The Master programme includes two focal areas, German literature and German linguistics. The courses in German literature cover the whole range of German literature from its beginnings to the most recent developments. Its purpose is the study of German literature within its narrower and broader contexts, as well as its influence on and relationship to other literatures. In the area of concentration in German literature, the programme deepens the student''s familiarity with theoretical and methodical approaches to German literature such as philology, rhetorics, poetics, aesthetics and hermeneutics, literary theory, social history and the history of science, and scholarly editing. The courses in German linguistics cover the analysis of the German language system and the use of its regional and social varieties by using exemplary topics that vary from semester to semester. The courses in German linguistics are designed to enhance the students´ competences in coping with theoretical as well as applied linguistic problems and issues. The broad range of topics offered cover the following main linguistic areas: - the linguistic system (morphology and syntax, comparative linguistics, and typology) - cognitive linguistics and psycholinguistics (language acquisition and language and mental processes) - sociolinguistics (local and social varieties, and linguistic norms) - pragmatics (text and discourse analysis) - communication studies (interpersonal, public and intercultural communication).