More Than a Culture Capsule: Teaching Switzerland and Austria in the German Curriculum

This essay offers some direction for greater integration of Austria and Switzerland into every level of the German language and culture curriculum. By excavating a number of now nearly forgotten intercultural connections between these alpine countries and the U.S., it is possible to present a more complete and complex picture of German‐speaking Europe and to activate students’ interests for the relevance of German/Swiss/Austrian Studies in a much broader interdisciplinary context. This intent is achieved by presenting Switzerland and Austria as part of a global curriculum. Not only does it correct for the troubling trend toward an over‐simplified Germanization of Austrian and Swiss cultural figures, but this approach helps students forge connections and draw comparisons that illuminate these countries’ continuing significance in the new Europe, and on the global stage of international affairs.