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Economy and Literature
Ökonomie und Literatur
Last Updated: 2026-02-05 15:53:27
Abstract
Economics and literature are closely related: Literature does not only deal with economic conditions, but follows economic principles on a poetological level. Conversely, the economic knowledge production draws on its poetology. In the seminar, we will look at how a «rhetoric of economics» connects the poetological with methods of natural and social sciences.
Objective
- Economic theories from the point of view of cultural studies and sciences - Poetology from an economic perspective - Basic literary texts of the modern age - Poetology of Knowledge
Content
As different as they may appear at first glance, economy and literature are deeply intertwined. In general, the economic - from the drama of the 18th century (Nathan the Wise, Faust) to the modern novel (Emma Bovary, Oliver Twist, Alice in Wonderland, Buddenbrooks) to the science fiction of the 20th century where technological invention is always organized around economic structures of innovation - is a structural motif that addresses both social, technological and poetological conditions. But literature and economics are, more fundamentally, structurally analogous in many respects: Both are described by scientific disciplines that can hardly be separated from their object of investigation and tend to appropriate methods of other sciences, both deal with issues of resource allocation and contingency management. Money and signs work in the same way, in that (both) their values are neither just real (natural) nor merely simulated (fictitious), but are negotiated in complex social processes. In the seminar, this connection is to be tackled from several angles: on the one hand, with a view on economic motives in literature and their principles of allocation, on the other hand, on the economic prerequisites for writing, and conversely, with regard to the importance of literature for economic argumentation and knowledge production at large (rhetoric of economics). This relationship will prove to be exemplary of how scientific methods (e. g. Econometrics, simulation), the rhetorics at heart of natural and social sciences (e. g. rational agent model, statistics), and historical readings (e. g. economic history) make use of the poetological whenever there is a need to unveil a ‘concealed’ reality, e.g. nature that first has to be understood.
General Information
- Language
- German
- Levels
- DS , MSC
Examination
- Type
- graded semester performance
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| seminar | Ökonomie und Literatur |
|
2 h weekly |
Offered In
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GESS Science in Perspective (Only the courses listed below will be recognized as "GESS Science in Perspective" courses. Further below you will find courses under the category "Type B courses Reflections about subject specific methods and content" as well as the language courses. During the Bachelor’s degree Students should acquire at least 6 ECTS and during the Master’s degree 2 ECTS. Students who already took a course within their main study program are NOT allowed to take the course again.)
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Type A: Enhancement of Reflection Competence (Suitable for all students. Students who already took a course within their main study program are NOT allowed to take the course again.)
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