The Department of South Asian Languages and Civilizations offers a Bachelor of Arts concentration for students whose primary interests lie in language and literature. Students whose interest in South Asia is more general should consult the concentration listing under South Asian Studies.

Prior to starting the concentration program, students must take South Asian Civilization 200-201-202 and demonstrate competence in a South Asian Language equivalent to one year of study. This will satisfy the civilization studies requirement in general education and meet the College language requirement. The concentration program consists of at least three courses in a South Asian language at or above the intermediate level and six additional courses on South Asia. Students currently may concentrate in Bengali, Hindi, Sanskrit, Tamil, and Urdu. Any courses offered in the department may be used to fulfill the requirement of six additional courses on South Asia, although only three of the six may be language courses; courses offered in other departments may also be used in this respect, upon prior approval of the departmental adviser.

Honors. The decision of the award of honors is not made on the basis of any formal program. Students who wish to compete for honors should consult the departmental adviser at the beginning of their fourth year.

Grading. Students concentrating in South Asian Languages and Civilizations must take a letter grade in all courses used to fulfill concentration requirements. A letter grade must be taken in all 200-level language courses.

200-201-202. Introduction to the Civilization of South Asia I, II, III (=Anthro 240-241-242; SocSci 230-231-232; SoAsia 200-201-202; SoAsia 202=PolSci 260). PQ: Must be taken in sequence. Students who register for the third quarter of the sequence as PolSci 260 do not have to meet the prerequisites. This course fulfills the civilization studies requirement in general education. This sequence introduces students to important textual, institutional, and historical ideas that have constituted "civilization" in modern India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. Topics in the autumn quarter include representations of South Asia as a "Third World" country; Gandhi, Nehru, Jinnah, and Ambedkar's visions of modernity; and India as a consumer society. Topics in the winter quarter include media representations of daily life, both urban and rural, through film and television. Topics in the spring quarter include the politics of religion and gender, especially on matters of "civility." These include Buddhist, Hindu, and Muslim debates about the nation and about gender relations. Original sources include essays, speeches, fiction, film, and television programs. R. Inden, Autumn, Winter; C. Breckenridge, Spring.

205/305. Films in India (=Anthro 206/311, CMS 241, Hist 267/367, SoAsia 205/305). This course considers film-related activities from just before Independence (1947) down to the present. Emphasis is placed on the reconstruction of film-related activities that can be taken as life practices from the standpoint of "elites" and "masses," "middle classes," men and women, people in cities and villages, governmental institutions, businesses, and the "nation." The course relies on people's notions of the everyday, festive days, paradise, arcadia, and utopia to pose questions about how people try to realize their wishes and themselves through film. How film practices articulated with colonialism, nationalism, "socialist development," and, now, "free markets" is a major concern. R. Inden. Winter.

211. Urdu Literature in Translation. This course surveys Urdu literature by utilizing translations of both prose and poetry. Urdu literature is, on the one hand, directly linked with literary traditions in Arabic and Persian and, on the other hand, closely identified with social and political developments within the Muslim community of South Asia. Both these aspects are covered in the course. Texts in English. C. Naim. Spring.

214. Modern Muslim South Asia. We study selected readings in political and cultural histories, autobiographies, novels, short stories, and poetry, focusing on the issues of identity, assimilation, and particularism. C. M. Naim. Autumn.

223-224-225. Intermediate Bengali I, II, III. PQ: SoAsia 222 or equivalent. Selected texts from modern Bengali prose and poetry are read in class. Students are expected to be able to read, with the aid of a dictionary, modern Bengali literature and to speak at the "high intermediate" level by the end of the spring quarter. C. Seely. Autumn, Winter, Spring.

230-231-232. First-Year Hindi I, II, III. This course presents basic grammar of Hindi, the Nagari writing system, conversation practice, oral drill, written exercises, lab work, and simple reading. The Urdu writing system is introduced in the spring quarter. M. Mishra. Autumn, Winter, Spring.

233-234-235. Second-Year Hindi I, II, III. PQ: SoAsia 232 or equivalent. The intermediate Hindi course presupposes a knowledge of the basic grammar of Hindi and requires a fair amount of reading and translating Hindi prose, along with discussion of advanced topics in Hindi grammar. Regular attention is given to conversation and composition. Texts in Hindi. The class meets for three hours a week. Staff. Autumn, Winter, Spring.

240-241-242. Introductory Pali I, II, III. This course is an introduction to the language of the Theravada Buddhist tradition. Essentials of grammar are emphasized, with readings in simpler texts by the end of the first quarter. S. Collins. Autumn, Winter, Spring.

246-247-248. Elementary Tibetan. The Tibetan language, with a history going back more than a thousand years, is one of Asia's major literary languages. At the present time, it is the first language of close to seven million people in the Tibetan regions of China, and in India, Nepal, and Bhutan. This introductory course covers the script and pronunciation, the grammar of the modern Lhasa dialect, and basic reading and speaking skills. Staff. Autumn, Winter, Spring.

250-251-252. Introductory Sanskrit I, II, III. The first half (about fifteen weeks) of the course sequence is spent mastering the reading and writing of the Devanagari script and studying the grammar of the classical Sanskrit language. The remainder of the course sequence is devoted to close analytical reading of simple Sanskrit texts, which are used to reinforce the grammatical study done in the first half of the course. The aim is to bring students to the point where they are comfortably able, with the help of a dictionary, to read simple, narrative Sanskrit. Texts in Sanskrit. L. McCrea. Autumn, Winter, Spring.

