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Many opportunities are open to students with qualifications in Russian and other Slavic studies. Students may be interested in the organization of human society, comparative literature, linguistics - Russian studies are highly relevant to all of these. In addition, because of similar problems in geography, climate, industrial and economic growth, Russian studies may have a particular fascination for the Canadian student. Since most Eastern European countries have academic exchange programs with Canada, well-qualified students should not encounter much difficulty in continuing their university studies in Russia or in Eastern Europe.
Over the past few years many interesting career opportunities have opened in Russia and the former Soviet Republics as well as Eastern Europe.
Please note that beyond the Calendar course listings, subject to approval by the Department, courses offered with LLCU course codes may count toward fulfilling program requirements.
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Program Information
- Minor Concentration in Russian
- Minor Concentration in Russian Culture
- Major Concentration in Russian
- Honours Program in Russian
- Joint Honours Program - Russian Component
Minor Concentration in Russian (18 credits)
Program Requirement:
The Minor Concentration in Russian will give students a basic working knowledge of Russian and the tools with which to explore Russian life and culture in the original. Students who can demonstrate to the Department that they have acquired the equivalent competence elsewhere may waive prerequisites for 300-level courses and above.
The Minor Concentration in Russian may be expanded to the Major Concentration in Russian.
Complementary Courses (18 credits)
18 credits to be chosen from:
-
RUSS 210 Elementary Russian Language 1 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Reading, grammar, translation, oral practice.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Izabela Zdun, Ekaterina Tutatina
-
-
RUSS 215 Elem Russian Lang Intensive 1 6 Credits*
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An intensive introduction to the Russian language which covers the first year of the normal level, i.e. RUSS 210/RUSS 211 in one semester. The basic grammatical structures are covered.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Restriction: Not open to students who are taking or have taken RUSS 210, RUSS 211 or equivalent
- Symbols:
- *
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Maria Ivanova
-
RUSS 300 Russ for Heritage Speakers 1 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): For native speakers of Russian who have not had full academic instruction in the language. Focus on grammatical structure and syntax, the formalities of written Russian and appreciation of the language's stylistic diversity. Multi- media approach including excerpts from literary works, current newspapers, television news broadcasts, films and cartoons.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Prerequisite: Permission of the Department
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken RUSS 210, RUSS 211, RUSS 215, RUSS 310, RUSS 311 and RUSS 316.
- Given in Russian
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 301 Russ for Heritage Speakers 2 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): For native speakers of Russian who have not had full academic instruction in the language. Focus on complex grammatical structures, syntax, and stylistically differentiated uses of vocabulary in written and spoken Russian. Multi-media approach including excerpts from literary works, current newspapers, Internet sources, and films.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Given in Russian
- Prerequisites: RUSS 300 or permission of the instructor
- Restrictions: Not open to students who have taken Russ 210,211,215,310,311 and 316
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
-
-
RUSS 316 Intermed Russian Lang Intns 2 6 Credits**
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Continuing the Intensive program of RUSS 215 this course covers the second year of the normal level, i.e. RUSS 310/RUSS 311, in one semester. The basic grammatical structures are covered.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Prerequisite: RUSS 215 or equivalent
- Restriction: Requires departmental approval
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken RUSS 310, RUSS 311 or are taking RUSS 311
- Symbols:
- **
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Maria Ivanova
-
RUSS 327 Reading Russian Poetry 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Introduction to Russia's major poets and bards of the 19th and 20th centuries. Selected works from Pushkin to Brodsky and 20th century bards will be read in Russian.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: RUSS 316 or equivalent, or permission of the department.
- Texts to be read in the original Russian, analysis and discussion to be conducted in English and/or Russian.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 328 Readings in Russian 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): A general introduction to Russian prose, poetry and drama in the 19th Century. Selected texts will be read in the original and discussed.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: RUSS 316 or equivalent, or permission of the Department.
- Texts to be read in the original Russian; analysis and discussion to be conducted in English and/or Russian.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Maria Ivanova
-
RUSS 415 Adv Russian Lang Intensive 1 6 Credits***
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Continuing the Intensive program of RUSS 215 and RUSS 316, students will complete their study of the fundamental structure of modern literary Russian, including the morphology and syntax of the nominal and verbal systems.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Symbols:
- ***
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Maria Ivanova
-
RUSS 453 Advanced Russian Lang & Syntax 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Prose composition, translation, essay writing. An introduction to Russian stylistics.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Prerequisite: RUSS 452 or equivalent
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
* RUSS 215 is not open to students who have taken RUSS 210 and RUSS 211.
** RUSS 316 is not open to students who have taken RUSS 310 and RUSS 311.
*** RUSS 415 is not open to students who have taken RUSS 410 and RUSS 411.
Minor Concentration in Russian Culture (18 credits)
Program Requirement:
The Minor Concentration Russian Culture is designed primarily as an adjunct to area studies and/or programs in the humanities or social sciences. There are no Russian language requirements.
This program may be expanded into a Major Concentration in Russian.
Complementary Courses (18 credits)
Courses offered by LLC may be accepted subject to approval by the Department.
18 credits selected with the following specifications:
At least 6 credits from Group A
6-12 credits from Group B
Group A
At least 6 credits from:
-
RUSS 217 Russia's Eternal Questions 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Exploration of cultural archetypes defining continuity and change from Peter the Great to the present; the Russian national identity, double-faith, Western and Slovophile influences, Mother Russia, superfluous men and the Eternal Feminine, anarchism, the avant-garde, Stalinism. Recurring themes traced in literature, art, film, music, pop culture and the applied arts.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Given in English
- Restriction: Permission of the instructor
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 218 Russian Lit and Revolution 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): The dramatic developments in Russian literature of the 20th century, from revolution, through conformity, to the ironies and anxieties of the post-Soviet era. Comrades, iconoclasts, absurdists, proletarians and aesthetes; the Gulag, the literary café, the music of the spheres, the crumbling Russian village; the reforging of humanity and the rediscovery of tradition.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall or Winter
- Prerequisite: None, but some background in Russian 20C history is helpful
- Given in English
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
-
RUSS 223 Russian 19c: Literary Giants 1 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): The Golden Age of Russian literature: from Pushkin, Lermontov, and Gogol to the first works of Dostoevsky and Tolstoy. This course traces the rise of a coherent literary tradition in Russia, exploring authors’ relationships to the burgeoning tradition and to their historical and cultural context.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Given in English
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Daniel W Pratt
-
RUSS 224 Russian 19c. Literary Giants 2 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course explores the masterpieces of late nineteenth-century Russian literature. From psychological realism and the novel of ideas to the rise of the great short story; Turgenev, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Leskov, and Chekhov.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Given in English
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Daniel W Pratt
Group B
6-12 credits from:
-
RUSS 213 Introduction to Soviet Film 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course aims to familiarize undergraduates with the topics, figures, and concerns of Soviet film history. Students will watch and analyze films by Soviet directors including Sergei Eisenstein, Dziga Vertov, Andrei Tarkovsky, Sergei Parajanov, Kira Muratova, Larisa Shepitko, and many others in the context of their historical periods, movements, and writings. Students will learn to analyze images and cinematic techniques, as well as assess their historical, ideological, and cultural significance.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Offered in English.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 229 Intro to Russian Folklore 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An introduction to Russian folklore and folk belief: "dual-faith," traditional mentality, fairy tales, calendar rituals, folk songs, witches, healers and house spirits. The course will explore classic approaches to folklore studies as well as the influence of folk culture on Russian "high art."
