FNDL 20200. Dostoevsky's Brothers Karamazov. 100 Units.

We will read and interpret The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoevsky. Among major themes are the nature of human guilt in relation to God and society; the problem of evil, and how the existence of evil in the world affects religious beliefs; the pros and cons of “freedom,” and what the word might have meant to Dostoevsky; and love.

Instructor(s): R. Bird and S. Meredith     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Required of new Fundamentals majors; open to others with consent of instructors.
Note(s): Slavic and Fundamentals majors get first priority
Equivalent Course(s): RLST 28206,RUSS 26204

HIST 29635. History Collquium: Imperial Europe. 100 Units.

This colloquium examines the inner workings of modern Europe's imperial societies, drawing on case studies of the empires that maintained overseas colonies as well as the continent’s overland powers (the Russian, Austro-Hungarian, and Ottoman empires). It considers technologies of imperial rule as well as everyday life in imperial societies, asking what kinds of political cultures, communities, and identities empires have produced. The class will be run in a workshop format: we will devote Tuesday classes to discussing exemplary studies of imperial societies, and we will devote Thursday classes to discussing historiographical approaches and research techniques. Over the course of the quarter, students will be expected to design and carry out an original research project. Please come to the first day of class having read and ready to discuss Jane Burbank and Frederick Cooper, Empires in World History: Power and the Politics of Difference (2010).

Instructor(s): F. Hillis     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Priority Registration for 3rd year History Majors

HIST 43801. Russia and the World. 100 Units.

Interrogating the image of Russia as an inward-looking power that has pursued its own historical path, this seminar will examine Russia’s interactions with the outside world in the early modern and modern periods. Topics to be considered include: Russian participation in international trade and diplomacy, the role of European and Asian cultures in Russian intellectual life, Russia’s role in migration and colonization processes, the status of minorities in the Russian empire and the Soviet Union, and Russia’s role in the production of transnational ideologies. This is a reading-intensive seminar taught at the graduate level; it is open to undergraduates with solid knowledge of Russian/Soviet history who have obtained the instructor’s permission.

Instructor(s): F. Hillis     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): This course is open to undergraduates with solid knowledge of Russian/Soviet history who have obtained the instructor’s permission.
Note(s): Knowledge of Russian is not necessary.

PLSC 28100. Russian Politics. 100 Units.

One of the major world powers, Russia commands a nuclear arsenal and vast energy reserves. This course will help us to understand Russia’s political development which is inextricable from the country’s history and economy. After reviewing some milestones in Soviet history, we shall focus on the developments since the fall of the ‘evil empire.’ Political institutions, economy, foreign policy, and social change will all receive some attention. (C)

Instructor(s): S. Markus     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PLSC 38100

RUSS 10100-10200-10300. First-Year Russian I-II-III.

This course introduces modern Russian to students who would like to speak Russian or to use the language for reading and research. All four major communicative skills (i.e., reading, writing, listening comprehension, speaking) are stressed. Students are also introduced to Russian culture through readings, videos, and class discussions. This yearlong course prepares students for the College Language Competency Exam, for continued study of Russian in second-year courses, and for study or travel abroad in Russian-speaking countries. Conversation practice is held twice a week.

RUSS 10400-10500-10600. Russian through Pushkin I-II-III.

This literary and linguistic approach to Russian allows students to learn the language by engaging classic Russian poetic texts (e.g., Pushkin’s The Bronze Horseman), as well as excerpts from Eugene Onegin and selections from Pushkin’s shorter poems and prose works. Although the focus is on reading Russian, all four major communicative skills (i.e., reading, writing, listening comprehension, speaking) are stressed, preparing students for the College Language Competency Exam and for continued study of Russian in second-year courses. Conversation practice is held twice a week.

RUSS 20100-20200-20300. Second-Year Russian I-II-III.

This course continues RUSS 10100-10200-10300; it includes review and amplification of grammar, practice in reading, elementary composition, and speaking and comprehension. Systematic study of word formation and other strategies are taught to help free students from excessive dependence on the dictionary and develop confidence in reading rather than translating. Readings are selected to help provide historical and cultural background. Conversation practice is held twice a week.

RUSS 20400-20500-20600. Russian through Literary Readings: Second Year I-II-III.

This course is a continuation of Russian through Pushkin. Second-year grammar, as well as oral and reading skills, are strengthened through intensive reading of important poetic and prose texts from the Russian classics. Conversation practice is held twice a week.

RUSS 20702-20802-20902. Third-Year Russian through Culture I-II-III.

This course, which is intended for third-year students of Russian, covers various aspects of Russian grammar in context and emphasizes the four communicative skills (i.e., reading, writing, listening comprehension, speaking) in a culturally authentic context. Excerpts from popular Soviet/Russian films and clips from Russian television news reports are shown and discussed in class. Classes conducted in Russian; some aspects of grammar explained in English. Drill practice is held twice a week.

RUSS 21002-21102-21202. Fourth-Year Russian through Short Story I-II-III.

This course treats some difficult issues of grammar, syntax, and stylistics through reading and discussing contemporary Russian short stories. This kind of reading exposes students to contemporary Russian culture, society, and language. Vocabulary building is also emphasized. Classes conducted in Russian. Conversation practice is held twice a week.

