Russian and Russian Studies
Chair: Francoise Rosset
Department home page: http://www.wheatoncollege.edu/Acad/Russian/
Russian and Russian studies is dedicated to the idea that we should approach Russian culture from a holistic point of view, setting traditions of Russian art and literature in the context of ever-changing Russian culture, politics and history. Our primary gateway is the Russian language.
Russian and Russian studies offers students a wide range of courses in the Russian language (from the elementary to the advanced level), in Russian art, culture, film and literature, as well as history, economics and politics. We have a Department of Russian with a traditional major in Russian language and literature, and an interdisciplinary program in Russian studies with courses taught by the departments of Russian, economics, history and political science. We also offer two minors. Students may choose either the traditional major in Russian or the interdisciplinary major in Russian studies.
Connections and Capstones
Russian and Russian studies have a few established connections, but many more are in the works. A capstone experience is required of all Wheaton students. Ours may be fulfilled through course work (a senior seminar), but also through research and other projects. In Russian studies, this might include presenting your research at the annual Harvard-Wellesley-Wheaton Undergraduate Symposium in the spring.
Students are strongly encouraged to experience Russia itself. Wheaton offers several options for study in Russia on a junior year or semester abroad program. There are also options for summer study in the United States or in Russia. Students normally get credit for such study, and early consultation with the department is advised.
Students who do outstanding work in either Russian major may become members of Alpha Epsilon, the Wheaton College Chapter of the National Slavic Honor Society, Dobro Slovo.
Major in Russian Studies
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The Russian studies major is a broad-based, interdisciplinary course of study. Students acquire a basic knowledge of Russia and the former Soviet Union through the study of Russian culture, language and literature combined with economics, history and politics.
NOTE on rotation of courses: We offer different courses to our majors during their four years of study. Russian literature and culture courses rotate on a three-year cycle, a few are on a four-year cycle.
This major consists of a minimum of 10 semester courses
Russian language
Four semester courses selected from:
Russ 110 Beginning Russian I
Russ 111 Beginning Russian II
Russ 210 Intermediate Russian I
Russ 211 Intermediate Russian II
Russ 240 Advanced Russian I
Russ 241 Advanced Russian II
Russ 242 Advanced Conversation and Grammar Review I
Russ 243 Advanced Conversation and Grammar Review II
Russian literature and culture
Three semester courses selected from:
Russ 101 Russian Folklore
Russ 200 or Russ 300 Russian Literature: Icons to Revolution
Russ 201 or Russ 301 Russian Literature: From Revolution to the Present
Russ 203 Russian Drama
Russ 281 Russian Arts and Culture
Russ 282 Russian Film
Russ 284 Women in Russian Culture
Russ 305 Topics in Russian Literature
Russ 351 Selected Prose Writers
Russ 352 Russian Poetry
Russ 370 Russian for the Arts, Business and Politics
Courses in other departments
Three semester courses selected from at least two different departments. Courses include:
Econ 288 Foundations of Political Economy
Hist 215 History of Russia
Pols 249 Russian Foreign Policy
Pols 255 Russian Politics
Pols 265 Politics and Society in Eastern Europe
Pols 345 Understanding Russian Politics and Society through the Prism of Film
Pols 375 The Politics of Social and Economic Problems in Post-Communist Russia
Pols 379 National Security Policy
The major requires a minimum of three courses at the 300 level. These may be selected from the culture courses or from the courses in other departments. Substitutions by permission of the department. A capstone experience is required of all Wheaton students and may be accomplished through course work, research or other projects
Major in Russian language and literature
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The Russian language and literature major is designed to provide students with a sound knowledge of Russian language, culture and literature. Students who choose this major often have had some prior study of Russian, or they may do summer study or a semester or junior year abroad.
NOTE on rotation of courses: We offer different courses to our majors during their four years of study, Russian literature and culture courses rotate on a three-year cycle, a few are on a four-year cycle.
The major consists of a minimum of nine semester courses.
