Browsing Germanic and Slavic Studies by Type "Doctoral Thesis"
Now showing items 1-18 of 18
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An Analysis of Peer Activities to Inform Foreign Language Learning: Word Searches, Voice, and the Use of Non-Target Languages
(University of Waterloo, 2010-10-04)This empirical study investigates language use and collaborative learning in informal non-classroom settings by learners of German as a Foreign Language (GFL). I examine learner interactions resulting from a language course ... -
Being a South Tyrolean: Examining Identity in Conversation and Linguistic Landscapes
(University of Waterloo, 2020-08-26)In this dissertation, I examine the role of language in the enacting of identity in the German-speaking community in the province of South Tyrol, Italy. Within this province on the border between Austria and Italy, the ... -
Constructing multilingual selves. Subjective perspectives on learning and living with German as a "heritage" language in Canada
(University of Waterloo, 2018-12-14)Based on the perception that language students who have a family background in the target language differ from ‘typical’ foreign language learners in important ways, the phenomenon of what has been termed "heritage language ... -
Contesting the centre: Low German-speaking Mennonite identity, language, and literacy constructions
(University of Waterloo, 2017-05-01)We make sense of who we are by talking about ourselves with others, telling stories about ourselves, our experiences, and our feelings. When we do this, we construct sociolinguistic spaces in which we speak, live, work, ... -
Disability Drama: Semiotic Bodies and Diegetic Subjectivities in post-WWI German Expressionist Drama
(University of Waterloo, 2014-05-05)In this dissertation, I examine discourses on disability and the body in three German Expressionist dramas written directly after WWI both for the discursive work they do in this context and for their relevance today: Ernst ... -
Gewalt und Spiele in den Filmen Michael Hanekes
(University of Waterloo, 2020-01-16)This dissertation examines the intersection of violence and games in six of Michael Haneke’s movies, Benny’s Video (1992), Happy End (2017), Le Temps du loup (2003), Funny Games (1997/2007), 71 Fragmente einer Chronologie ... -
The High German of Russian Mennonites in Ontario
(University of Waterloo, 2010-01-20)The main focus of this study is the High German language spoken by Russian Mennonites, one of the many groups of German-speaking immigrants in Canada. Although the primary language of most Russian Mennonites is a Low German ... -
L2 discourse markers and the development of interactional competence during study abroad
(University of Waterloo, 2022-01-25)In my dissertation, I use the theories and methodologies of Conversation Analysis (or “CA”, see Sacks et al., 1974) to investigate how speakers of a second language (or 'L2') develop the ability to interact in the L2 — or ... -
Learners' Identity Negotiations and Beliefs about Pronunciation in Study Abroad Contexts
(University of Waterloo, 2011-08-10)This dissertation explores learner beliefs about pronunciation and their interaction with identity negotiations in a study-abroad context. Current research on studying abroad has experienced a wave of interest in ... -
Learning German Vocabulary: An Investigation into Learners' Use of Vocabulary Learning Strategies
(University of Waterloo, 2009-01-19)This research is an empirical multiple-case study that is designed to explore adult individual learners’ vocabulary learning processes, and to examine their use of vocabulary learning strategies. It investigates the following ... -
Migration and Adolescence: The (Im-)Possibility of Transnational Agency in Alina Bronsky’s "Scherbenpark" (2008), Steven Uhly’s "Adams Fuge" (2011) and Martin Horváth’s "Mohr im Hemd oder wie ich auszog, die Welt zu retten" (2012)
(University of Waterloo, 2017-08-31)This dissertation project examines the depiction of migration experience and adolescence in Alina Bronsky’s "Scherbenpark" (2008), Steven Uhly’s "Adams Fuge" (2011) and Martin Horváth’s "Mohr im Hemd oder wie ich auszog, ... -
Mit Texttieren jenseits der Grenze des Schweigens sprechen. Sprachkrise, Machtdiskurse und eine Poetologie des Offenen in der deutschsprachigen Nachkriegsliteratur am Beispiel Wolfdietrich Schnurres, Guenter Eichs und Ilse Aichingers
(University of Waterloo, 2013-08-21)In this dissertation I analyze how the postwar German writers Wolfdietrich Schnurre, Günter Eich, and Ilse Aichinger negotiate anthropocentric and speciesist discourses via animal figures by drawing on such posthumanist ... -
Musik und Erinnerungen – Autobiografische Jugendliteratur zur deutschen Wende
(University of Waterloo, 2019-11-25)This dissertation focuses on musical memories in three autobiographical texts: Mein erstes T-Shirt (2001) by Jakob Hein; Tonspur: Wie ich die Welt von gestern verließ (2014) by Olaf Hintze and Susanne Krones; and Ostkreuz: ... -
Neoliberal Governmentality in the Red-Green Era: Tracing Facets of the Entrepreneurial Self in Three Contemporary German Novels
(University of Waterloo, 2012-04-26)This dissertation examines three contemporary German novels and their respective representations of the Red-Green era. It focuses on the discourses to which these novels refer in order to shed light on the consequences and ... -
Online Digital Game-Based Language Learning Environments: Opportunities for Second Language Development
(University of Waterloo, 2016-01-07)This dissertation project is an analysis of the language learning processes of 14 learners playing in and interacting with the massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) World of Warcraft (WoW) in German in order ... -
QuickAssist Extensive Reading for Learners of German Using CALL Technologies
(University of Waterloo, 2010-12-20)The focus of this dissertation is the development and testing of a CALL tool which assists learners of German with the extensive reading of German texts of their choice. The application provides functionality that enables ... -
The Stage History of Goethe's Faust I in Imperial Russia: Performance and Archival Record
(University of Waterloo, 2012-09-27)This dissertation is devoted to the stage history of Goethe’s Faust I in Imperial Russia with the goal of initiating academic discussion of this previously ignored topic. The significance of this study lies not only in the ... -
Teachers' subjective perspectives on foreign language vocabulary learning and teaching
(University of Waterloo, 2015-01-09)This study examines the beliefs and subjective theories teachers hold about vocabulary learning and teaching. Recent research into teacher cognition has repeatedly shown that teachers’ perspectives on languages, language ...