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POLSH 320 POLAND AND EUROPE IN THE 20TH CENTURY: CINEMATIC IMAGES OF
SLN 17654 HISTORICAL TURNING POINTS
T Th 12:20-2:20 Instructor: Chojnowski
5 credits VLPA
This course looks at the most crucial sociopolitical events in Polish history,
especially those that occurred in the second half of the 20th century. During
the WWII conferences in Teheran, Yalta and Potsdam, the Polish question was one
of the most complex issues of international politics, which were then dominated
by the US, the USSR and Great Britain. As a result of Stalin, Roosevelt and
Churchill’s decisions, Poland became part of the Soviet Block, experiencing all
the geopolitical consequences of that change. This new status quo, however, was
never accepted by the democratic and liberal sectors of Polish society.
Significant turning points in Polish history include the 1944 Warsaw Uprising,
protests and strikes (1956, 1970 and 1976), Karol Wojtyla’s election to pope of
the Catholic Church (1978), and the Solidarity movement (1980). These events
inspired the film plots of renowned directors such as Andrzej Wajda, Volker
Schloendorf and Giacomo Battiato. By referring to cinematic works, the class
will have the opportunity to analyze these historical turning points, their film
interpretations, and the artistic means of expression used by particular
filmmakers.
RUSS 120 SCIENCE FICTION IN RUSSIA
SLN 19573 MTWTh 3:30-4:20 Instructor: Alaniz
5 credits VLPA
This course examines the roots and development of science fiction in Russian
literature and cinema, with an emphasis on the Soviet era. Among the questions
explored: what is science fiction? what are the genre’s associations with
utopian and revolutionary politics in Russian culture? what was its relationship
to Socialist Realism? what distinguished Russo-Soviet sci-fi from its Western
counterpart? how did the genre differ from other types of literature? what sort
of readership did it attract? what has been the role of popular culture in
Russia through the centuries? We will read and view works by authors both
well-known and obscure (at least to non-Russians), including the Strugatsky
Bros., Andrei Tarkovsky, Alexander Bogdanov, Mikhail Bulgakov, Alexander
Kazantsev, Alexander Belyaev, Viktor Pelevin, Yevgeny Zamiatin and Ivan Efremov.
All works in English translation.
RUSS 321 RUSSIAN LITERATURE AND CULTURE 1700 TO 1840
SLN 18054 MTWTh 10:30-11:20 Instructor: Diment
5 credits VLPA/I&S
Russian literature, culture and art from late medieval period to early 19th
century. Genres include lives of saints, social tales, autobiographies, memoirs,
plays, short stories, and early novels. Art includes music, painting,
architecture, and fashions. No prerequisites.
SLAV 420 EASTERN EUROPEAN FICTION
SLN 18254 M W 2:30-4:20 Instructor: Crnkovic
5 credits VLPA
Contemporary fiction by Czech, East German, Polish, Hungarian, Baltic, and
Balkan writers from the Former Yugoslavia and Yugoslav Successor States. Topics
include: history of colonization, the imagination of social utopia, socialism
and nationalism, everyday life under communism, cultural identity between East
and West, experimental writing, and new fiction in post- communist Eastern
Europe. Cross-listed with C LIT 320B (SLN 19398).
BCS 401 FIRST-YEAR BOSNIAN/CROATIAN/SERBIAN
SLN 10960 MTWThF 11:30-12:20 Instructor: Belic 5 credits
Comprehensive introduction to spoken and written literary
Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian.
CZECH 401 FIRST-YEAR CZECH
SLN 12399 MTWThF 11:30-12:20 Instructor: Soldanova 5 credits
This three-term sequence (401-402-403), running from Autumn through Spring, is
intended as an intensive introduction to the Czech language. Because of the
small size of the classes, courses move at a faster pace than the normal
introductory language sequence. The general objective is that at the completion
of the one-year sequence students should be able to be creative with the
language at the sentence level, handle basic everyday life situations, read
simple connected texts dealing with basic personal and social needs, write short
simple letters, postcards, diary entries, take down simple notes (e.g., phone
messages), etc. The goal is to move from Novice to Intermediate Low/Mid level on
the ACTFL Proficiency Scale.
RUSS 101 FIRST-YEAR RUSSIAN 5 credits
SLN 18041 MTWThF 8:30-9:20
SLN 18042 MTWThF 9:30-10:20
SLN 18043 MTWThF 9:30-10:20
SLN 18044 MTWThF 10:30-11:20
SLN 18045 MTWThF 10:30-11:20
SLN 18047 MTWTh 5:30-6:50
During this course students will learn the basic skills necessary for
communicating in Russian (speaking, listening, reading, and writing). Students
will also learn about the Russian culture and increase their ability to use
effective strategies for language learning and communication. In addition to
becoming proficient speakers of Russian, students taking this course will become
skilled language learners as they develop a curiosity about Slavic cultures. No
prerequisites.
