Alexandra Campana – alexandra.campana@vanderbilt.edu
Academic Education:
2009 to present: Ph.D. candidate in German studies (ABD since 12/2011)
2008 to 2009: Graduate studies in German and English literature, and sociology
University of Constance, Germany
2003 to 2007: Studies in German language and literature, religious studies, musicology
Universities of Basel, Zurich, and Lucerne, Switzerland
Albert Ludwigs-University Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
Degree: Lizentiat (equivalent of MA), University of Basel, 12/2007
Research:
My dissertation project “Violent, Black Ocean[s].” (Literary) Border Crossings in a Global Age (1990-2010) investigates contemporary literary reactions to the phenomenon of globalization, intercultural dialogue, and the idea of multiculturalism. By outlining literary aesthetics that take the need for new (‘postmodern’) forms of writing into account, I furthermore discuss the place for the study of literature within an academic context, in which disciplinary competition is – despite assertions to the contrary – still an undeniable reality.
Beyond the dissertation, my research interests lie in German literature after 1750, especially (Weimar) Classicism, Romanticism, Fin de Siècle, 20th century literature after 1945, and the works of Swiss author Hugo Loetscher (1929-2009). Other topics I am currently working on concern relations between literature and psychology (trauma theory; psychological approaches to violence), connections between literature and psychoanalysis, and language in crisis (Heinrich von Kleist; Ingeborg Bachmann).
Publications and Presentations:
Link (updated in December 2011)
Teaching:
I have been teaching since 2003, and earned the “Lernen und Lehren mit Erwachsenen“ Teaching Certificate from the Gewerblich-Industrielle Berufsschule Bern in 2005. Classes and workshops I taught include German language classes at all levels, integration classes for immigrant children and youth, Business German, custom German courses for adults, and workshops on learning competence. Presently, I teach undergraduate German language courses at Vanderbilt, and am pursuing a Teaching Certificate at Vanderbilt’s Center for Teaching.
While balancing a communicative language teaching approach with form-focused activities, I put a special emphasis on culture, and integrate authentic material of cultural relevance right from the start. This immediately clarifies the significance of the learned (grammatical) material, and helps to foster a dialogue in the classroom that dares to question cultural “truths” otherwise taken for granted – and I am consistently thrilled about how much my students teach me by sharing their cultural perspectives.
Institutional Service (Vanderbilt):
- Regional Representative (South), MLA Delegate Assembly, 2012-2015
- Moderated Panel “The Humanities in a Global Age,” 25th Graduate Student Research
Symposium, 2011
- Member of the Academic Affairs Committee, 2010-2011
Awards, Honors, Fellowships, Grants:
- Passed PhD Qualifying Examinations with High Honors, German Department, Vanderbilt
University, 2011
- Graduate Student Travel Grant, The Graduate School, Vanderbilt University, 2011
- Graduate Student Travel Grant, German Department, Vanderbilt University, 2011
- Hans Joachim Schulz-Award for Excellence in Graduate Research, German Department,
Vanderbilt University, 2010
- Graduate Student Travel Grant, The Graduate School, Vanderbilt University, 2010
- Vanderbilt University Honors Graduate Fellowship (topping-off award), 2009 to present
- Max Kade Fellowship, Vanderbilt University, 2009 to present
