Select one of the following characters to “embody.” Let Professor Muellner know by email ASAP which one you would like to work with; be sure to have a second choice in case your first pick is already assigned.

1. Marthe Müller – art student, from Cologne, moves to Berlin at age 29; loses younger brother in war
2. Anna – lesbian art student, early 20s, not originally from Berlin; prefers Berlin and new circle of friends to family “back home;” frequents various clubs in Berlin like “El Dorado,” “Noise and Smoke,” “The New World”
3. Polla – nude model at the art school and cabaret performer at “Underbelly” – mid 30s
4. Kurt Severing – journalist for Weltbühne (and other publications), roughly 39
5. David Schwartz – young teenager; Jewish; leftist; harassed by neighborhood boys; lives with his family (father who is an antique/junk dealer); Houdini is his hero
6. Silvia Braun – teenage daughter of Gudrun Braun; due to “financial hardship,” moves out with mother and baby sister Elga for shelter at Salvation Army, leaving politically right-leaning father Otto and little brother Heinz behind; eventually housed with mother/Elga in Worker’s Union Housing project.
7. Otto Fritz (KPD communist member, works at newspaper, delivers food, etc. jack-of-all trades), befriends Gudrun, roughly 40
8. Lucia Wolzendorf – Italian, married to Franz Wolzendorf, has lived in Berlin for 10 years (brought to Berlin by Franz from war-torn Italy after WWI), runs pension where Martha lives, in her 40s
9. Herr Franz Wolzendorf – veteran of WWI; enlisted officer working under Marthe Müller’s father in regiment; runs pension/apartment rentals with his wife Lucia, in his 40s
10. “Mary Baker” (fictitious addition to graphic novel) – African American singer who moves to Berlin for opportunity and to escape racism of U.S.; in her late-20s, trained classical musician, she finds work in various clubs in Berlin, and is working her way to perform with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. Befriends art students through Polla Mosse.
11. Richard Blunck – art student, mid-20s; haunted by surrealist visions and fan of Expressionism (though surrounded by New Objectivity); looks like Otto Dix; carries copy of Franz Masereel’s Passionate Journey in pocket

Constructing Your Avatar

Now that you have been assigned / selected an Avatar, you can begin constructing your character!

You have only been given a few details of your character’s life. Now you can begin creating the rest and filling in their story, giving you creative control and freedom over the story of your character’s life. Some details I’ve given you and you cannot change, but others are open to your scholarly imagination – so long as the details and experiences are historically plausible. Keep in mind, plausible is not the same thing as possible. Plausible means that you have researched and can prove that your Avatar’s historical development and experience would have probably happened – or even that it is likely to have occurred. You will know that something is plausible because you have found authentic, collegiate-level, historical research that indicates that someone from your Avatar’s place/status/gender/background/age also experienced something similar. You cannot create your avatar out of thin air or make up something because it sounds good. Your Avatar’s experiences have to be based in accurate historical reality and national context. Some of your Avatar’s details you know from the description you’ve been given, but some of it you will have to make up yourself.

Sketch out the following information for your Avatar to help get started:

Name:

Birthday:

Birthplace:

Age:

Citizen of which nation:

Ethnic heritage:

Native language:

Occupation:

Level of Education:

Immediate Family members:

Social status / class rank:

Fears / concerns / dreams:

Hobbies / goals:

Significant Details that might impact his/her life choices: