Writing about German Literature : Examination and Text Forms in the French Occupation Zone, 1945–1949

Abstract

This chapter shows what new insights into mother-tongue teaching and its history can be gained by looking at the practice of testing. A particular historical case is used, namely, the introduction of the Zentralabitur after World War II by the French occupation forces in southwestern Germany. The chapter outlines how the French implemented a form of directly competitive examination anchored in their country and how teachers of German literature classes reacted to the new examination system. Using student essays written as part of a competition and judged by teachers, the author traces how German literary culture and ideas about individual-authentic writing on literature come to the fore anew despite the adoption of testing practices from France.