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Taught in English
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 250 The Central European Novel 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Examination of the culture of Central Europe through the lens of novels, including the history, culture, and literature of the region.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 330 Chekhov without Borders 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Chekhov’s short stories and plays. The genre of the short story and its relationship to realist, modernist, and postmodernist aesthetics. Chekhov’s influence in Russia and abroad.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Course will be given in English.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Lyudmila Parts
-
RUSS 333 Petersburg: City of Myth 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): In Russian culture, the two major cities, Moscow and Saint-Petersburg, represent the two sides of Russian culture: its past in Orthodoxy and Russianness and its future in European culture and internationalism. The culture of Saint-Petersburg both reflects the city and redefines the meaning of the city for the future. This class will examine Russian culture within the context of the city itself, providing students with a holistic look at an embedded culture.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisites: Previous course work in Russian literature, film, or history is highly recommended.
- Readings and class discussions in English.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 337 Vladimir Nabokov 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Cross sampling of short stories and major novels by Vladimir Nabokov; his life-long love affair with language and "aesthetic bliss"; his flouting of convention from Russia's Silver Age to post-McCarthy America. Lolita in and beyond the Russian context.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Given in English.
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
-
RUSS 340 Russian Short Story 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Russian stories that encompass the major aesthetic and thematic concerns of the short story genre. Recurrent themes of language's power and limits, of childhood and old age, of art and sexuality, and of cultural, individual, and artistic memory.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 347 Late and Post-Soviet Culture 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): The re-invention of Russian culture in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Featuring Soviet beatniks, dissidents, and cultural iconoclasts; covering pop-culture, Pepsi and PR, perestroika, and the encounter with Western postmodernism. In literature, the emergence of 'new’ voices (women’s prose, émigré writers), new or newly rediscovered genres (detective fiction, sci-fi, bard or sung poetry, the essay). In the visual arts, points of contact, overlap and competition with film, conceptualist or concrete poetry, installations, memes). For over two and a half centuries, Russian literature was seen as the cornerstone of cultural identity and national pride. How does it confront today the challenges of a post-literary age and, tenuously, post-Soviet age?
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: One of the following or its equivalent: RUSS 217, RUSS 218, RUSS 223, or RUSS 224
- Readings and Class discussions in English.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
-
RUSS 350 Central European Film 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): The development of film in the Central European area, alongside the history and culture of the region.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 357 Leo Tolstoy 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An in-depth exploration of the literature and thought of Leo Tolstoy. This course will cover his major works of fiction as well as non-fiction essays, diary entries, and letters, with the majority of the semester devoted to his great masterpiece, War and Peace.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Lyudmila Parts
-
RUSS 358 Fyodor Dostoevsky 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An in-depth study of the writing and thought of Fyodor Dostoevsky. Through reading Dostoevsky's major novels as well as some of his short fiction and journalism in the context of his times, this course will explore Dostoevsky's contributions to literature and philosophy.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Taught in English
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 365 Supernatural&Absurd in RussLit 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Themes of absurd, bizarre, surreal, supernatural, and fantastic in works by Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky, Kharms, Bulgakov, Petrushevskaia, Pelevin, and others. Focus on the Russian literary imagination and the historical and political conflicts which haunt it. Theories of the gothic, fantastic, and absurd.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 369 Narrative&Memory: Russian Cult 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Exploration of literary and cinematic representations of the themes of memory, trauma, nostalgia, family history, and war in modern Russian culture. Exploration of narrative approaches to war and trauma, their effects on cultural identity, Post-Soviet nostalgia, family and childhood, and related subjects.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 381 Russia's Utopia Complex 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): From Zamiatin's We (1921), and Dostoevskii's "Grand Inquisitor" (1880), an examination of the Russian creation of and imprint on the dystopian genre. From prototypes in Russian romanticism and folklore, to dissident masterpieces of the Stalinist era, to sci-fi as rediscovered in the post-Soviet experience. Literature, film, and beyond.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Offered in English.
- Prerequisite(s): A 200-level course in literature or culture, in Russian or in the European or Asian traditions.
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
-
RUSS 382 Russian Opera 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course traces the development of the Russian opera tradition from the mid-nineteenth century to the 1950s. It explores opera's role in Russia's quest for national identity and its place in musical, literary, and political life, as well as responses to European opera trends. No knowledge of music theory required.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Taught in English.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 385 Staging Russ: Fr Push to Chekh 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Masterpieces of the Russian stage in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries; the emergence of a uniquely Russian dramatic sensitivity against prevailing European trends; the literary word in a public, political and/or avant-garde forum.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- At least 2 courses in literature and/or cultural studies.
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Lyudmila Parts
-
RUSS 390 Special Topics in Russian 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Exploration of a significant author, trend, theme or theory in modern Russian culture, including but not limited to the interface between literary works, the graphic and performing arts, ideology and national identity.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 395 Soviet Cinema:Art and Politics 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course explores the relationship between art and politics in the cinema of the Soviet Union. Students taking this course will gain a familiarity with the films and writings of Soviet directors. They will also learn the basics of formal, textual, and historical film analysis.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 397 Tarkovsky:Cinema & Philosophy 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Considered by many critics to be one of the greatest directors of all time, Tarkovsky directed such luminary films as Ivan’s Childhood (1962), Andrei Rublev (1966), Solaris (1972), Mirror (1975), and Stalker (1979). Since their first appearance, these films have challenged viewers with their deep philosophical questions and stunning visual style. This course equips students with the tools necessary to understand and interpret these films including a basis in film theory and Soviet history.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: One of the following RUSS 213, ENGL 277, FILM 279 or equivalent
- Readings in English, screenings with English subtitles.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 398 Soviet Women Filmmakers 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Dedicated to the study of under-represented female directors in Soviet cinema, particularly the films of Kira Muratova and Larisa Shepitko. The work of these two directors is nothing short of stunning; in many ways, it surpasses that of their most well-known contemporary - Andrei Tarkovsky. Explores the ways in which these films represent gender, sexuality, and women's issues in the Soviet Union.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: One of the following RUSS 213, ENGL 277, FILM 279 or equivalent
- Readings in English, films with English subtitles.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 427 Russian Fin de Siècle 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Russian poetry, prose, drama, book design and the visual arts from the Silver Age to WWI, from Chekhov to Blok and Belyi. The crisis of realism, decadence, symbolism, and its waning traced through the eternal feminine, the devil, the city, poetry as pure creation, and millennial crisis. Not open to students who have taken or are taking RUSS 465.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Course offered in English.
- Prerequisite(s): At least 2 courses (6 credits) in literature and/or cultural studies.
- Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken RUSS 465.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 428 Russian Avantgarde 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Russian poetry, prose, drama, the manifesto, street festivals and the explosion of experiment in the visual arts from WW1 to 1930. The avant-garde anticipates, transcends, responds and then succumbs to revolution.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite(s): At least 2 courses (6 credits) in literature and/or cultural studies.
- Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken RUSS 466.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 430 High Stalinist Culture 1 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Novels, films, art, architecture, pageantry, rhetoric and routine of the Stalinist 1930s-40s, including socialist realism as an aesthetic doctrine, utopian blueprint, target of parody, amalgam of a submerged avant-garde and state-controlled pop culture, precursor of the postmodernist simulacrum, self-proclaimed international style and/or uniquely Russian 20th-century project.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken RUSS 510
- Given in English
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 440 Russia and Its Others 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): In-depth historical approach to cultural construction of Russian national identity and to the concept of the Other as a condition of self-representation: East, West, America, class enemies, dissidents, ethnic and sexual minorities, etc. Introduction to theoretical tools for approaching issues of national identity, alterity, (post)colonialism, exoticism, and orientalism. Not open to students who have taken RUSS 475 in 201301.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite(s): At least 2 literature/cultural studies courses at the 200 or 300 level; or permission of the Department.
- Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken RUSS 475 in 201301.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Lyudmila Parts
-
RUSS 454 Narratives of Desire 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An exploration of desire as it was narrativized in Russian literature 1860-1900. The course draws on comparative examples from European literature as well as various theoretical approaches for conceptualizing love and desire.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite(s): At least two literature courses at the 200 or 300 level or permission of the department.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 475 Special Topics in Russ Culture 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Examination of a significant author, trend, theme or theory in modern Russian culture, including but not limited to the interface between literary works, the graphic and performing arts, ideology and national identity.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
-
RUSS 500 Special Topics 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Focus on a critical theme, author or work, as determined by the current research interests of faculty and visiting faculty.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Given in English
- Prerequisite: Permission of Department
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 501 Topics in Slavic Culture 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Examination of a significant author, trend, theme or theory in modern Slavic culture, including but not limited to the interface between literary works, the graphic and performing arts, ideology and national identity.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisites: Permission of the instructor.
- 1. Topic varies year to year.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- Daniel W Pratt
Major Concentration in Russian (36 credits)
Program Requirement:
The Major Concentration in Russian gives students a foundation in the language, literature, and culture of Russia from the 19th century to the present. It incorporates a balance of instruction in the Russian language, the opportunity to read selected texts in the original language, and to explore Russian language and culture through translated texts.
By arrangement with the Department and subject to University approval, transfer credits will be accepted from Department-approved exchange/immersion programs.
Complementary Courses (36 credits)
36 credits selected from the following specifications:
Group A: Russian Language (18 credits)
Students entering this program with previous knowledge of or exposure to Russian may, with permission of the Department, replace this group with selections from Group B or Group C.
18 credits selected from the following courses or their equivalent:
-
RUSS 210 Elementary Russian Language 1 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Reading, grammar, translation, oral practice.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Izabela Zdun, Ekaterina Tutatina
-
-
RUSS 215 Elem Russian Lang Intensive 1 6 Credits*
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An intensive introduction to the Russian language which covers the first year of the normal level, i.e. RUSS 210/RUSS 211 in one semester. The basic grammatical structures are covered.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Restriction: Not open to students who are taking or have taken RUSS 210, RUSS 211 or equivalent
- Symbols:
- *
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Maria Ivanova
-
RUSS 300 Russ for Heritage Speakers 1 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): For native speakers of Russian who have not had full academic instruction in the language. Focus on grammatical structure and syntax, the formalities of written Russian and appreciation of the language's stylistic diversity. Multi- media approach including excerpts from literary works, current newspapers, television news broadcasts, films and cartoons.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Prerequisite: Permission of the Department
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken RUSS 210, RUSS 211, RUSS 215, RUSS 310, RUSS 311 and RUSS 316.
- Given in Russian
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 301 Russ for Heritage Speakers 2 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): For native speakers of Russian who have not had full academic instruction in the language. Focus on complex grammatical structures, syntax, and stylistically differentiated uses of vocabulary in written and spoken Russian. Multi-media approach including excerpts from literary works, current newspapers, Internet sources, and films.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Given in Russian
- Prerequisites: RUSS 300 or permission of the instructor
- Restrictions: Not open to students who have taken Russ 210,211,215,310,311 and 316
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
-
-
RUSS 316 Intermed Russian Lang Intns 2 6 Credits**
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Continuing the Intensive program of RUSS 215 this course covers the second year of the normal level, i.e. RUSS 310/RUSS 311, in one semester. The basic grammatical structures are covered.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Prerequisite: RUSS 215 or equivalent
- Restriction: Requires departmental approval
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken RUSS 310, RUSS 311 or are taking RUSS 311
- Symbols:
- **
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Maria Ivanova
-
RUSS 327 Reading Russian Poetry 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Introduction to Russia's major poets and bards of the 19th and 20th centuries. Selected works from Pushkin to Brodsky and 20th century bards will be read in Russian.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: RUSS 316 or equivalent, or permission of the department.
- Texts to be read in the original Russian, analysis and discussion to be conducted in English and/or Russian.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 328 Readings in Russian 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): A general introduction to Russian prose, poetry and drama in the 19th Century. Selected texts will be read in the original and discussed.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: RUSS 316 or equivalent, or permission of the Department.
- Texts to be read in the original Russian; analysis and discussion to be conducted in English and/or Russian.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Maria Ivanova
-
RUSS 415 Adv Russian Lang Intensive 1 6 Credits***
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Continuing the Intensive program of RUSS 215 and RUSS 316, students will complete their study of the fundamental structure of modern literary Russian, including the morphology and syntax of the nominal and verbal systems.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Symbols:
- ***
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Maria Ivanova
-
RUSS 453 Advanced Russian Lang & Syntax 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Prose composition, translation, essay writing. An introduction to Russian stylistics.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Prerequisite: RUSS 452 or equivalent
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
*RUSS 215 is not open to students who have taken RUSS 210 or RUSS 211.
**RUSS 316 is not open to students who have taken RUSS 310 or RUSS 311.
***RUSS 415 is not open to students who have taken RUSS 410 or RUSS 411.
Group B (9 credits)
9 credits selected from the following courses or their equivalent:
-
RUSS 217 Russia's Eternal Questions 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Exploration of cultural archetypes defining continuity and change from Peter the Great to the present; the Russian national identity, double-faith, Western and Slovophile influences, Mother Russia, superfluous men and the Eternal Feminine, anarchism, the avant-garde, Stalinism. Recurring themes traced in literature, art, film, music, pop culture and the applied arts.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Given in English
- Restriction: Permission of the instructor
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 218 Russian Lit and Revolution 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): The dramatic developments in Russian literature of the 20th century, from revolution, through conformity, to the ironies and anxieties of the post-Soviet era. Comrades, iconoclasts, absurdists, proletarians and aesthetes; the Gulag, the literary café, the music of the spheres, the crumbling Russian village; the reforging of humanity and the rediscovery of tradition.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall or Winter
- Prerequisite: None, but some background in Russian 20C history is helpful
- Given in English
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
-
RUSS 223 Russian 19c: Literary Giants 1 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): The Golden Age of Russian literature: from Pushkin, Lermontov, and Gogol to the first works of Dostoevsky and Tolstoy. This course traces the rise of a coherent literary tradition in Russia, exploring authors’ relationships to the burgeoning tradition and to their historical and cultural context.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Given in English
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Daniel W Pratt
-
RUSS 224 Russian 19c. Literary Giants 2 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course explores the masterpieces of late nineteenth-century Russian literature. From psychological realism and the novel of ideas to the rise of the great short story; Turgenev, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Leskov, and Chekhov.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Given in English
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Daniel W Pratt
-
RUSS 229 Intro to Russian Folklore 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An introduction to Russian folklore and folk belief: "dual-faith," traditional mentality, fairy tales, calendar rituals, folk songs, witches, healers and house spirits. The course will explore classic approaches to folklore studies as well as the influence of folk culture on Russian "high art."
