Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies

RES 100Y Elementary Russian (5 Credits)

The four-skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) introduction to the Russian language with the focus on communicative skills development. Major structural topics include pronunciation and intonation, all six cases, all tenses and verbal aspect. By the end of the course, students are able to sustain conversation on basic topics, write short compositions, read short authentic texts, as well as develop an understanding of Russian culture through watching, discussing and writing on movies, short stories, folk tales and poems. This is a full-year course. Yearlong courses cannot be divided at midyear with credit for the first semester.

Fall, Spring, Annually

RES 126 Nineteenth-Century Russian Literature: Madmen, Conmen and Government Clerks (4 Credits)

Populated with many unique and eccentric characters--from revolutionary socialists to runaway human noses--nineteenth-century Russian literature displays a startling experimentation and innovation that advanced Russia to the vanguard of Western literature. Encompassing poetry, fiction and journalism, this survey explores how authors such as Pushkin, Gogol, Turgenev, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy and Chekhov positioned literature at the center of public discourse, as a venue for addressing important philosophical, political, religious and social issues, including gender and class relations; personal and national identity; and the role of the writer in public life. Conducted in English. No previous knowledge of Russian is required. Literature

Fall, Spring, Alternate Years

RES 127 Manuscripts Don't Burn: Literature and Dissent Under Stalin (4 Credits)

Explores how Russian literary culture responded to the tumult and upheaval of the twentieth century, an epoch encompassing the Bolshevik Revolution, two World Wars, the ascent of Stalin, and the decline and collapse of the Soviet Union, as well as unprecedented aesthetic innovations. While spanning key artistic movements of the period (including the avant-garde and other modernist tendencies, Socialist Realism, conceptualism and postmodernism), the survey focuses on Stalinism and its aftermath, considering how Soviet writers developed strategies of dissent and protest in literature. Conducted in English, no previous knowledge of Russian required.

Fall, Spring, Alternate Years

RES 221 Intermediate Russian I (4 Credits)

The first half of a two-semester sequence. Students practice all four language modalities: reading, listening, writing and speaking. The course incorporates a variety of activities that are based on a range of topics, text types and different socio-cultural situations. Authentic texts (poems, short stories, TV programs, films, songs and articles) are used to create the context for reviewing and expanding on grammar, syntax and vocabulary. Prerequisite: RES 100Y or equivalent. Foreign Language

Fall

RES 222 Intermediate Russian II (4 Credits)

The second half of a two-semester sequence. Students continue to practice all four language modalities: reading, listening, writing and speaking. The course incorporates a variety of activities that are based on a range of topics, text types and different socio-cultural situations. Authentic texts (poems, short stories, TV programs, films, songs and articles) are used to create the context for reviewing and expanding on grammar, syntax and vocabulary. Prerequisite: RES 221 or equivalent. Foreign Language

Spring

RES 264/ WLT 264 Dostoevsky (4 Credits)

Offered as RES 264 and WLT 264. Focuses on close reading of the major novels, short fiction and journalism of Dostoevsky, one of the greatest writers in modern literature. Combining penetrating psychological insight with the excitement of crime fiction, Dostoevsky’s works explore profound political, philosophical and religious issues, in a Russia populated by students and civil servants, saints and revolutionaries, writers and madmen. In a close reading of his fiction and nonfiction, the class traces the development of Dostoevsky’s style and ideas, considering how these texts engage with issues specific to nineteenth-century Russia, as well as the broader traditions of European literature and intellectual history. In translation. Literature

Fall, Spring, Variable

RES 273/ WLT 273 Cosmic Cold War: Russian and Western Science Fiction in Political Context (4 Credits)

Offered as RES 273 and WLT 273. How did the "final frontier" of space become a "front" in the Cold War? As the US and USSR competed in the Space Race, science fiction reflected political discourses in literature, film, visual art and popular culture. This course explores Russian and Western science fiction in the contexts of twentieth-century geopolitics and artistic modernism (and postmodernism), examining works by Bogdanov, Kubrick, Tarkovsky, Butler, Haraway, Pelevin and others. The survey considers science fiction’s utopian content and political function, as well as critical and dystopian modes of the genre. No prerequisites or knowledge of Russian required; first-year students are welcome to enroll. Enrollment limited to 40. Arts; Historical Studies; Literature

