A 'Taiwanese Death Class': German Teacher Integrates Taiwanese Film and Literature into Philosophy Education [Interview]
A German teacher has incorporated Taiwanese literature and cinema into philosophy lessons at a Berlin high school. The teacher, Monika Li, hopes to inspire students to understand life from more diverse perspectives by introducing Taiwan's unique views on life and death, which differ significantly from those in Germany.
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Central News Agency
(Central News Agency reporter Lin Shang-ying, Berlin, 30th exclusive report) A Berlin gymnasium has incorporated Taiwanese literature and film into its philosophy curriculum. Monika Li, the German teacher who designed the course, stated in an exclusive interview with the Central News Agency that Taiwan's views on life and death are vastly different from Germany's; not only do people not shy away from discussing spirits and deities in daily life, but they can even approach death with humor. She hopes that by introducing Taiwan, she can inspire students to understand life from more diverse perspectives.
At the Berlin-Suttner European Gymnasium, during a 9th-grade philosophy class, students are watching the Taiwanese film "Marry My Dead Body." The film tells a warm and humorous story about a male police officer who picks up a red envelope and unexpectedly enters into a ghost marriage with a gay ghost.
This "death class," centered on Taiwan, was inspired by a seemingly relaxed Chinese interest class. Monika Li, who teaches German and philosophy at the gymnasium, also teaches Chinese due to her background in Sinology.
Monika Li recalled that once, when she introduced the Taiwanese Tudigong (Earth God) culture to her students, a usually quiet student suddenly shared an experience of a deceased relative.
"The student told me that his grandmother passed away when he was born, but he always felt that his grandmother was still with him," Monika Li said. The student admitted that he had never mentioned this experience to anyone before, fearing he would be seen as strange. After encountering Taiwanese ghost and deity culture in class, he felt a sense of understanding.
This experience led Monika Li to consider whether Taiwanese culture could be used as teaching material for philosophy classes to guide students in re-examining the topic of "death."
Monika Li's husband is Taiwanese. She observed that, influenced by Christian culture, German society often views death as a private and unspeakable experience. In contrast, even in highly modernized Taiwanese society, the existence of spirits, deities, and ancestors is naturally integrated into daily life, presenting a completely different view of death.
She therefore collaborated with her colleague Lisanne Fritsch to develop teaching materials, using Taiwanese literature, culture, and film to help students understand the diverse facets of death and the views on spirits and deities.
During the semester-long course, students learn about the ghost and deity culture in different ethnic groups and urban/rural backgrounds in Taiwan through Lung Ying-tai's novel "Below the Dawu Mountain" and director Cheng Wei-hao's film "Marry My Dead Body."
Regarding the selection of materials, Monika Li, who is also a German-Chinese translator, said that "Below the Dawu Mountain" was one of her past translation works. The book contains rich legends of spirits and deities, but the stories mostly take place in rural villages and indigenous communities in Pingtung. To present the diverse aspects of Taiwanese culture, she also chose to include "Marry My Dead Body," which is set in an urban background, allowing students to understand the relevant culture from different contexts.
She revealed that before official use, the film was screened for colleagues at the school. Everyone was deeply impressed by the settings of picking up a red envelope and ghost marriage, and they could understand the plot's context even without additional explanation. "Works that tell good stories are excellent cross-cultural teaching materials themselves."
At a time when German young people are popularizing K-pop and Korean dramas, Monika Li hopes to also bring a "Taiwanese death class" to her students. She has provided the complete teaching materials to an open education platform, hoping that more German teachers will introduce Taiwan in their classrooms, allowing students to learn about this island through soft culture and ponder important life lessons.
In addition to "Below the Dawu Mountain," Monika Li has also translated several other Taiwanese literary works, including Ping Lu's "Black Water," Chen Szu-hung's "Ghost Town," and "A Good Day to Bake," which has recently attracted much attention in the international copyright market. (Editor: Chen Yen-chun) 1150430
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(Central News Agency reporter Lin Shang-ying, Berlin, 30th exclusive report) A Berlin gymnasium has incorporated Taiwanese literature and film into its philosophy curriculum. Monika Li, the German teacher who designed the course, stated in an exclusive interview with the Central News Agency that Taiwan's views on life and death are vastly different from Germany's; not only do people not shy away from discussing spirits and deities in daily life, but they can even approach death with humor. She hopes that by introducing Taiwan, she can inspire students to understand life from more diverse perspectives.
At the Berlin-Suttner European Gymnasium, during a 9th-grade philosophy class, students are watching the Taiwanese film "Marry My Dead Body." The film tells a warm and humorous story about a male police officer who picks up a red envelope and unexpectedly enters into a ghost marriage with a gay ghost.
This "death class," centered on Taiwan, was inspired by a seemingly relaxed Chinese interest class. Monika Li, who teaches German and philosophy at the gymnasium, also teaches Chinese due to her background in Sinology.
Monika Li recalled that once, when she introduced the Taiwanese Tudigong (Earth God) culture to her students, a usually quiet student suddenly shared an experience of a deceased relative.
"The student told me that his grandmother passed away when he was born, but he always felt that his grandmother was still with him," Monika Li said. The student admitted that he had never mentioned this experience to anyone before, fearing he would be seen as strange. After encountering Taiwanese ghost and deity culture in class, he felt a sense of understanding.
This experience led Monika Li to consider whether Taiwanese culture could be used as teaching material for philosophy classes to guide students in re-examining the topic of "death."
Monika Li's husband is Taiwanese. She observed that, influenced by Christian culture, German society often views death as a private and unspeakable experience. In contrast, even in highly modernized Taiwanese society, the existence of spirits, deities, and ancestors is naturally integrated into daily life, presenting a completely different view of death.
She therefore collaborated with her colleague Lisanne Fritsch to develop teaching materials, using Taiwanese literature, culture, and film to help students understand the diverse facets of death and the views on spirits and deities.
During the semester-long course, students learn about the ghost and deity culture in different ethnic groups and urban/rural backgrounds in Taiwan through Lung Ying-tai's novel "Below the Dawu Mountain" and director Cheng Wei-hao's film "Marry My Dead Body."
Regarding the selection of materials, Monika Li, who is also a German-Chinese translator, said that "Below the Dawu Mountain" was one of her past translation works. The book contains rich legends of spirits and deities, but the stories mostly take place in rural villages and indigenous communities in Pingtung. To present the diverse aspects of Taiwanese culture, she also chose to include "Marry My Dead Body," which is set in an urban background, allowing students to understand the relevant culture from different contexts.
She revealed that before official use, the film was screened for colleagues at the school. Everyone was deeply impressed by the settings of picking up a red envelope and ghost marriage, and they could understand the plot's context even without additional explanation. "Works that tell good stories are excellent cross-cultural teaching materials themselves."
At a time when German young people are popularizing K-pop and Korean dramas, Monika Li hopes to also bring a "Taiwanese death class" to her students. She has provided the complete teaching materials to an open education platform, hoping that more German teachers will introduce Taiwan in their classrooms, allowing students to learn about this island through soft culture and ponder important life lessons.
In addition to "Below the Dawu Mountain," Monika Li has also translated several other Taiwanese literary works, including Ping Lu's "Black Water," Chen Szu-hung's "Ghost Town," and "A Good Day to Bake," which has recently attracted much attention in the international copyright market. (Editor: Chen Yen-chun) 1150430
Stand with facts, every sponsorship you make is a force to protect press freedom.
Download the Central News Agency "First-hand News" APP to stay updated with the latest news.
Text, images, and videos on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.