RUSS 21302-21402-21502. Advanced Russian through Media I-II-III.

This course, which is designed for fifth-year students of Russian, covers various aspects of Russian stylistics and discourse grammar in context. It emphasizes the four communicative skills (i.e., reading, writing, listening comprehension, speaking) in culturally authentic context. Clips from Russian/Soviet films and television news reports are shown and discussed in class. Classes conducted in Russian. Conversation practice is held twice a week.

RUSS 21600. Russian for Heritage Learners. 100 Units.

This course examines the major aspects of Russian grammar and stylistics essential for heritage learners. Students engage in close readings and discussions of short stories by classic and contemporary Russian authors (e.g., Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Chekhov, Platonov, Bulgakov, Erofeev, Tolstaya), with special emphasis on their linguistic and stylistic differences. All work in Russian.

Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Ability to speak Russian fluently required; formal training in Russian not required

RUSS 22302. War and Peace. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): W. Nickell     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): CMLT 22301,CMLT 32301,ENGL 28912,ENGL 32302,FNDL 27103,HIST 23704,RUSS 32302

RUSS 25500. Russian Literature from Classicism to Romanticism. 100 Units.

This course offers a survey of the main literary movements, schools, and genres during the period from the 1760s to the 1830s.  We will explore the main works of Russian new-classical, pre-romantic and romantic authors, including Mikhail Lomonossov, Gavriil Derzhavin, Denis Fonvizin, Nikolai Novikov, Anns Labzina, Nikolai Karamzin, Aleksandr Radischev, Vassilii Pushkin, Denis Davydov, Vassilii Zhukovskii, Alexandr Pushkin, Mikhail Lermontov and Vladimir Odoevskii.  Most texts are available in Russian as well as in translation.  However, students are encouraged to read all texts in Russian.

Instructor(s): Lina Steiner     Terms Offered: Autumn 2012
Prerequisite(s): Two years of Russian language
Equivalent Course(s): RUSS 35500

RUSS 25600. Realism in Russia. 100 Units.

From the 1830s to the 1890s, most Russian prose writers and playwrights were either engaged in the European-wide cultural movement known as "realistic school" which set for itself the task of engaging with social processes from the standpoint of political ideologies. The ultimate goal of this course is to distill more precise meanings of "realism," "critical realism,"and "naturalism" in nineteenth-century Russian through analysis of works by Gogol, Turgenev, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Aleksandr Ostrovsky, Goncharov, Saltykov-Shchedrin, and Kuprin. Texts in English and the original. Optional Russian-intensive section offered.

Instructor(s): W. Nickell     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): HUMA 24000,RUSS 35600

RUSS 25700. Russian Literature from Modernism to Post-Modernism. 100 Units.

Given the importance of the written word in Russian culture, it is no surprise that writers were full-blooded participants in Russia's tumultuous recent history, which has lurched from war to war, and from revolution to revolution. The change of political regimes has only been outpaced by the change of aesthetic regimes, from realism to symbolism, and then from socialist realism to post-modernism. We sample the major writers, texts, and literary doctrines, paying close attention to the way they responded and contributed to historical events. This course counts as the third part of the survey of Russian literature. Texts in English.

Instructor(s): Robert Bird     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): HUMA 24100,RUSS 35700

RUSS 29600. Pale Fire. 100 Units.

Instructor(s): Malynne Sternstein     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 25311

SLAV 22000. Old Church Slavonic. 100 Units.

This course introduces the language of the oldest Slavic texts. It begins with a brief historical overview of the relationship of Old Church Slavonic to Common Slavic and the other Slavic languages. This is followed by a short outline of Old Church Slavonic inflectional morphology. The remainder of the course is spent in the reading and grammatical analysis of original texts. Texts in Cyrillic or Cyrillic transcription of the original Glagolitic.

Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Knowledge of another Slavic language or good knowledge of another one or two old Indo-European languages. SLAV 20100 recommended.
Equivalent Course(s): LGLN 25100,LGLN 35100,SLAV 32000

SOSC 24000-24100. Introduction to Russian Civilization I-II.

This two-quarter sequence provides an interdisciplinary introduction to Russian civilization. The first quarter covers the ninth century to the 1880s; the second quarter continues on through the post-Soviet period. Working closely with a variety of primary sources—from oral legends to film and music, from political treatises to literary masterpieces—we will track the evolution of Russian civilization over the centuries and through radically different political regimes. Topics to be discussed include: the influence of Byzantine, Mongol-Tataric, and Western culture in Russian civilization; forces of change and continuity in political, intellectual and cultural life; the relationship between center and periphery; systems of social and political legitimization; and symbols and practices of collective identity. This sequence meets the general education requirement in civilization studies. Taking these courses in sequence is recommended but not required. This sequence is offered in alternate years.

SOSC 29700. Independent Study in the Social Sciences. 100 Units.

Terms Offered: Autumn, Winter, Spring
Prerequisite(s): Consent of instructor and senior adviser
Note(s): Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form.

SOSC 29900. BA Paper in Russian Civilization. 100 Units.

This is a reading and research course for independent study related to BA research and BA paper preparation.

Terms Offered: Autumn, Winter, Spring, Summer
Prerequisite(s): Consent of instructor and undergraduate program chair
Note(s): Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form.