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Taught in English
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
Group C (9 credits)
9 credits selected from the following courses or their equivalent:
-
RUSS 213 Introduction to Soviet Film 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course aims to familiarize undergraduates with the topics, figures, and concerns of Soviet film history. Students will watch and analyze films by Soviet directors including Sergei Eisenstein, Dziga Vertov, Andrei Tarkovsky, Sergei Parajanov, Kira Muratova, Larisa Shepitko, and many others in the context of their historical periods, movements, and writings. Students will learn to analyze images and cinematic techniques, as well as assess their historical, ideological, and cultural significance.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Offered in English.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 250 The Central European Novel 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Examination of the culture of Central Europe through the lens of novels, including the history, culture, and literature of the region.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 330 Chekhov without Borders 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Chekhov’s short stories and plays. The genre of the short story and its relationship to realist, modernist, and postmodernist aesthetics. Chekhov’s influence in Russia and abroad.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Course will be given in English.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Lyudmila Parts
-
RUSS 333 Petersburg: City of Myth 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): In Russian culture, the two major cities, Moscow and Saint-Petersburg, represent the two sides of Russian culture: its past in Orthodoxy and Russianness and its future in European culture and internationalism. The culture of Saint-Petersburg both reflects the city and redefines the meaning of the city for the future. This class will examine Russian culture within the context of the city itself, providing students with a holistic look at an embedded culture.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisites: Previous course work in Russian literature, film, or history is highly recommended.
- Readings and class discussions in English.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 337 Vladimir Nabokov 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Cross sampling of short stories and major novels by Vladimir Nabokov; his life-long love affair with language and "aesthetic bliss"; his flouting of convention from Russia's Silver Age to post-McCarthy America. Lolita in and beyond the Russian context.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Given in English.
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
-
RUSS 340 Russian Short Story 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Russian stories that encompass the major aesthetic and thematic concerns of the short story genre. Recurrent themes of language's power and limits, of childhood and old age, of art and sexuality, and of cultural, individual, and artistic memory.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 347 Late and Post-Soviet Culture 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): The re-invention of Russian culture in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Featuring Soviet beatniks, dissidents, and cultural iconoclasts; covering pop-culture, Pepsi and PR, perestroika, and the encounter with Western postmodernism. In literature, the emergence of 'new’ voices (women’s prose, émigré writers), new or newly rediscovered genres (detective fiction, sci-fi, bard or sung poetry, the essay). In the visual arts, points of contact, overlap and competition with film, conceptualist or concrete poetry, installations, memes). For over two and a half centuries, Russian literature was seen as the cornerstone of cultural identity and national pride. How does it confront today the challenges of a post-literary age and, tenuously, post-Soviet age?
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: One of the following or its equivalent: RUSS 217, RUSS 218, RUSS 223, or RUSS 224
- Readings and Class discussions in English.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
-
RUSS 350 Central European Film 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): The development of film in the Central European area, alongside the history and culture of the region.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 357 Leo Tolstoy 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An in-depth exploration of the literature and thought of Leo Tolstoy. This course will cover his major works of fiction as well as non-fiction essays, diary entries, and letters, with the majority of the semester devoted to his great masterpiece, War and Peace.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Lyudmila Parts
-
RUSS 358 Fyodor Dostoevsky 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An in-depth study of the writing and thought of Fyodor Dostoevsky. Through reading Dostoevsky's major novels as well as some of his short fiction and journalism in the context of his times, this course will explore Dostoevsky's contributions to literature and philosophy.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Taught in English
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 365 Supernatural&Absurd in RussLit 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Themes of absurd, bizarre, surreal, supernatural, and fantastic in works by Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky, Kharms, Bulgakov, Petrushevskaia, Pelevin, and others. Focus on the Russian literary imagination and the historical and political conflicts which haunt it. Theories of the gothic, fantastic, and absurd.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 369 Narrative&Memory: Russian Cult 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Exploration of literary and cinematic representations of the themes of memory, trauma, nostalgia, family history, and war in modern Russian culture. Exploration of narrative approaches to war and trauma, their effects on cultural identity, Post-Soviet nostalgia, family and childhood, and related subjects.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 381 Russia's Utopia Complex 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): From Zamiatin's We (1921), and Dostoevskii's "Grand Inquisitor" (1880), an examination of the Russian creation of and imprint on the dystopian genre. From prototypes in Russian romanticism and folklore, to dissident masterpieces of the Stalinist era, to sci-fi as rediscovered in the post-Soviet experience. Literature, film, and beyond.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Offered in English.
- Prerequisite(s): A 200-level course in literature or culture, in Russian or in the European or Asian traditions.
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
-
RUSS 382 Russian Opera 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course traces the development of the Russian opera tradition from the mid-nineteenth century to the 1950s. It explores opera's role in Russia's quest for national identity and its place in musical, literary, and political life, as well as responses to European opera trends. No knowledge of music theory required.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Taught in English.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 385 Staging Russ: Fr Push to Chekh 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Masterpieces of the Russian stage in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries; the emergence of a uniquely Russian dramatic sensitivity against prevailing European trends; the literary word in a public, political and/or avant-garde forum.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- At least 2 courses in literature and/or cultural studies.
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Lyudmila Parts
-
RUSS 390 Special Topics in Russian 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Exploration of a significant author, trend, theme or theory in modern Russian culture, including but not limited to the interface between literary works, the graphic and performing arts, ideology and national identity.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 395 Soviet Cinema:Art and Politics 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course explores the relationship between art and politics in the cinema of the Soviet Union. Students taking this course will gain a familiarity with the films and writings of Soviet directors. They will also learn the basics of formal, textual, and historical film analysis.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 397 Tarkovsky:Cinema & Philosophy 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Considered by many critics to be one of the greatest directors of all time, Tarkovsky directed such luminary films as Ivan’s Childhood (1962), Andrei Rublev (1966), Solaris (1972), Mirror (1975), and Stalker (1979). Since their first appearance, these films have challenged viewers with their deep philosophical questions and stunning visual style. This course equips students with the tools necessary to understand and interpret these films including a basis in film theory and Soviet history.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: One of the following RUSS 213, ENGL 277, FILM 279 or equivalent
- Readings in English, screenings with English subtitles.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 398 Soviet Women Filmmakers 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Dedicated to the study of under-represented female directors in Soviet cinema, particularly the films of Kira Muratova and Larisa Shepitko. The work of these two directors is nothing short of stunning; in many ways, it surpasses that of their most well-known contemporary - Andrei Tarkovsky. Explores the ways in which these films represent gender, sexuality, and women's issues in the Soviet Union.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: One of the following RUSS 213, ENGL 277, FILM 279 or equivalent
- Readings in English, films with English subtitles.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 427 Russian Fin de Siècle 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Russian poetry, prose, drama, book design and the visual arts from the Silver Age to WWI, from Chekhov to Blok and Belyi. The crisis of realism, decadence, symbolism, and its waning traced through the eternal feminine, the devil, the city, poetry as pure creation, and millennial crisis. Not open to students who have taken or are taking RUSS 465.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Course offered in English.