253-254-255. Intermediate Sanskrit I, II, III. PQ: SoAsia 252 or equivalent. The course begins with a rapid review and consolidation of grammar learned in the introductory course. Reading selections introduce major Sanskrit genres, including verse and prose narrative, lyric poetry, drama, and the intellectual discourse of religion, philosophy, and the sciences. Analysis of the language and style employed in commentatorial texts and practice in reading such texts is also emphasized. Winter quarter texts in Mahabharata. L. McCrea, Autumn; W. Doniger, Winter; L. McCrea, Spring.

256. Sanskrit Literature in Translation: Writing and Rewriting the Epics (=AncSt 256, SoAsia 256). The great Indian epics, the Mahabharata and Ramayana, fundamentally shaped the Sanskrit tradition both as a literary and as a moral formation. This course introduces the student to the two works themselves, and explores some of the key attempts in later literature to rethink both their style and their substance. S. Pollock. Spring.

257. Selected Topics: The Kamasutra and The Laws of Manu (=DivHR 321, Fndmtl 236, GendSt 258, SoAsia 257). We discuss religion, sex, and politics in ancient India based on readings in the Kamasutra and The Laws of Manu. Texts in English. W. Doniger. Autumn.

260-261-262. Introductory Tamil I, II, III. The grammar of modern Tamil and a large amount of basic vocabulary are acquired through emphasis on both the reading and aural comprehension of graded texts (largely tales, myths, and fictional and historical anecdotes) that provide constant contextual reinforcement of the major aspects of grammar and vocabulary. Written, oral, and language lab exercises focus on ensuring accurate conceptual understanding and efficient functional control of these basics. The course also emphasizes development of basic conversational skills. N. Cutler, Staff. Autumn, Winter, Spring.

263-264-265. Intermediate Tamil I, II, III. PQ: SoAsia 262 or equivalent. Students engage in the following activities that collectively are designed to promote development of reading, writing, listening, and speaking proficiency: (1) use texts such as folk tales, religious narratives, short stories, and newspaper articles to develop efficient reading comprehension and to learn about conceptual areas of cultural importance; (2) work with audiotapes, films, and free conversation to develop listening and conversational skills; and (3) complete composition assignments. N. Cutler, Staff. Autumn, Winter, Spring.

270-271-272. Introductory Urdu I, II, III. This three-quarter sequence presents the basic grammar and vocabulary of Urdu, a language spoken by thirty-five million people in South Asia and one of the official languages of Pakistan. The text used is C. M. Naim's Introductory Urdu and the emphasis is on the written language. C. M. Naim. Autumn, Winter, Spring.

273-274-275. Intermediate Urdu I, II, III. PQ: SoAsia 272 or equivalent. This is a continuation of SoAsia 270-271-272. C. M. Naim. Autumn, Winter, Spring.

282/492. Diasporas: Asian Migration in the Modern World I (=Anthro 228/332, SoAsia 282/492). The United States is known as the land of immigrants. Yet today immigration policy is a controversial issue as established immigrant groups seek to limit who is entitled to citizenship and who is entitled to work. This lecture/discussion course explores the thorny problems of migration, citizenship, and multiculturalism through the lens of Asians in the new face of America. The focus is on the formation of subcultures and subnationalities and on the discourses of freedom that connect India, South Africa, the Caribbean, and the United States. The conditions of migration and its experience are explored through historical writing, novels, film, and the popular media. C. Breckenridge. Winter.

283/493. Diasporas: Asian Migration in the Modern World II (=Anthro 228/332, SoAsia 283/493). This course seeks to explore and debate the dynamics of postcolonial migration, citizenship, and identity through such key concepts as "diaspora," "globalization," "transnationalism," "capitalism," "circulation," and "mediation." It seeks to distinguish the new Asian diasporas of the late twentieth century from forms of colonial migration. We examine this changing historical context in which the modern diaspora of peoples from South Asia, Vietnam, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, and the Philippines has been shaped to form the contested space of Asian America. Materials for this course focus both on the conditions of migration and its experience, and include historical writing, fiction, and film. C. Breckenridge. Spring.

290/390. Introduction to the Study of Tibetan Religion. The religious life of Tibet is diverse and complex, encompassing mediumistic and oracular phenomena, Buddhist scholastic philosophy, systems of tantric yoga, and much more. In this course we begin to explore this rich field, relying on recent anthropological research, scholarship on Tibetan religious history and literature, and selected Tibetan texts in translation. M. Kapstein. Winter.

297. Informal Course. PQ: Students are required to submit the College Reading and Research Course Form. This individual reading course with faculty may be used for topics not requiring use of a South Asian language, for independent study, and by nonconcentrators wishing to explore a South Asian topic. Staff. Autumn, Winter, Spring.

384. Mythologies of Transvestism and Transsexuality (=DivHR 628, GendSt 293, SoAsia 384). Studies in selected Greek and Hindu myths, Shakespeare's Twelfth Night and As You Like It, Virginia Woolf's Orlando, David Henry Hwang's M. Butterfly, Roland Barthes's S/Z, Marjorie Garber's Vested Interests and Vice Versa, Wendy Doniger's Splitting the Difference, and selected operas (Marriage of Figaro, Rosenkavalier, and Arabella) and films (Dead Again, Queen Christina, Some Like It Hot, I Was a Male War Bride, Tootsie, Mrs. Doubtfire, All of Me, and The Crying Game). W. Doniger. Autumn.

College students are encouraged to register for 300-level courses in South Asian Languages and Civilizations. Consult the quarterly Time Schedules for additional course listings.