ABSTRACT
When in October 1970, at the age of 26, Max Sebald took up his original appointment at UEA as Assistant Lecturer in German Literature and Language (in which post he would be required to divide his teaching duties between the two disciplines), it was clear that he greatly relished the opportunity to break the mould in terms of teaching. The contrast with the more traditional redbrick university ethos could not have been greater. As part of this newly established university with its clearly stated motto 'Do Different', the then School of European Studies (EUR) combined such disciplines as Literature, History, Modern Languages, and Comparative Literature. With its highly committed and predominantly young faculty it offered new possibilities in multidisciplinary approaches. At the time teaching was conducted in small group seminars, rather than in larger lecture circuses, with the onus on the seminar leader in question to orchestrate discussions and oversee group activities such as presentations.