- Prerequisite(s): At least 2 courses (6 credits) in literature and/or cultural studies.
- Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken RUSS 465.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 428 Russian Avantgarde 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Russian poetry, prose, drama, the manifesto, street festivals and the explosion of experiment in the visual arts from WW1 to 1930. The avant-garde anticipates, transcends, responds and then succumbs to revolution.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite(s): At least 2 courses (6 credits) in literature and/or cultural studies.
- Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken RUSS 466.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 430 High Stalinist Culture 1 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Novels, films, art, architecture, pageantry, rhetoric and routine of the Stalinist 1930s-40s, including socialist realism as an aesthetic doctrine, utopian blueprint, target of parody, amalgam of a submerged avant-garde and state-controlled pop culture, precursor of the postmodernist simulacrum, self-proclaimed international style and/or uniquely Russian 20th-century project.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken RUSS 510
- Given in English
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 440 Russia and Its Others 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): In-depth historical approach to cultural construction of Russian national identity and to the concept of the Other as a condition of self-representation: East, West, America, class enemies, dissidents, ethnic and sexual minorities, etc. Introduction to theoretical tools for approaching issues of national identity, alterity, (post)colonialism, exoticism, and orientalism. Not open to students who have taken RUSS 475 in 201301.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite(s): At least 2 literature/cultural studies courses at the 200 or 300 level; or permission of the Department.
- Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken RUSS 475 in 201301.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Lyudmila Parts
-
RUSS 454 Narratives of Desire 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An exploration of desire as it was narrativized in Russian literature 1860-1900. The course draws on comparative examples from European literature as well as various theoretical approaches for conceptualizing love and desire.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite(s): At least two literature courses at the 200 or 300 level or permission of the department.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 475 Special Topics in Russ Culture 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Examination of a significant author, trend, theme or theory in modern Russian culture, including but not limited to the interface between literary works, the graphic and performing arts, ideology and national identity.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
-
RUSS 500 Special Topics 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Focus on a critical theme, author or work, as determined by the current research interests of faculty and visiting faculty.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Given in English
- Prerequisite: Permission of Department
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 501 Topics in Slavic Culture 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Examination of a significant author, trend, theme or theory in modern Slavic culture, including but not limited to the interface between literary works, the graphic and performing arts, ideology and national identity.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisites: Permission of the instructor.
- 1. Topic varies year to year.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- Daniel W Pratt
Honours Program in Russian (60 credits)
Program Requirement:
The Honours Russian program is for students intending to pursue graduate studies or advanced careers in the field. Students must complete 60 credits in the program, and according to Faculty regulations, Honours students must maintain a minimum CGPA of 3.00 and maintain a minimum program GPA of 3.00.
By arrangement with the Department and subject to University approval, transfer credits will be accepted from Department-approved exchange/immersion programs.
Students who have acquired language competency elsewhere will replace lower-level courses with upper-level courses. A total of 6 credits may be taken in courses offered by other departments in the Faculty; these are listed at the end of this section. Students are particularly encouraged to select from LLC course offerings.
For admission into the Honours program and approval of all course selections, students must regularly consult with an academic adviser in the Department.
Honours students, according to Faculty regulations, also must complete at least a minor concentration (18 credits) in another academic unit.
Group A: Required Courses (12 credits)
-
RUSS 452 Adv Russian Lang and Syntax 1 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Prose composition, translation, essay writing. An introduction to Russian stylistics.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 453 Advanced Russian Lang & Syntax 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Prose composition, translation, essay writing. An introduction to Russian stylistics.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Prerequisite: RUSS 452 or equivalent
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 490 Honours Seminar 01 3 Credits*
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course is intended to allow students to bring together their knowledge of the general area of Russian & Slavic Studies and produce a synthesis appropriate to their level of development. The major exercise will consist of the writing of a research paper displaying their competence.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall or Winter
- Prerequisite: Permission of the Department
- Restriction: Honours or Joint Honours in Russian and Slavic Studies
- Symbols:
- *
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 491 Honours Seminar 02 3 Credits*
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course is intended to allow students to bring together their knowledge of the general area of Russian & Slavic Studies and produce a synthesis appropriate to their level of development. The major exercise will consist of the writing of a research paper displaying their competence.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall or Winter
- Prerequisite: RUSS 490
- Symbols:
- *
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
* Note: Students must submit project proposals to their departmental adviser by March 15th or November 15th of the preceding term for individual reading and independent research courses.
Complementary Courses (48 credits)
Group B: Russian Language
0 - 24 credits to be chosen from:
-
RUSS 210 Elementary Russian Language 1 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Reading, grammar, translation, oral practice.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Izabela Zdun, Ekaterina Tutatina
-
-
RUSS 215 Elem Russian Lang Intensive 1 6 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An intensive introduction to the Russian language which covers the first year of the normal level, i.e. RUSS 210/RUSS 211 in one semester. The basic grammatical structures are covered.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Restriction: Not open to students who are taking or have taken RUSS 210, RUSS 211 or equivalent
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Maria Ivanova
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RUSS 316 Intermed Russian Lang Intns 2 6 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Continuing the Intensive program of RUSS 215 this course covers the second year of the normal level, i.e. RUSS 310/RUSS 311, in one semester. The basic grammatical structures are covered.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Prerequisite: RUSS 215 or equivalent
- Restriction: Requires departmental approval
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken RUSS 310, RUSS 311 or are taking RUSS 311
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Maria Ivanova
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RUSS 415 Adv Russian Lang Intensive 1 6 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Continuing the Intensive program of RUSS 215 and RUSS 316, students will complete their study of the fundamental structure of modern literary Russian, including the morphology and syntax of the nominal and verbal systems.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Maria Ivanova
Note: Students entering this program with previous knowledge of or exposure to Russian may, with permission of the Department, replace this group with selections from Group C or D.