Russian language and literature in Russian
FOUR semester courses, beginning at the advanced language level:
Russ 240 Advanced Russian I
Russ 241 Advanced Russian II
Russ 242 Advanced Conversation and Grammar Review I
Russ 243 Advanced Conversation and Grammar Review II
Russ 351 Selected Prose Writers
Russ 352 Russian Poetry
Russ 370 Russian for the Arts, Business and Politics
Russian literature and culture courses in English
FOUR courses, selected from:
Russ 101 Russian Folklore
Russ 200 or Russ 300 Russian Literature: Icons to Revolution
Russ 201 or Russ 301 Russian Literature: From Revolution to the Present
Russ 203 Russian Drama
Russ 281 Russian Arts and Culture
Russ 282 Russian Film
Russ 284 Women in Russian Culture
Russ 305 Topics in Russian Literature
Senior seminar
Russ 402 Seminar
With permission of the department, the Senior Seminar can be replaced with another equivalent capstone experience, as long as the student has taken a minimum nine courses.
The major requires a minimum of three courses at the 300 level or above. Substitutions by permission of the department. A capstone experience is required of all Wheaton students and may be accomplished through course work, research, or other projects.
Minors in Russian and Russian Studies
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We offer two minors, one entirely in Russian, the other an interdisciplinary minor.
Minor in Russian Language
The minor in Russian language, done entirely in Russian, requires a total of five courses: four semesters of language courses, and one semester chosen from Russ 351, Russ 352 or Russ 370.
Minor in Russian Language and Literature
The minor in Russian language and literature allows you to do part of the course work in English. It consists of three language courses and two courses in Russian literature or culture. (The latter courses include Russ 101, Russ 200 or Russ 300, Russ 201 or Russ 301, Russ 203, Russ 281, Russ 284, Russ 305. Substitutions possible with departmental approval)
Both minors require a minimum of one course at the 300 level or above - this is a college-wide requirement.
Courses
Language courses
We administer language proficiency/placement tests in September and January each year. A student may skip the first or the first two years of Russian and place directly into the advanced-level courses. Students who have taken two, three or more years of Russian at the secondary school level are expected to place into Russian 210 (or the Russian 240 series, with departmental permission).
110. Beginning Russian I
The principal elements of the Russian language, including reading, writing, speaking and cultural awareness. Emphasis is placed on colloquial language and the ability to converse in Russian. Class work is supplemented by one hour per week of language laboratory work.
(Francoise Rosset)
111. Beginning Russian II
A continuation of Russ 110 with further emphasis on grammar and conversation. Class work is supplemented by one hour per week of language laboratory work.
(Francoise Rosset)
210. Intermediate Russian I
Written and spoken Russian. More fundamentals of Russian grammar, with emphasis on oral practice, comprehension and composition. Class work is supplemented by one hour per week of language laboratory work.
211. Intermediate Russian II
Continuation of Russ 210. Written and spoken Russian. More fundamentals of Russian grammar, with further emphasis on oral practice, comprehension and composition. Class work is supplemented by one hour per week of language laboratory work.
Advanced language courses
Please note that these four courses are not sequential. They can be taken in any order.
240. Advanced Russian I
Review of Russian grammar. Russian roots and word formation. Russian syntax and composition. Emphasis on vocabulary building.
241. Advanced Russian II
Review of Russian grammar. Russian style and syntax, with emphasis on composition.
242. Advanced Conversation and Grammar Review I
Review of Russian grammar. Emphasis on oral comprehension and verbal proficiency.
243. Advanced Conversation and Grammar Review II
Review of Russian grammar. Emphasis on verbal proficiency and Russian cultural/political vocabulary.
Literature and culture courses given in Russian
These courses are designed for Russian majors and are conducted in Russian, but are open to all qualified students with permission of the department.
351. Selected Prose Writers
The study in Russian of selected prose works by some of the following writers of the 19th and 20th centuries: Pushkin, Lermontov, Pavlova, Gogol, Turgenev, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Teffi, Chekhov, Zamyatin, Zoshchenko, Bunin, Solzhenitsyn and Tokareva.
352. Russian Poetry
A survey in Russian of poets from the early 19th century to the present. Emphasis both on analysis and on reading/performance of poetic works.
(Francoise Rosset)
370. Russian for the Arts, Business and Politics
A study in Russian of the special terms, jargon and style used in specific professional fields, including the art world and museums, international business and politics. Also includes a brief survey of Russian computer terminology.
(Francoise Rosset)
402. Seminar
Integration of the student's work in previous courses through independent work chosen with the approval of the department.
500. Individual Research
Open to senior majors by invitation of the department.
