Course Offerings
RUSS 101 – Elementary Russian (4 Credit Hours)
Grading Restriction: A, B, C, No Credit grading only.
RUSS 102 – Elementary Russian (4 Credit Hours)
Grading Restriction: A, B, C, No Credit grading only.
(RE) Prerequisite(s): 101 with grade of C or better.
RUSS 201 – Intermediate Russian (4 Credit Hours)
Satisfies General Education Requirement: (CC)
(RE) Prerequisite(s): 102 with grade of C or better.
RUSS 202 – Intermediate Russian (4 Credit Hours)
Satisfies General Education Requirement: (CC)
(RE) Prerequisite(s): 201.
RUSS 221 – Rebels, Dreamers, and Fools: The Outcast in 19th Century Russian Literature * (3 Credit Hours)
Texts in English translation. Writing-emphasis course.
Satisfies General Education Requirement: (AH) (WC)
Credit Restriction: No foreign language credit.
(RE) Prerequisite(s): English 101 and 102.
RUSS 222 – Heaven or Hell: Utopias and Dystopias in 20th-Century Russian Literature * (3 Credit Hours)
Texts in English translation. Writing-emphasis course.
Satisfies General Education Requirement: (AH)(WC)
Credit Restriction: No foreign language credit.
(RE) Prerequisite(s): ENGL 102, ENGL 132, ENGL 290, or ENGL 298.
RUSS 271 – Putin’s Russia and the Art of Propaganda (3 Credit Hours)
This course explores the interconnections between news media, popular culture, governance, and propaganda in post-Soviet Russia. We will investigate the various factors that contribute to the production of news media in Russia and consider the key historical and cultural influences upon popular attitudes toward the information it produces and disseminates. We will also consider the nature of propaganda and state pressure in news media more generally. Is it always clear to us when bias or state pressure is present? Students will develop a critical eye for detecting bias in Russian (and other) news media.
RUSS 311 – Russian Composition and Conversation (3 Credit Hours)
Practice in writing and speaking. Grammar review and vocabulary building.
(RE) Prerequisite(s): 202.
RUSS 312 – Russian Composition and Conversation (3 Credit Hours)
Practice in writing and speaking. Grammar review and vocabulary building.
(RE) Prerequisite(s): 311.
RUSS 321 – Anton Chekhov: Russia’s Bridge to the 20th Century (3 Credit Hours)
Explores the pivotal role in world literature of Anton Chekhov, Russia’s master of the short story and history’s second-most influential dramatist after Shakespeare. Examines the difference between the early “light” stories and the mature works as a sign of the author’s intuitive awareness of changes taking place in the Russian empire at the turn of the 20th century. Taught in English. Modern Foreign Languages and Literatures – Russian Studies majors will do some readings in Russian. Writing-emphasis course.
Satisfies General Education Requirement: (WC)
(RE) Prerequisite(s): ENGL 102, ENGL 132, ENGL 290, or ENGL 298.
RUSS 322 – Dostoevsky, Terror, and Pan-Slavic Utopia (3 Credit Hours)
Explores the writings of Fyodor Dostoevsky as expressions of an ideology formed at the nexus of utopianism and anarchism – nirvana and despair. His thought forms a background for considering modern examples of radical and idealist thinking. Taught in English. Modern Foreign Languages and Literatures – Russian Studies majors will do some readings in Russian. Writing-emphasis course.
Satisfies General Education Requirement: (WC)
(RE) Prerequisite(s): ENGL 102, ENGL 132, ENGL 290, or ENGL 298.
RUSS 323 – Russian through Theatrical Performance (3 Credit Hours)
Students will participate in a Russian-language production of an authentic play. Lines will be memorized in Russian and performed before a public audience at the end of the semester. By memorizing Russian syntactical structures found in the play, students will significantly advance their language proficiency.
Repeatability: May be repeated once, for a total of 6 hours toward the major or minor.
(RE) Prerequisite(s): RUSS 102 or permission of the instructor.