Group C: 200 level
9 - 12 credits to be chosen from:
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RUSS 213 Introduction to Soviet Film 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course aims to familiarize undergraduates with the topics, figures, and concerns of Soviet film history. Students will watch and analyze films by Soviet directors including Sergei Eisenstein, Dziga Vertov, Andrei Tarkovsky, Sergei Parajanov, Kira Muratova, Larisa Shepitko, and many others in the context of their historical periods, movements, and writings. Students will learn to analyze images and cinematic techniques, as well as assess their historical, ideological, and cultural significance.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Offered in English.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 217 Russia's Eternal Questions 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Exploration of cultural archetypes defining continuity and change from Peter the Great to the present; the Russian national identity, double-faith, Western and Slovophile influences, Mother Russia, superfluous men and the Eternal Feminine, anarchism, the avant-garde, Stalinism. Recurring themes traced in literature, art, film, music, pop culture and the applied arts.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Given in English
- Restriction: Permission of the instructor
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 218 Russian Lit and Revolution 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): The dramatic developments in Russian literature of the 20th century, from revolution, through conformity, to the ironies and anxieties of the post-Soviet era. Comrades, iconoclasts, absurdists, proletarians and aesthetes; the Gulag, the literary café, the music of the spheres, the crumbling Russian village; the reforging of humanity and the rediscovery of tradition.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall or Winter
- Prerequisite: None, but some background in Russian 20C history is helpful
- Given in English
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
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RUSS 223 Russian 19c: Literary Giants 1 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): The Golden Age of Russian literature: from Pushkin, Lermontov, and Gogol to the first works of Dostoevsky and Tolstoy. This course traces the rise of a coherent literary tradition in Russia, exploring authors’ relationships to the burgeoning tradition and to their historical and cultural context.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Given in English
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Daniel W Pratt
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RUSS 224 Russian 19c. Literary Giants 2 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course explores the masterpieces of late nineteenth-century Russian literature. From psychological realism and the novel of ideas to the rise of the great short story; Turgenev, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Leskov, and Chekhov.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Given in English
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Daniel W Pratt
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RUSS 229 Intro to Russian Folklore 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An introduction to Russian folklore and folk belief: "dual-faith," traditional mentality, fairy tales, calendar rituals, folk songs, witches, healers and house spirits. The course will explore classic approaches to folklore studies as well as the influence of folk culture on Russian "high art."
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Taught in English
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 250 The Central European Novel 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Examination of the culture of Central Europe through the lens of novels, including the history, culture, and literature of the region.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
Group D: 300 and 400 level
12 - 33 credits to be chosen from:
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RUSS 327 Reading Russian Poetry 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Introduction to Russia's major poets and bards of the 19th and 20th centuries. Selected works from Pushkin to Brodsky and 20th century bards will be read in Russian.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: RUSS 316 or equivalent, or permission of the department.
- Texts to be read in the original Russian, analysis and discussion to be conducted in English and/or Russian.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 328 Readings in Russian 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): A general introduction to Russian prose, poetry and drama in the 19th Century. Selected texts will be read in the original and discussed.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: RUSS 316 or equivalent, or permission of the Department.
- Texts to be read in the original Russian; analysis and discussion to be conducted in English and/or Russian.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Maria Ivanova
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RUSS 330 Chekhov without Borders 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Chekhov’s short stories and plays. The genre of the short story and its relationship to realist, modernist, and postmodernist aesthetics. Chekhov’s influence in Russia and abroad.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Course will be given in English.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Lyudmila Parts
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RUSS 333 Petersburg: City of Myth 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): In Russian culture, the two major cities, Moscow and Saint-Petersburg, represent the two sides of Russian culture: its past in Orthodoxy and Russianness and its future in European culture and internationalism. The culture of Saint-Petersburg both reflects the city and redefines the meaning of the city for the future. This class will examine Russian culture within the context of the city itself, providing students with a holistic look at an embedded culture.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisites: Previous course work in Russian literature, film, or history is highly recommended.
- Readings and class discussions in English.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 337 Vladimir Nabokov 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Cross sampling of short stories and major novels by Vladimir Nabokov; his life-long love affair with language and "aesthetic bliss"; his flouting of convention from Russia's Silver Age to post-McCarthy America. Lolita in and beyond the Russian context.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Given in English.
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
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RUSS 340 Russian Short Story 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Russian stories that encompass the major aesthetic and thematic concerns of the short story genre. Recurrent themes of language's power and limits, of childhood and old age, of art and sexuality, and of cultural, individual, and artistic memory.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 347 Late and Post-Soviet Culture 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): The re-invention of Russian culture in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Featuring Soviet beatniks, dissidents, and cultural iconoclasts; covering pop-culture, Pepsi and PR, perestroika, and the encounter with Western postmodernism. In literature, the emergence of 'new’ voices (women’s prose, émigré writers), new or newly rediscovered genres (detective fiction, sci-fi, bard or sung poetry, the essay). In the visual arts, points of contact, overlap and competition with film, conceptualist or concrete poetry, installations, memes). For over two and a half centuries, Russian literature was seen as the cornerstone of cultural identity and national pride. How does it confront today the challenges of a post-literary age and, tenuously, post-Soviet age?
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: One of the following or its equivalent: RUSS 217, RUSS 218, RUSS 223, or RUSS 224
- Readings and Class discussions in English.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
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RUSS 350 Central European Film 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): The development of film in the Central European area, alongside the history and culture of the region.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 357 Leo Tolstoy 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An in-depth exploration of the literature and thought of Leo Tolstoy. This course will cover his major works of fiction as well as non-fiction essays, diary entries, and letters, with the majority of the semester devoted to his great masterpiece, War and Peace.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Lyudmila Parts
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RUSS 358 Fyodor Dostoevsky 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An in-depth study of the writing and thought of Fyodor Dostoevsky. Through reading Dostoevsky's major novels as well as some of his short fiction and journalism in the context of his times, this course will explore Dostoevsky's contributions to literature and philosophy.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Taught in English
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 365 Supernatural&Absurd in RussLit 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Themes of absurd, bizarre, surreal, supernatural, and fantastic in works by Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky, Kharms, Bulgakov, Petrushevskaia, Pelevin, and others. Focus on the Russian literary imagination and the historical and political conflicts which haunt it. Theories of the gothic, fantastic, and absurd.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 369 Narrative&Memory: Russian Cult 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Exploration of literary and cinematic representations of the themes of memory, trauma, nostalgia, family history, and war in modern Russian culture. Exploration of narrative approaches to war and trauma, their effects on cultural identity, Post-Soviet nostalgia, family and childhood, and related subjects.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 381 Russia's Utopia Complex 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): From Zamiatin's We (1921), and Dostoevskii's "Grand Inquisitor" (1880), an examination of the Russian creation of and imprint on the dystopian genre. From prototypes in Russian romanticism and folklore, to dissident masterpieces of the Stalinist era, to sci-fi as rediscovered in the post-Soviet experience. Literature, film, and beyond.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Offered in English.
- Prerequisite(s): A 200-level course in literature or culture, in Russian or in the European or Asian traditions.
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
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RUSS 382 Russian Opera 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): This course traces the development of the Russian opera tradition from the mid-nineteenth century to the 1950s. It explores opera's role in Russia's quest for national identity and its place in musical, literary, and political life, as well as responses to European opera trends. No knowledge of music theory required.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Taught in English.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 385 Staging Russ: Fr Push to Chekh 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Masterpieces of the Russian stage in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries; the emergence of a uniquely Russian dramatic sensitivity against prevailing European trends; the literary word in a public, political and/or avant-garde forum.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- At least 2 courses in literature and/or cultural studies.