Courses given in English
Courses in culture, literature and civilization conducted in English are open to all students without regard to foreign language proficiency. Many of these courses have Connections pending.
Note on rotation of courses: We offer different courses to our majors during their four years of study. Russian literature and culture courses rotate on a three-year cycle, a few are on a four-year cycle.
101. Russian Folklore
A general, interdisciplinary introduction to Russian culture with special emphasis on folklore, tracing its development from pre-Christian times to the present. The course will center on the study of folk tales, epics and ballads; beliefs, traditions and superstitions and the influence of folklore on the development of Russian literature and art.
Connections:
Conx 20051 Russian History and Culture
200. Russian Literature: Icons to Revolution
A broad survey course with primary emphasis on the classics of the 19th century. The study of strong passions and clashing beliefs in 19th-century Russian literature and culture. Focus on love and social commentary in the works of Pushkin, Lermontov, Gogol, Pavlova, Chekhov, Dostoevsky and Tolstoy. Cultural materials include icons and Russian wooden architecture, the myths of St. Petersburg and Moscow, Russia's expansion into the Caucasus and Siberia, 19th-century music, and trends in 19th-century painting.
201. Russian Literature: From Revolution to the Present
The study of Russian literature and culture in the 20th century, from the turmoil of the Revolution through the terror of Stalin's Soviet Union to the momentous changes of the 1990s. The focus will be on literature and art, grappling with aesthetic concerns amid censorship, purges and rapid political change. Readings might include: Akhmatova, Babel, Zamyatin, Nabokov, Gorky, Pasternak, Solzhenitsyn, Bitov, Baranskaia, Tokareva, Petrushevskaia. Cultural materials cover the avant-garde, Soviet theatre and ballet, samizdat and other unofficial art, glasnost and the new trends of the past few years.
203. Russian Drama
A survey of modern Russian theatre, including some opera and ballet. The course includes a brief history of Russian theatre and its traditions in directing and set/costume design. Readings include a variety of short to full-length plays by such writers as Pushkin, Gogol, Ostrovsky, Chekhov, Kharms, Gippius, Erdman, Shvarts, Aitmatov, Petrushevskaia and Nina Sadur.
(Francoise Rosset)
279. Literary Translation
See Ger 279.
281. Russian Arts and Culture
Begins with a brief survey of Russian political history, then focuses on Russian and Soviet art, including some non-Russian works from former republics of the Soviet period (Georgia, Armenia, Latvia, Central Asia). Includes ballet and theatre, cinema, classical music as well as bard music and formerly underground rock, some literature and poetry, and art from the icons to the avant-garde to unofficial and official art.
(Francoise Rosset)
282. Russian Film
The course will acquaint you with the culture of modern Russia through its cinema. Lectures with discussion and analysis of a series of Russian films from Eisenstein to current productions, emphasizing content and moral/political issues as well as artistic technique.
284. Women in Russian Culture
A historical survey of the cultural and political impact of women in Russia, with emphasis on the 20th century. Works by and about women, including works by Russian women in politics, literature and poetry, theatre and painting.
(Francoise Rosset)
285. Russian Jewish Culture
This course discusses Russian-Jewish culture and its extraordinary role in Russian literary and social history. The Jews of Russia created an original culture that combined profound religious piety with extreme secularism, and political and aesthetic conservatism with daring experiments in literature, arts and film.
The course will cover the most important issues of Russian-Jewish coexistence and will focus on the cultural, linguistic and ideological transformation of Russian Jews in the late 19th and the 20th centuries, from pious Yiddish-speaking shtetl dwellers to secular Russian-speaking urbanites. Literary works of major 19th- and 20th-century Russian writers, and guest lectures on art, religion, history and political history, will provide the primary material for discussion.
Taught with the Department of Religion.
298. Experimental Course
Russian Review
Review and expansion of intermediate/advanced level Russian language and grammar to consolidate communication skills, and develop conversational areas and ease of expression for handling various social situations and topics of interest.
300. Russian Literature: Icons to Revolution
Advanced version of Russ 200 Russian Literature: Icons to Revolution
301. Russian Literature: From Revolution to the Present
Advanced version of Russ 201.
305. Topics in Russian Literature
Topics will vary to meet student demand and interest and might include: the Russian novel, the Silver Age, Soviet classics, Russian women writers, or others.