Russian Studies Courses | Program of Study | Russian Home
Course Offerings:
101-102 Elementary Russian
201 Intermediate Russian: The Irony of Fate
202 Intermediate Russian: The Twelve Chairs
207 Cultural and Economy in the New Russia
253 Duelers, Gamblers, and the Women Who Endured
Them: The Nineteenth-Century Russian Novel (readings and discussion in English)
254 Tyranny, Freedom and the Novel: Russian
Fiction in the Modern Age (readings and discussion in
English)
303 Language and Fiction
306 Advanced Russian
310 Junior Seminar: Self and Society in the 19th
Century
311 Markets and Ballotboxes: Post-Communist
Societies in Transition
312 Junior Seminar: Self and Society in the 20th
Century
314 Dostoevsky and his world
335 Russian Culture and Society
343 The Formation of the Russian Empire
344 Imperial Russia and the Soviet Revolution
359 Russia and its World
412 Senior Seminar
413 Senior Seminar: The Literature of the Gulag
414 Senior Seminar: The Latest Russian Literature
490 Honors
291, 391, 491 Independent Studies
The Moscow Programs:
151Y Intensive Russian
152Y Intensive Russian (continuation)
251-2Y Intermediate Russian
351-2Y Advanced Russian
451-2Y Advanced Russian Language Practicum
321Y Environmental Sustainability after Communism
326Y Russian Civilization, Past and Present
328Y Russian Society in Transition
492Y Supervised Internships
101-102 Elementary Russian
I. Helfant
This course combines an overview of Russian grammar with an
emphasis on classroom communication. We follow the video
adventures of a young American photographer and his Russian
friends in post-perestroika Moscow. An interactive CD-rom program
supplements the video- and text-based portions of the course. By
the end of the year, students should be able to converse
effectively in a variety of everyday situations in Russian.
Degree credit only when both terms are completed.
253 Duelers, Gamblers, and the Women Who Endured
Them: The Nineteenth-Century Russian Novel (readings and discussion in English)
Fall course
I. Helfant
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In this course we will read works in a variety of genres, concentrating upon the canonical "greats" (Pushkin, Lermontov, Gogol, Turgenev, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, and Chekhov) but adding a sampling of writers you might otherwise never encounter, including neglected women writers. Our discussions will emphasize the relationship between literary text and cultural context. We will pay particular attention to the cultural construction of gender. We will also explore Russia's self-consciousness in relation to Western Europe. A range of theoretical and critical texts will inform our analyses, as will cinematic adaptions of certain works. All works will be read in translation, but a FLAC section will be offered for students who would like to read some works in the original Russian. (Click on the course title for a more complete description.) |
254 Tyranny, Freedom, and the Novel: Russian
Fiction in the Modern Age (readings and discussion in
English)
Spring course
A.S. Nakhimovsky
This course looks at twentieth-century Russian literature as it
confronts the intense pressures of the Russian historical
experience. Readings include outstanding works by Chekhov, Bely,
Babel, Bulgakov, Grossman, Nabokov, Erofeev, and others. We
concentrate on a close textual analysis of individual works with
an eye to their place in a trying political climate. The course
is open to qualified first-year students with permission.
303 Language and Fiction: In Stalin's Time
A. S. Nakhimovsky
This course has two aims: (1) to strengthen
the students’ command of written and spoken Russian, and (2)
to read and discuss some important works of Russian fiction and
occasionally poetry. One half of the coursework is devoted to
advanced Russian grammar, including modal verbs, aspectual usage
and prefixation. While the reading topic varies from year to
year, the focus is either on a single writer (Pushkin, Tolstoy,
Chekhov) or on a group of writers working within the same
cultural and historical context. The course is conducted in
Russian. Prerequisite: RUSS
202 or permission
of the instructor.
306 Advanced Russian
H. Khan; I. Helfant
Grammar, discussion, and writing in Russian. Texts
will include fiction, essays, newspaper articles, and film and
will center around a topic of contemporary or historical
interest, to vary from year to year. Prerequisite: Russian 202 or
permission of the instructor.Prerequisites:
RUSS 303 or permission of instructor.
310 Junior Seminar: Self and Society in the
19th Century
I. Helfant
An exploration of significant fictional,
biographical and poetic texts and their role in defining the
individual's place in society. Readings will be drawn from
Pushkin, Gogol, Lermontov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, Fet, Dostoevsky,
Baratynsky, and others. Readings in Russian. Prerequisite: RUSS 202 or permission of the
instructor.