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Lyudmila Parts
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RUSS 390 Special Topics in Russian 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Exploration of a significant author, trend, theme or theory in modern Russian culture, including but not limited to the interface between literary works, the graphic and performing arts, ideology and national identity.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Fall
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 397 Tarkovsky:Cinema & Philosophy 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Considered by many critics to be one of the greatest directors of all time, Tarkovsky directed such luminary films as Ivan’s Childhood (1962), Andrei Rublev (1966), Solaris (1972), Mirror (1975), and Stalker (1979). Since their first appearance, these films have challenged viewers with their deep philosophical questions and stunning visual style. This course equips students with the tools necessary to understand and interpret these films including a basis in film theory and Soviet history.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: One of the following RUSS 213, ENGL 277, FILM 279 or equivalent
- Readings in English, screenings with English subtitles.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 398 Soviet Women Filmmakers 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Dedicated to the study of under-represented female directors in Soviet cinema, particularly the films of Kira Muratova and Larisa Shepitko. The work of these two directors is nothing short of stunning; in many ways, it surpasses that of their most well-known contemporary - Andrei Tarkovsky. Explores the ways in which these films represent gender, sexuality, and women's issues in the Soviet Union.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite: One of the following RUSS 213, ENGL 277, FILM 279 or equivalent
- Readings in English, films with English subtitles.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 427 Russian Fin de Siècle 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Russian poetry, prose, drama, book design and the visual arts from the Silver Age to WWI, from Chekhov to Blok and Belyi. The crisis of realism, decadence, symbolism, and its waning traced through the eternal feminine, the devil, the city, poetry as pure creation, and millennial crisis. Not open to students who have taken or are taking RUSS 465.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Course offered in English.
- Prerequisite(s): At least 2 courses (6 credits) in literature and/or cultural studies.
- Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken RUSS 465.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 428 Russian Avantgarde 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Russian poetry, prose, drama, the manifesto, street festivals and the explosion of experiment in the visual arts from WW1 to 1930. The avant-garde anticipates, transcends, responds and then succumbs to revolution.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite(s): At least 2 courses (6 credits) in literature and/or cultural studies.
- Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken RUSS 466.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 430 High Stalinist Culture 1 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Novels, films, art, architecture, pageantry, rhetoric and routine of the Stalinist 1930s-40s, including socialist realism as an aesthetic doctrine, utopian blueprint, target of parody, amalgam of a submerged avant-garde and state-controlled pop culture, precursor of the postmodernist simulacrum, self-proclaimed international style and/or uniquely Russian 20th-century project.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken RUSS 510
- Given in English
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 440 Russia and Its Others 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): In-depth historical approach to cultural construction of Russian national identity and to the concept of the Other as a condition of self-representation: East, West, America, class enemies, dissidents, ethnic and sexual minorities, etc. Introduction to theoretical tools for approaching issues of national identity, alterity, (post)colonialism, exoticism, and orientalism. Not open to students who have taken RUSS 475 in 201301.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite(s): At least 2 literature/cultural studies courses at the 200 or 300 level; or permission of the Department.
- Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken RUSS 475 in 201301.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Lyudmila Parts
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RUSS 454 Narratives of Desire 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): An exploration of desire as it was narrativized in Russian literature 1860-1900. The course draws on comparative examples from European literature as well as various theoretical approaches for conceptualizing love and desire.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisite(s): At least two literature courses at the 200 or 300 level or permission of the department.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
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RUSS 475 Special Topics in Russ Culture 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Examination of a significant author, trend, theme or theory in modern Russian culture, including but not limited to the interface between literary works, the graphic and performing arts, ideology and national identity.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Winter
- Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Laura A Beraha
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RUSS 500 Special Topics 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Focus on a critical theme, author or work, as determined by the current research interests of faculty and visiting faculty.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Given in English
- Prerequisite: Permission of Department
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
RUSS 501 Topics in Slavic Culture 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Russian (Arts): Examination of a significant author, trend, theme or theory in modern Slavic culture, including but not limited to the interface between literary works, the graphic and performing arts, ideology and national identity.
Offered by: Languages,Literatures,Cultures
- Prerequisites: Permission of the instructor.
- 1. Topic varies year to year.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- Daniel W Pratt
Group E: LLC and Faculty of Arts
0 - 6 credits to be chosen from the following or their equivalent:
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ANTH 303 Ethnogr. of Post-socialism 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Anthropology: Understanding postsocialism through engagement with ethnography that explores how markets interact with political rule, social forms, and the production of cultural values across different geographies and histories. This course focuses primarily on the former Soviet Union, East Germany, and China.
Offered by: Anthropology
- Winter
- Prerequisites: ANTH 202 and one other 200-level anthropology course, U2 standing or above, or permission of instructor.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Sandra T Hyde
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HIST 216 Intro to Russian History 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:History: The longue durée of Russian history from its origins in Kievan Rus and the Rurik dynasty, through the Romanov dynasty, the Soviet period, and post-Soviet developments.
Offered by: History and Classical Studies
- Restrictions: Not open to students who have taken HIST 236.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
HIST 226 E Central &SE Europe in 20th C 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:History: Introductory survey of east central and southeastern European history from the twilight of nineteenth-century imperialism to the most recent expansion of the European Union. Consideration will be given to the two world wars and their consequences; nationalism, fascism, and socialism; and the revolutions of 1989.
Offered by: History and Classical Studies
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
HIST 306 East Central Europe, 1944-2004 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:History: An examination of important problems in the postwar history of east central Europe. Topics include: the establishment of Communist regimes; Stalinism and de-Stalinization; everyday life under Communism; the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, the Prague Spring, and Solidarity; political opposition; culture; and the revolutions of 1989.
Offered by: History and Classical Studies
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
HIST 313 Habsburg Monarchy, 1618-1918 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:History: History of the central European Habsburg Monarchy from its consolidation in the Thirty Years' War to its demise in the Great War. Topics include: counter-Reformation and the baroque, enlightened absolutism, the partitions of Poland, the revolutions of 1848, the rise of nationalism, and fin-de-siècle society and culture.
Offered by: History and Classical Studies
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
HIST 316 History of the Russian Empire 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:History: History of the Russian empire from its formal proclamation by Peter the Great to its eventual collapse in 1917; the rise of the Romanov dynasty, imperial conquest, and the dynamics of imperial Russian society, and the revolutions of 1905 and 1917.
Offered by: History and Classical Studies
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
HIST 326 History of the Soviet Union 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:History: The history of the Soviet Union from 1917-1991, examining its origins in the collapse of autocracy, early Soviet utopianism, the rise of Stalin, the Second World War, Khrushchev’s reforms, the Cold War and the decline and eventual collapse of the USSR, as well as its legacies in the post-Soviet period.
Offered by: History and Classical Studies
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Donald James Morard III
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HIST 406 Topics: Russian History 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:History: Examination of a selected topic in Russian history from the reign of Peter the Great to the present time.
Offered by: History and Classical Studies
- Prerequisite: A prior course in Russian or European history
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
HIST 576D1 Seminar:Topics in Russian Hist 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:History: Topics in Russian history. Topic varies by year.
Offered by: History and Classical Studies
- Students must register for both HIST 576D1 and HIST 576D2
- No credit will be given for this course unless both HIST 576D1 and HIST 576D2 are successfully completed in consecutive terms
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
HIST 576D2 Seminar:Topics in Russian Hist 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:History: See HIST 576D1 for course description.