RUSS 324 – Science Fiction in Russia and Eastern Europe (3 Credit Hours)
Russia and Eastern Europe have a particularly rich tradition of science fiction writing, with well-known authors like Stanislav Lem, Evgeny Zamyatin, and the Strugatsky brothers. This course explores the way science fiction re-figures the nature of the present through the lens of a fantastical scientific imagination, with special attention to how literature and society interrelate in societies that have crossed boundaries from communism, to capitalism, and sometimes, to “illiberal democracy.” Texts from the 20th and 21st centuries. All reading and writing in English, except for Russian majors. Writing emphasis course.
RUSS 325 – Russian Film (3 Credit Hours)
A study of the Russian cinema from the earliest days to the present. Writing-emphasis course.
(Same as CNST 325.)
RUSS – 352 – Ukrainian–Russian Culture and Conflict (3 Credit Hours
This course examines critical cultural artifacts that demonstrate the thousand-year interface of Ukrainian and Russian cultures, and their diversification into two distinct entities in recent centuries. While sharing much heritage in common, the two cultures also have a long history of antagonism, reflected especially in literary works dating to the nineteenth century. As a nation that spans both cultural heritages, Ukraine is a fascinating example of a borderland national identity coming fully into its own; this emergent identity has been perceived as a threat by more traditional and hegemonic Russian authorities. The course follows these themes across many cultural manifestations in literature, film, and visual arts. Conducted in English.
RUSS 373 – Despotic Family, Despotic State: Despotism as a Cultural Phenomenon in Russia (3 Credit Hours)
Focuses on the major cultural and historical trends that led first to the Bolshevik Revolution, and seventy years later to the counterrevolution. Literary, artistic, philosophical, and popular materials cover the period from the proclamation of Moscow Princedom as the Third Rome (early 16th c.) to modern times. Writing-emphasis course.
(RE) Prerequisite(s): English 101 and 102.
RUSS 401 – Advanced Grammar, Conversation, and Composition (3 Credit Hours)
(RE) Prerequisite(s): 312.
RUSS 402 – Advanced Grammar, Conversation, and Composition (3 Credit Hours)
(RE) Prerequisite(s): 401.
RUSS 421 – Tolstoy and the Quest for the Good Life (3 Credit Hours)
Explores the major novels and stories of Leo Tolstoy, and through them examines the great writer’s struggles to identify the purpose of life. Includes readings from the philosophical figures that most interested Tolstoy. Discussion will focus on how Tolstoy follows the inner course of a human life, revealing individuals’ struggles with the meaning of existence. MFLL-Russian Studies majors will do some readings in Russian. Writing-emphasis course.
RUSS 424 – Nabokov’s Novels and Stories (3 Credit Hours)
An intensive course covering several novels and stories, the memoir, and some scientific writings of the prolific Russian-American author. Particular attention given to the author’s philosophical views and the contact between his science and his art. In English with readings in Russian for majors. Writing-emphasis course.
RUSS 425 – Introduction to Descriptive Linguistics (3 Credit Hours)
(See French 425.)
RUSS 426 – Topics in Linguistics Research Methods (3 Credit Hours)
RUSS 451 – Senior Seminar (3 Credit Hours)
Intensive study of language, literary style, and literary criticism based on selected major novels.
(RE) Prerequisite(s): 312.
Comment(s): For students majoring in Russian; minors admitted at the discretion of the instructor.
RUSS 453 – Cultural Forms of Protest in Russia (3 Credit Hours)
Examines literary fiction, films, and Action Art as modes of protest within the arts against political power in Russia, focusing on contemporary figures and the historical context. Also juxtaposes these cultural forms with state propaganda efforts. Taught in English. Writing Emphasis Course.
(RE) Prerequisite(s): ENGL 102, ENGL 132, ENGL 290, or ENGL 298.
Recommended Background: RUSS 221* or RUSS 222* or HIEU 341.
RUSS 490 – Internship (1-15 Credit Hours)
Career-related experiences in the United States or abroad.
Grading Restriction: Satisfactory/No Credit grading only.
Repeatability: May be repeated. Maximum 15 hours.
Registration Restriction(s): Russian major/language and world business concentration.
RUSS 491 – Foreign Study (1-15 Credit Hours)
Repeatability: May be repeated. Maximum 15 hours.
RUSS 493 – Independent Study (1-15 Credit Hours)
Repeatability: May be repeated. Maximum 15 hours.
*Meets University General Education Requirement.
