Kommentar |
By comparing two languages with each other one can gain a better understanding of each one of the languages under comparison. This is one of the main objectives of contrastive linguistics. In this course, we will carry out a detailed comparison of English and German, focusing on those aspects of analysis that reveal interesting differences between the two languages: Phonology, inflectional morphology, tense and aspect, grammatical relations, word order, active vs. passive voice and non-finite subordination. We will also find that many of the contrasts seem to be connected to each other. For example, rich inflectional morphology in German goes together with flexible word order and semantically constrained grammatical relations, whereas English displays the opposite tendency of reduced inflectional morphology, fixed word order and grammatical relations that can express almost any semantic role.
Apart from students with a more theoretical interest, the course also addresses students who want to improve their structural knowledge of English and know more about difficulties for learners of both languages under consideration. The course is therefore highly recommended to students of 'Englisch Lehramt'. The focus is going to be on comparing linguistic structures and not on didactic issues, however.
The book chapters we will read, as well as all types of exam (written test, oral or written state examination) take for granted basic knowledge of English grammar, phonetics and linguistic terminology, as it was introduced in the Introduction to Linguistics (I + II) and the module Phonetics. |
Literatur |
Gast, Volker (2012). 'Contrastive analysis: Theories and methods'. In Kortmann, B. (ed.): Dictionaries of Linguistics and Communication Science: Linguistic theory and methodology. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Hawkins, John A. (1986). A Comparative Typology of English and German: Unifying the Contrasts. London/Sydney: Croom Helm.
König, Ekkehard & Volker Gast (2018). Understanding English-German Contrasts. 4th ed. Berlin: Erich Schmidt Verlag. [You can also use the 3rd edition] |
Bemerkung |
Method of assessment: Written test ('Klausur'), 13.07.2023, 10-12 (1st attempt), 14.09.2023, 10-12 (2nd attempt)
This course requires good knowledge of German (B2 recommended). Non-native speakers are welcome.
Staatsexamen [not relevant to MA students]: Please ask me for manual admission if you want attend this course as a Vorbereitungsmodul. Register via the module catalogue and choose the "Belegweg" LG.AA.SE.1 or LG.AA.SE.2 before you select the name of the module, and then write me an email! The number of places is limited. Registration is only possible via manual admission before the start of the lecture period, and only if you are not at the same time enrolled for another linguistic Vorbereitungsmodul. The strategy of registering for a number of potential modules and making a decision later in the semester will not be possible here.
Lehramt Gymnasium: Im aktuellen Flyer (erhältlich auf Moodle: "The Hub" > "Infos zum Studium") finden Sie die Festlegung der Themengebiete für die Zweitthemen, schriftliche und für die mündliche Prüfung, im Bereich Sprachwissenschaft.
Lehramt Regelschule: Im aktuellen Flyer (erhältlich auf Moodle: "The Hub" > "Infos zum Studium") finden Sie weitere Informationen zur Prüfung. Beachten Sie, dass der zweite sprachwissenschaftliche Themenbereich in der schriftlichen Prüfung "Phonetics" und in der mündlichen Prüfung "Phonetics" oder auf Wunsch "Introduction to Linguistics I" ist. |