Fall, Spring, Variable

RES 275 Avant-Garde as Lifestyle: Cinema and Socialism in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe (4 Credits)

Explores the avant-garde film traditions of Eastern and Central Europe, including works from the Soviet Union, Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia. The course focuses on how avant-garde filmmakers engaged with the socialist project in the USSR and Eastern Bloc, and its call for new forms, sites and life practices. The course investigates how avant-garde cinema represents everyday life amidst the public and private spaces of socialism. In approaching the relationship between cinema and space, students consider examples of architecture (Constructivist, Functionalist, Brutalist), as well as theoretical writings by and about the avant-garde. Conducted in English, no prerequisites. Arts; Social Science; Historical Studies

Fall, Spring, Variable

RES 300lt Seminar: Advanced Topics in Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies- Lev Tolstoy and the Narrative Shape of History (4 Credits)

The fiction of Tolstoy is unrivaled in its psychological insight, lyrical beauty and epic scope, prompting Russian author Isaac Babel to claim that when he read Tolstoy, he felt as if the world was writing itself. This course examines works spanning Tolstoy’s literary career, from his early writings to his late stories and essays, including War and Peace, his monumental account of the Napoleonic Wars. Analysis of Tolstoy’s fiction focuses on the relationship between history and literary form, and the way Tolstoy’s narrative technique, illuminated by Russian Formalist literary theory, enriched his representation of human agency and subjectivity. Priority given to RES majors. Restrictions: Juniors and seniors only. Enrollment limited to 15. Instructor permission required. Arts; Historical Studies; Literature

Fall, Spring, Variable

RES 331 Advanced Russian (4 Credits)

This course aims at expansion of students' vocabulary and improvement of reading, writing and speaking skills. The course is intended for students who have completed at least four semesters of Russian or the equivalent. Heritage learners of Russian (those who speak the language) also benefit from the course. With a strong emphasis on integrating vocabulary in context, this course aims to help students advance their lexicon and grammar, increase fluency and overcome speaking inhibitions. The class reads and discusses a variety of texts in the original Russian including articles, short stories and poems. Prerequisite: RES 222 or equivalent. Instructor permission required. Foreign Language

Fall

RES 332 Advanced Russian (4 Credits)

A continuation of RES 331. Prerequisite: RES 331 or equivalent. Foreign Language

Spring

RES 341 Fourth-Year Russian through Culture, Literature, and History I (4 Credits)

This course is designed for advanced students of Russian and heritage speakers seeking to improve their proficiency in the language. The course prioritizes the development of communicative skills in speech, writing, reading, and general cultural competency. The examination of cultural, social, and historical issues, as well as study of advanced syntax, grammar, register, and style, is based on authentic texts from a variety of sources, including fiction, journalism, memoirs, historical documents, and cinema. The overarching focus and materials may change from semester to semester, depending on enrollment and student interests. Taught in Russian. Prerequisite: RES 332 or equivalent. Instructor permission required. (E) Foreign Language

Fall

RES 342 Fourth-Year Russian through Culture, Literature, and History II (4 Credits)

Continued work on the improvement of language proficiency for advanced students of Russian and heritage speakers. This course prioritizes the development of communicative skills in speech, writing, reading, and general cultural competency. The examination of cultural, social, and historical issues, as well as study of advanced syntax, grammar, register, and style, is based on authentic texts from a variety of sources, including fiction, journalism, memoirs, historical documents, and cinema. The overarching focus and materials may change from semester to semester, depending on enrollment and student interests. Taught in Russian. Prerequisite: RES 332 or equivalent. Instructor permission required. (E) Foreign Language

Spring

RES 400 Special Studies (1-4 Credits)

Instructor permission required.

Fall, Spring

RES 430D Honors Thesis (4 Credits)

Honors Project. 4 credits if taken as a fall semester course, 8 if taken as a yearlong course. Department permission required.

Fall, Spring