Comparative Literature

Comparative literature is the study of literatures in their transnational, intercultural and cross-media relationships and thus extends beyond literary criticism in the narrower sense as well as the horizon of individual philologies. The object of its study is world literature.

Specifically, comparative literature examines the international reception of literary works, of authors, the varieties of intertextuality, the emergence of transcultural form and genre conventions, the interrelationships between various artistic and cultural systems of symbols (e.g. literature and painting, literature and film, literature and music), to name just a few examples. An essential characteristic of work in the field of comparative literature is that it crosses all kinds of boundaries: It crosses the boundaries between individual languages and cultures and it crosses boundaries between literature and other forms of art, other media and other forms of knowledge.

Comparatists investigate questions like: Where does literature intersect with painting, architecture, photography, film? How do text and music work together in opera and musical theater? How do poetry, dance, literature and performance interact? What changes result from electronic media? In this context, intermediality is becoming an increasingly important field of work for comparatists.

This subject must be combined with a second subject.

Possible lines of work:

Education (adult education, language courses, educational institutes, etc.), book industry (publishing/libraries/translating/editing), culture (cultural institutions, embassies, exhibitions, etc.), media (press, radio, television, online media, journalism, public relations), administration (international relations, e.g. diplomatic service, EU institutions, international organizations), teaching at a German public school, academia (research management, teaching/research at universities, research institutions, etc.)