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Literature in the Light of the "Two Culture"-Thesis / I
Literatur im Lichte der "Zwei Kulturen"-These / I
Last Updated: 2026-02-05 15:24:18
Abstract
This course examines two literary works of modern times with the "Two Cultures" thesis by the English physicist and novelist Charles P. Snow and its discussion from the sixties until today.The subtitles are:1. "Max Frisch's HOMO FABER and Maxwells demon"2. "Bertolt Brecht's GALILEO and the nuclear fission"
Objective
The students are tested at the end of each semester in an oral examination of the following: a) They know the motivation, content and direction of the Two Cultures thesis of Charles P. Snow. b) They are capable of explaining the process of thoughts and key issues of chosen examples of the controversial debate. c) They can show on the basis of the two literary works how questions of modern science and technology find expression in a literary representation. d) They formulate a well-founded opinion of their own regarding the current importance of Snow's thesis.
Content
In 1959 the English physicist and novelist Charles P. Snow sparked a fierce controversy. In his lecture "The Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution", he criticized an outdated educational presentation on the part of literary humanities scholars. Usually the literary scholar calls the scientist who does not know the major works of literature an uneducated specialist. He fails to notice that he himself is ignorant and a specialist, because he usually is not even able to specify the second law of thermodynamics. The German philosopher Jürgen Habermas still insisted in the sixties that the gap between humanities and natural sciences was inevitable. He claimed that the findings of atomic physics - in itself – could have no consequences "for the interpretation of our living world": "Poetry develops at the sight of Hiroshima and not through the processing of hypotheses about the conversion of mass into energy." On the other hand, it can be said that the results of the Copernican view of nature very well brought change to the world and to human perspectives. This course examines two literary works of modern times with the "Two Cultures" thesis and its discussion from the sixties until today.
Resources
Literature
- Snow, Charles P.: The Two Cultures an d the Scientific Revolution. Cambridge 1959 - Frisch, Max: Homo faber. Frankfurt 1957 - Brecht, Bertolt: Leben des Galilei. Frankfurt 1962
General Information
- Language
- German
- Levels
- DS
- Frequency
- Yearly recurring
Examination
- Type
- graded semester performance
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| lecture | Literatur im Lichte der "Zwei Kulturen"-These / I |
|
1 h weekly |
| colloquium | Literatur im Lichte der "Zwei Kulturen"-These / I |
|
1 h weekly |
Offered In
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Humanities, Social and Political Sciences (In order to be awarded credits, please register under "Pflichtwahlfach GESS"!. The language courses are offered by the ETH and University of Zurich Language Center.)
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