Dr. Hoecker's research centers around three main areas of expertise: (1) cultural and critical theory from Marx, Nietzsche, and Freud to the Frankfurt School and post-structuralist criticism; (2) the history and theory of scientific cultures; (3) the rise and fall of the medium of literature from the 18th century to the present. His first book, Epistemologie des Extremen: Lustmord in Kriminologie und Literatur um 1900 (Fink 2012) reconstructs the creation of criminological knowledge in light of modernist poetics and narrative. His second book, The Case of Literature: Forensic Narratives from Goethe to Kafka (Cornell UP 2020) offers an investigation into the history of the literary case study from its emergence in the 18th century to its peculiar role in the development of Freud's psychoanalysis. His latest research focuses on the history of the psychiatric and cultural concept of paranoia and its manifold relations to power and authority.
keywords
History and Theory of Scientific Cultures, German Literature from the Enlightenment to the present, Critical Theory, Frankfurt School, history of human sciences, psychoanalysis, realism, Modernism Goethe, Kafka, Musil
CINE 2302 - Nazis on Screen: Hollywood, War, Propaganda
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2024
Explores representations of Nazism in Hollywood films from the early 1940s until today. How does the film image of the Nazi change from World War II through the Cold War era and beyond? From Chaplin's "The Great Dictator" to "Star Wars" and Tarantino's "Inglorious Basterds," this course focuses on how representations of Nazism and fascism informed American self-conceptions and strengthened the belief and trust in democratic institutions. Taught in English. Degree credit not granted for this course and GRMN 2302.
GRMN 2301 - Inside Nazi Germany: Politics, Culture, and Everyday Life in the Third Reich
Primary Instructor
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Fall 2018 / Fall 2019 / Fall 2021 / Fall 2022 / Fall 2023
Examines social culture and everyday life in Nazi Germany. Topics include the role of propaganda in the media and entertainment industries, anti-Semitism and suppression of ethnic, social and religious minorities, the role of education and youth organizations, as well as the role of women, the churches, and the effects of a controlled economy before and during World War II. Taught in English.
GRMN 2302 - Nazis on Screen: Hollywood, War, Propaganda
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2023 / Spring 2024
Explores representations of Nazism in Hollywood films from the early 1940s until today. How does the film image of the Nazi change from World War II through the Cold War era and beyond? From Chaplin's "The Great Dictator" to "Star Wars" and Tarantino's "Inglorious Basterds," this course focuses on how representations of Nazism and fascism informed American self-conceptions and strengthened the belief and trust in democratic institutions. Taught in English. Degree credit not granted for this course and CINE 2302.
GRMN 3140 - Current Issues in German Culture
Primary Instructor
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Fall 2019
Examines issues depicted in contemporary German film, tv series, news media, social media, literature, and more. Topics may include youth culture, feelings of belonging, racisms, gender, sexuality, work and labor, and more. Department enforced prerequisite: GRMN 2020, 2030 or comparable fluency. Topics vary by semester. Taught in German.
GRMN 3506 - Tracing the Criminal: Crime in 19th C Society and Culture
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2019 / Summer 2020 / Summer 2021 / Spring 2022 / Summer 2022 / Summer 2023 / Fall 2023 / Summer 2024
Examines cultural and literary representations of crime from the Enlightenment to the early 20th century and contextualizes them within the history of judicial and medical approaches to criminality. Focusing on representations of the criminal as an object of knowledge, this survey of intellectual history introduces students to critical approaches in the humanities and the study of social phenomena in their historical context. Taught in English.
GRMN 3508 - Masters of Suspicion: Marx, Nietzsche, Freud
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2023
Explores some of the most significant writings by Karl Marx, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Sigmund Freud, three authors who have radically shaped much of modern thinking. Students will practice the analysis of challenging theoretical texts from the German intellectual tradition and develop a critical, theoretically informed vocabulary. Taught in English.
GRMN 3802 - Politics and Culture in Berlin 1900-1939
Primary Instructor
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Summer 2024
Examines early 20th century German culture, with emphasis on the Weimar Republic (1918-1933) in light of contemporaneous political discussions. The course presents modern art and literature (Expressionism, Dada, Brecht's epic theater) and architecture and design (Bauhaus, Werkbund) as well as political movements of women, sexual minorities, and Berlin's Jewish communities. Taught in English. Offered through CU Study Abroad Program. Same as HUMN 3802.
GRMN 4051 - Critical Theory of the Frankfurt School
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2019 / Spring 2020 / Spring 2022
Serves as an introduction to the "Frankfurt School" and Critical Theory with particular emphasis upon rationality, social psychology, cultural criticism, and aesthetics. Through close readings of key texts by members of the school (Horkheimer, Benjamin, Adorno, Habermas) we will work toward a critical understanding of the analytical tools they developed and consider their validity. Taught in English. Same as GRMN 5051.
GRMN 5051 - Critical Theory of the Frankfurt School
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2019 / Spring 2020 / Spring 2022
Serves as an introduction to the "Frankfurt School" and Critical Theory with particular emphasis upon rationality, social psychology, cultural criticism, and aesthetics. Through close readings of key texts by members of the school (Horkheimer, Benjamin, Adorno, Habermas) we will work toward a critical understanding of the analytical tools they developed and consider their validity. Taught in English. Same as GRMN 4051.
GRMN 5510 - Seminar: Open Topics in German Civilization
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2021 / Spring 2024
Focuses on cultural issues that cross lines of literary periodization. Topics may include the theater as social criticism from Lessing to Handke; forms of German protest from Luther to Thomas Mann; nihilism from Bonaventura to Thomas Bernhard; topics in German film; and others. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours when topic varies.
GRMN 6900 - Master's Thesis
Primary Instructor
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Fall 2020 / Spring 2021 / Spring 2024
May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours.
