Courses

Serves as an introduction to the "Frankfurt School" and Critical Theory with particular emphasis upon rationality, social psychology, cultural criticism, and aesthetics. Through close readings of key texts by members of the school (Horkheimer, Benjamin, Adorno, Habermas) we will work toward a critical understanding of the analytical tools they developed and consider their validity. Taught in English. GRMN 4051, 5051 and COML 5051 are the same course.

Enhances heritage student competence and performance in Russian language. The course offers intensive review of Russian grammar and focuses on developing advanced reading, writing and translation skills. Readings are selected from a wide range of contemporary writings that reflect current issues in Russia. Recommended prereq., RUSS 3060, 4010 or equivalent. Credit not granted for this course and RUSS 4020.

Selected topics in Russian literature, film, art, and music. May be repeated up to 9 total credit hours when topic varies. Taught in English.

Examines Soviet society and culture of Stalin period (1929-1953). Great Terror and resistance, communist ideology and shady commercial practices, musical comedy and Gulag, political intrigues and show trials, and many other aspects of Stalinism will be discussed. Course materials include historical studies, documents, memoirs, diaries, novels and films of or about the period. Taught in English. Recommended prereqs., RUSS 4821, 2221, 2211. Approved for arts and sciences core curriculum: ideals and values.

Focuses on the critical analysis of the Russian cultural discourse through Russian idioms. Taught in Russian. Prereq., RUSS 2020 or instructor consent. Same as GSLL 5230.

Historical and systematic study of principal themes of Marxist thought, from its Hegelian origins to its contemporary varieties, emphasizing the works of Marx and Engels. Taught in English. Prereq., 12 hours of GRMN or PHIL course work or instructor consent. Same as PHIL 4250. Prerequisites: Restricted to students with 57-180 credits (Juniors or Seniors).

Surveys seminal essays from Frege to the present on the philosophy of language. Taught in English.

Introduces students to debates surrounding migration and race in contemporary Germany. Emphasis on reading texts in context using tools of cultural studies, integrating analyses of gender, race, nation, and sexuality. Texts may include film, literature, television, magazine images, etc. Topics include: questioning "multiculturalism," self-representation, integration, Islam, citizenship, violence, public space, youth culture, racism and nationalism. Taught in English. Same as GRMN 5301 and WMST 4301. Approved for arts and sciences core curriculum: human diversity.

Surveys the development of American-Russian cultural relations from the second half of the 18th century to the present. Examines the character and significance of Russian-American relations in social, intellectual, artistic, and other spheres from a comparative perspective. Taught in English. Approved for arts and sciences core curriculum: historical context or U.S. context. Prerequisites: Restricted to students with 57-180 credits (Juniors or Seniors).

German literature from 1770 to 1830. Close examination of representative texts from the periods of Sturm und Drang, classicism, and romanticism. Emphasizes philosophical and social background. Prereq., GRMN 3020 or instructor consent.

Intensive study of a particular literary period, author, or genre. Secondary sources are used. Course content differs each time. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours when topic varies. Prereq., GRMN 3020 or instructor consent.

Examines the experience of Russian Jews from the late 19th century to the present through fiction and films dealing with challenges of co-existence of Jews and their neighbors; Bolshevik Revolution, Stalinism, Holocaust, post-Stalin period; place of Jews as individuals and a minority within Russian and Soviet society; and emigration to America and elsewhere at the turn of the century. Taught in English.Recommended prereq., any 1000 or 2000-level undergraduate literature course. Same as JWST 4401. Approved for arts and sciences core curriculum: literature and the arts.

Explores major fictional and dramatic texts of the great Russian writer Nikolai Vasil'evich Gogol (1809-52) -- "The strangest prose-poet Russia ever produced" (Nabokov). Works will be analyzed in the context of Western and Russian Romanticism. Relevant nonfiction texts will also be introduced when appropriate. Class will be run largely as group discussion, with necessary historical and critical background provided. Taught in English. Same as GSLL 5421.

Focuses on close reading of major novels and other works by Dostoevsky, one of the most important psychological novelists in modern literature, a profound religious thinker, and the greatest crime novelist in the world. Taught in English. Same as GSLL 5431.

Examines the development of Tolstoy's thought and literary style through study of the novel War and Peace and short works from different periods of Tolstoy's writing. Taught in English. Recommended prereq., some experience with college-level expository writing. Same as GSLL 5441.

Required of students who desire the recommendation of the department for secondary school teaching positions. For student teaching in German, see EDUC 4712 under the School of Education. Prerequisites: Restricted to School of Education (EDUC) undergraduates only

Analyzes the life and creative works of the author of some of the funniest and some of the gloomiest stories in Russian literature. Examines Chekhov's major plays that laid the foundation for modernist theatre. Taught in English. Same as GSLL 5451.

Part of the supervised student teaching in a secondary school required for state certification to teach German. Prerequisites: Restricted to School of Education (EDUC) undergraduates only

Examines issues facing women in 20th-21st century Russia, based on study of current events, history, literature, posters and film. Studies images of women as amazons and rebels, salon hostesses and poets, New Soviet Women and women in combat, prostitutes and mothers. Taught in English. Recommended prereq., lower level literature or culture course. Same as WMST 4471 and GSLL 5471. Approved for arts and sciences core curriculum: human diversity.

Provides a broader basis for the work of literature, viewing it from various cultural perspectives. Specific content of course is defined by the instructor. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours when topic varies. Taught in English.

Emphasizes Nietzsche's major writings from 1872 to 1888 with particular attention to the critique of Western values. Includes a systematic exploration of doctrines, concepts, and ideas leading to the values of creativity. Taught in English. Same as HUMN 4502. Approved for arts and sciences core curriculum: ideals and values. Prerequisites: Restricted to students with 27-180 credits (Sophomores, Juniors or Seniors) only.

Provides the opportunity to examine major issues in German philosophical, social, and religious thought from the end of German idealism to existentialism and critical theory. Emphasizes the relationship between ideas and social and political action. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours when topic varies. Taught in English.

Systematic study of the Faust motif in Western literature, with major emphasis on Faust I and II by Goethe and Thomas Mann's Doctor Faustus. Taught in English. Same as GRMN 5504, COML 5504 and HUMN 4504. Approved for arts and sciences core curriculum: literature and the arts.

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