has been interpreted in various ways, as a figuration of the polarity of chaos and order, for example, or as a trajectory of initiation. On the basis of selected pictorial material as well as selected readings of the ancient myths of Theseus and Dedalus, the seminar will focus on the relation between the structure of the labyrinth and narrative structures and allow students to develop new perspectives on 20th century German literature.