312 Junior Seminar: Self and Society in the 20th century. A.S.Nakhimovsky. An examination of major texts (fiction, biography, poetry) as responses to (and creators of) specific social and historical configurations. Readings will be drawn from Chekhov; Mayakovsky, Akhmatova, Osip Mandelstam; Evgeniya Ginsburg, Nadezhda Mandelstam, Shalamov; Trifonov. Readings in Russian. Prerequisite: RUSS 202 or permission of the instructor.
314 Dostoevsky and his
World
I. Helfant; H. Khan
This course is an intensive study of the
major novels and selected short works of Fyodor Dostoevsky, and
of the various critical approaches that have been developed to
enrich our understanding of Dostoevsky’s work. The course is
conducted in English, but a FLAC component is offered for those
who wish to read some Dostoevsky in the original. (Click on the
course title for a more complete description.)
Russian 314X Dostoevsky and his
world, FLAC.
I. Helfant; H. Khan
Students will read and discuss selections from Dostoevsky in
Russian. Prerequisite: Russian 202 or permission of the
instructor.
412 Senior Seminar
Staff
This seminar examines the works of one or more Russian writers,
with attention both to textual analysis and to the larger
historical context. A background in Russian literature and
Russian history is assumed. Primary readings are in Russian with
secondary and broader reading in English.The seminar focuses in
different years on such authors as Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy,
Chekhov, Nabokov and Bulgakov. Qualified students may repeat it
for credit. Prerequisite: RUSS 310 or 312.
414 Senior Seminar: The Latest Russian
Literature
Staff
This course examines various works written over the past two
decades and (for the most part) available only in Russian. The
seminar involves both close textual analysis and a consideration
of the special interplay between politics and culture in the
setting. A background in modern Russian literature and in Soviet
history is assumed. Prerequisite: RUSS 310
or 312, or permission of instructor.
490 Honors
Staff
This provides outstanding seniors with the opportunity to work on a
senior thesis with the guidance of Russian Studies faculty. Typically one
faculty member will serve as the student's primary advisor and another as a
secondary reader, but some highly disciplinary projects may justify true dual
advising of the thesis.
152Y Intensive Russian (continuation)
Continues introduction to the Russian language in a classroom
environment. Emphasis is upon consolidation and mastery of
grammatical structures and upon extending facility in verbal and
written communication. This course meets three times per week.
Prerequisite: RUSS 151.
RUSS 326Y Russian Civilization, Past and Present
Study group director.
The aim of this course is to provide students with a background in
Russian history and culture that will allow them to place their study group
experiences in an intellectual framework and provide the basis for further
study. Specific topics and readings will vary from year to year, depending
upon the expertise and interests of the current study group director. Past
courses have focused upon various aspects of Russian culture, including literature,
history, philosophy, music, the arts, the mass media and social
or political relations. This course is typically cross-listed and can
count for credit towards the program of the department in which the director
teaches.
RUSS/POSC 328Y Russian Politics, Economy, and Society
B. Kagarlitsky
This course provides students with an in-depth
understanding of Russian society today and the changes it is going through. It
does that by first looking at key events in Russian history (going back over
1000 years) which have come together to shape social and economic structures in
critical ways. Although focused on the dynamics of domestic factors (such as
natural resources, technology and industry, the class system, Tsarist
policies, reform and revolutionary movements), this course situates Russia
within a Eurasia and ultimately the world system and shows how even far-off
changes (such as the colonization of the Americas) could have momentous effects.
Dr. Boris Kagarlitsky is a Moscow-based political sociologist, political
activist and leader, and the widely-known author of more than 20 books published
in English and other languages.
492 Supervised Internships
Students have the opportunity to work at unpaid, supervised jobs
in various Russian non-governmental organizations or in certain
commercial enterprises (such as law offices, advertising agencies,
media outlets and others) belonging either to Russian firms or to
foreign companies doing business in Moscow. Internships are supervised by the
study group director, who helps with solving
problems and oversees the completion of the project upon which the course grade is based.
Generally internships are graded under the S/U system. Prerequisite: RUSS 151Y
or previous Russian language study. This course is also listed as
POSC 492.
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151Y Intensive Russian