The Department of German and Slavic Studies welcomes three new faculty members beginning August 2014:
Robert G. Kohn, Visiting Assistant Professor of German
PhD, University of Texas-Austin
Michaela J. Ruppert Smith, Adjunct Professor of German
PhD, Claremont Graduate University
Corey Twitchell, Visiting Assistant Professor of German
ABD, Washington University in St. Louis
Krystyna Rastorguieva, student of the Russian Program, was granted a Bronze Medal in Category C, Level 4 of the Fifteenth Annual ACTR National Post-Secondary Russian Essay Contest. This year’s program enjoyed the submission of 1004 essays from 58 different universities, colleges and institutions across the U.S.
German minor Leland Gross has been awarded the prestigious Men’s Post-Graduate Internship with the National Student Leadership Forum: http://www.nslforum.org/#!about/cjn9
In addition to his German minor, Leland is a major in International Studies and a minor in German and Religious Studies.
Professor Oksana Ingle’s article “Finnish Problematic in the Works of William A. Wilson” has been published in the March 2014 issue of Language Palette.
Professor Stephen Della Lana has been featured in the publication commemorating 25-years of Congress Bundestag Youth Exchanges: http://www.cdsintl.org/fellowshipsabroad/cbyx_25years.pdf.
Hannah Albenesius studied Russian at the College of Charleston for four years, and the Russian faculty watched her grow and mature into a strong and highly motivated young woman through her involvement in the Russian Studies Program. Hannah distinguished herself through her innovative thinking and discipline, and she became one of an elite group of students which any professor is proud to have. Her enthusiasm and excitement for learning were unparalleled; she often pursued material far beyond what is required by syllabi. She was very intelligent and functioned well in an academic setting; her critical thinking and constant engagement helped her to produce unique and insightful work.
There is a saying: “a person is not a jar to be filled, but a torch to be lit.” Hannah was that rewarding light for every educator. The faculty of the Russian program recognized Hannah’s potential from the beginning, and encouraged her to step out of her comfort zone, to develop her strengths and conquer her meekness. Faculty was very proud of Hannah who evolved into an innovative and independent thinker. When she became an officer of the Russian club four years ago, Hannah drew in a strong member-base with her charismatic personality and intellectualism, and she often invited the tightly-knit group of officers to her house for chai and konfeti. She also diversified the club through interdisciplinary activities, including an annual lecture series featuring scholars from the Charleston area and beyond, and she networked with everyone from sports teams to Orthodox churches.
Hannah loved to stop by faculty offices just for a chat; she had an irrepressible sense of humor, and she loved to hear stories that made her laugh. She adored animals, and she is remembered as saying one day that if she had the space, she would adopt every single creature, big and small, in need of a home. Hannah had time and kindness for everyone.
Ryan Murphy, German minor and Biology major, was awarded one of 75 Bundestag Youth Exchange Fellowships for the 2014-15 Academic Year.
On March 12, 6pm in Addlestone 227, the Department of German & Slavic Studies will host Maryville University’s Dr. Johannes Wich-Schwarz who will present “The Not-Word: German-Jewish Poetry after the Holocaust.”
What does it mean to write in German as a Jewish author after the Holocaust? Can poetry recover, reclaim, and renew language after unspeakable trauma? How do we translate poetry written on the edge of silence? Johannes Wich-Schwarz (Maryville University) considers questions and others in a presentation on German-Jewish poetry written after 1945. The presentation offers an introduction to poets who reconfigured the aesthetic landscape of post-war Germany and demonstrated the importance of poetry after Auschwitz, including the internationally renowned Paul Celan and Nelly Sachs as well as the influential German language poets Rose Ausländer, Hilde Domin, and Erich Fried. Professor Wich-Schwarz is the author ofTransformation of Language and Religion in Rainer Maria Rilke and is currently completing a volume of English translations of German-Jewish poetry.
2013 German graduate Stephanie Rhodes has published in Chrestomathy, the CofC journal for outstanding undergraduate research. Entitled “Polarized Politics: Fassbinder’s Use of ‘Spiele(n)’ in Die dritte Generation (1979) as an Explanation of Left-wing Terrorism in West Germany,” the article is drawn from Stephanie’s Bachelor’s Essay, written under the supervision of Dr. Nancy Nenno. Stephanie double majored in German and International Business and immediately got a job with a German company upon graduation. Congratulations, Stephanie, on all of your many accomplishments!
http://chrestomathy.cofc.edu/
http://chrestomathy.cofc.edu/
“The Not-Word: German-Jewish Poetry after the Holocaust”
March 12th, 6pm, Addlestone 227
What does it mean to write in German as a Jewish author after the Holocaust? Can poetry recover, reclaim, and renew language after unspeakable trauma? How do we translate poetry written on the edge of silence? Johannes Wich-Schwarz (Maryville University) will explore these questions in a presentation on German-Jewish poetry written after 1945. The presentation offers an introduction to poets who reconfigured the aesthetic landscape of post-war Germany and demonstrated the importance of poetry after Auschwitz, including internationally renowned authors Paul Celan and Nelly Sachs as well as the influential German language poets Rose Ausländer, Hilde Domin, and Erich Fried. Professor Wich-Schwarz is the author of Transformation of Language and Religion in Rainer Maria Rilke and is currently completing a volume of English translations of German-Jewish poetry.