Spring
2003
Modern Languages and
Literatures Department
Course Description:
In this course
we will study the cultural patterns and peculiarities of a country that expands
over eleven time zones, that is to say, eleven time zones of opportunities and
business. We will discuss the magnificence of the ‘Russian idea’ and its impact
on the world for the last two centuries. We will also look into the dark side
of this ‘idea,’ namely, the destructive impulses of Russian Stalinism and most
recently of the Russian Mafia. Through analysis of literature, film, and visual
arts we will attempt to ‘imagine’ Russia in the future and to discuss the
Western puzzlement in dealing with unique Russian contradictions that have not
ceased to astonish and even shock the world.
Course Requirements and Evaluation:
This
course requires consistent and thorough reading of the texts, responsible
participation in classroom discussions as well as writings of various kinds. Students will be
responsible for the presentation of one short story or film. The writing
assignments are designed to
encourage students to develop their analytical skills, to strengthen their
ability to form an opinion and to eloquently express it. Students are asked to
write three responses (1 page each), one paper (6 pages) and a final paper (10
pages). The 6-page paper will be submitted first as a draft and then as a final
version. The 10-page paper will be peer-reviewed. Detailed instructions on the
writing assignments will be given. The final grade for the course will be
determined based on the following:
Attendance and Participation
45%
Presentation 10%
Three 1-Page Response Papers
15% (5% each)
6-Page Paper 10%
Final Paper (10 pgs) 20%
Required Reading: (all books are available at the bookstore; works marked with an asterisk are short works that will be provided to you)
Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment (excerpts)
Chekhov, The Cherry Orchard in Anton Chekhov’s
Plays
*Berdyaev, “The Origin of Russian Communism”
*Reed, Ten Days that Shook the World
(excerpts)
*Mayakovsky, “The Bedbug”
* Soviet Architecture handout
* Zoshchenko, “Scenes from the Bathhouse”
Solzhenitsyn,
One Day in
the Life of Ivan Denisovich
*Akhmatova, “Requiem”
*Sholokhov, One Man’s Destiny
Erofeev, Moscow to the End of the Line
* Perova, A Will and a Way (selected stories)
*Perova, Beyond the Looking Glass (selected stories)
*Handelman, Comrade Criminal
Pelevin, The Life of
Insects
Syllabus
Week One 19th
Century-- The Russian Idea: Juxtaposition of Logic and Mysticism
Monday
Introduction
to course
March
31
Wednesday Dostoevsky,
Crime and
Punishment (excerpts and film)
April 2
Week Two Russia
at the beginning of the century
Monday
Chekhov,
Cherry
Orchard
April
7
Wednesday Eisenstein, The
Battleship Potemkin (film)
April
9
Week Three Materialism
and Communism
Monday Berdyaev, “The Origin
of Russian Communism”
April
14
Wednesday Ten Days that Shook the
World (film)
April
16 Mayakovsky,
“The Bedbug”
Week Four Soviet
Union, Ideology and Life
Monday Soviet Architecture –
Housing for the cultural revolution
April
21
Wednesday The Russian Avant
Garde: Romance with the Revolution
April
23 Zoshchenko,
Scenes
from the Bathhouse
Due: 6-Page Paper Draft
Week Five Stalinism
Monday Mikhalkov, Burnt by
the Sun (film)
April
28
Wednesday Solzhenytsin,
One Day in
the Life of Ivan Denisovich
April
30 Akhmatova,
Requiem
Due: 6-Page Paper
Monday Sholokhov,
One Man’s
Destiny
May
5
Wednesday Thief (film)
May
7
Week Seven Socialist
Realism and Its Inverse Value
Monday Erofeev,
Moscow to
the End of the Line
May
12
Wednesday A Will and a Way
May
14
Week Eight The
Transition Period: No Glory, No
Majesty, or Honor
Monday Little Vera
(film)
May
19
Wednesday Beyond the Looking Glass
May
21
Week Nine The
Transition Period: Russian Mafia
Monday Balabanov,
Brother (film)
May 26
*Final
Paper Due for Peer Review
Wednesday *No Class Today – Read for Monday
May
28
Week Ten Post
Communism and the Rise of Nationalism
Monday
Comrade Criminal
June
2 Pelevin,
The
Life of Insects
Wednesday
Prisoner of the Mountains
(film)
June
4
* You will turn
in the final draft of the 10-page paper to me during finals week.