| This course explores the specificities of American leadership models as depicted in a variety of literary and cultural contexts. In our weekly discussions, we will start out by exploring the manipulative character of Ahab and his monomaniac, if not “dictatorial personality” (James 15). We will also focus on models of ethnic, gendered, and social leadership from the 19th century to the present; and we will discuss the representation of educational leadership in popular culture such as, for example, in Dead Poets Society (1989) and Freedom Writers (2007). Another aspect of this seminar will deal with career guides that advocate mindful leadership programs in professional settings, as proposed by Brené Brown in Dare to Lead. Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts (2018). We will close off our broad investigation of American leadership by reading Noam Chomsky’s Who Rules the World? (2017) as a critique of the United States’ superpower leadership in the world and its global consequences. As part of this course, you will have the opportunity to participate in an international electronic exchange with students from the University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh. Please buy: Noam Chomsky. Who Rules the World? Penguin Books, 2017. A selection of primary and secondary texts will be provided via Moodle.
|
- Kursleiter/in: Martina Pfeiler
Semester: WiSe 2025/26