Offered by: History and Classical Studies
- Prerequisite: HIST 576D1
- No credit will be given for this course unless both HIST 576D1 and HIST 576D2 are successfully completed in consecutive terms
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
JWST 303 The Soviet Jewish Experience 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Jewish Studies: Sovietization both fueled the modernization of Russian Jewry and contributed to its eventual suppression. This experience will be examined from two perspectives: history and literature. The interrelationship between culture and politics and the effects of ideology and censorship on literature will be discussed.
Offered by: Jewish Studies
- For detailed course content go to www.mcgill.ca/jewishstudies/undergraduates.
- Readings in English
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024-2025 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024-2025 academic year
-
POLI 329 Russian Politics 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Political Science: Broad introduction to contemporary Russian politics. Examination of the Soviet system and its collapse. Exploration of key elements of Russian politics such as formal and informal political institutions; economic transformation and statebusiness relations; nationalism, memory, and identity; civil society and social movements; and Russian foreign policy.
Offered by: Political Science
- Terms
- Winter 2025
- Instructors
- Juliet E Johnson
-
POLI 331 Politics in E Central Europe 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Political Science: Analysis of recent dramatic changes in East Central Europe in light of the historical development and current structure of these states, their relationship to their societies, with emphasis on diversity and its sources.
Offered by: Political Science
- Prerequisite: Some prior related course i.e. Comparative Politics or East European History or written consent of the instructor. Recommended POLI 329.
- The field is Comparative Politics.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- David Dubé
-
SOCI 455 Post-Socialist Societies 3 Credits
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Offered in the:Sociology (Arts): The demise of Communist Party rule between 1989 - 1991 throughout Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. The societal implications (e.g. class formation, gender relations, nationalism, corruption, religious freedom) of these dramatic economic and political changes.
Offered by: Sociology
- Prerequisite: SOCI 210.
- Terms
- Fall 2024
- Instructors
- Elaine S Weiner
Note: For pre/corequisites and availability of Anthropology (ANTH), Economics (ECON), History (HIST), Jewish Studies (JWST), Political Science (POLI), and Sociology (SOCI) courses, students should consult the offering department and Class Schedule.
Students are particularly encouraged to select from the growing options available under the LLC course offerings; these are subject to Departmental approval.
Joint Honours Program - Russian Component
Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) - Joint Honours Component Russian (36 credits)
Students wishing to study at the Honours level in two disciplines can combine Joint Honours program components in any two Arts disciplines. For a list of available Joint Honours programs, see "Overview of Programs Offered" and "Joint Honours Programs".
Prior to registering for each Joint Honours component, students must consult with advisers in the respective departments for approval of their course selection.
According to Faculty regulations, Joint Honours students must maintain a minimum CGPA of 3.00 and maintain a minimum program GPA of 3.00. Departments may require a higher program GPA. Joint Honours students must meet the requirements of both components of their program.
The specific course requirements for the 36-credit Joint Honours Component Russian program are determined on an individual basis in consultation with the student’s program adviser(s).
The Honours thesis course, RUSS 490, is usually completed in the student’s final year and is on a topic in Russian literature or culture agreed upon in consultation with the student’s thesis advisor.* It is to be written independently from the thesis that is required by the second program in which the student is pursuing their Joint Honours degree
*Note: Students must submit their Russian thesis project proposals to the Russian Studies departmental adviser by March 15th or November 15th of the preceding term for independent research courses.
Group A:Russian Language
Students entering this program with previous knowledge of or exposure to Russian may, with permission of the Department, replace this group with selections from Group B or Group C.
18 credits selected from the following courses or their equivalent:
RUSS 210 | (3) | Elementary Russian Language 1 |
RUSS 211 | (3) | Elementary Russian Language 2 |
RUSS 215* | (6) | Elementary Russian Language Intensive 1 |
RUSS 300 | (3) | Russian for Heritage Speakers 1 |
RUSS 301 | (3) | Russian for Heritage Speakers 2 |
RUSS 310 | (3) | Intermediate Russian Language 1 |
RUSS 311 | (3) | Intermediate Russian Language 2 |
RUSS 316** | (6) | Intermediate Russian Language Intensive 2 |
RUSS 327 | (3) | Reading Russian Poetry |
RUSS 328 | (3) | Readings in Russian |
RUSS 410 | (3) | Advanced Russian Language 1 |
RUSS 411 | (3) | Advanced Russian Language 2 |
RUSS 415*** | (6) | Advanced Russian Language Intensive 1 |
RUSS 453 | (3) | Advanced Russian Language and Syntax |
*RUSS 215 is not open to students who have taken RUSS 210 or RUSS 211.
**RUSS 316 is not open to students who have taken RUSS 310 or RUSS 311.
***RUSS 415 is not open to students who have taken RUSS 410 or RUSS 411.
Group B
6-9 credits selected from the following courses or their equivalent:
RUSS 217 | (3) | Russia's Eternal Questions |
RUSS 218 | (3) | Russian Literature and Revolution |
RUSS 223 | (3) | Russian 19th Century: Literary Giants 1 |
RUSS 224 | (3) | Russian 19th Century: Literary Giants 2 |
RUSS 229 | (3) | Introduction to Russian Folklore |
RUSS 250 | (3) | The Central European Novel |
Group C
6-9 credits selected from the following courses or their equivalent:
RUSS 213 | (3) | Introduction to Soviet Film |
RUSS 330 | (3) | Chekhov without Borders |
RUSS 333 | (3) | Petersburg: City of Myth |
RUSS 337 | (3) | Vladimir Nabokov |
RUSS 340 | (3) | Russian Short Story |
RUSS 347 | (3) | Late and Post-Soviet Culture |
RUSS 350 | (3) | Central European Film |
RUSS 357 | (3) | Leo Tolstoy |
RUSS 358 | (3) | Fyodor Dostoevsky |
RUSS 365 | (3) | Supernatural and Absurd in Russian Literature |
RUSS 369 | (3) | Narrative and Memory in Russian Culture |
RUSS 381 | (3) | Russia's Utopia Complex |
RUSS 382 | (3) | Russian Opera |
RUSS 385 | (3) | Staging Russianness: From Pushkin to Chekhov |
RUSS 390 | (3) | Special Topics in Russian |
RUSS 395 | (3) | Soviet Cinema: Art and Politics |
RUSS 397 | (3) | Tarkovsky: Cinema and Philosophy |
RUSS 398 | (3) | Soviet Women Filmmakers |
RUSS 427 | (3) | Russian Fin de Siècle |
RUSS 428 | (3) | Russian Avantgarde |
RUSS 430 | (3) | High Stalinist Culture 1 |
RUSS 440 | (3) | Russia and Its Others |
RUSS 454 | (3) | Narratives of Desire |
RUSS 475 | (3) | Special Topics in Russ Culture |
RUSS 500 | (3) | Special Topics |
RUSS 501 | (3) | Topics in Slavic Culture |
* Students must submit proposals to their departmental adviser by March 15th or November 15th of the preceding term for individual reading and independent research courses.
Group D: Languages, Literatures, and Cultures and Faculty of Arts
0-3 credits to be chosen from the following or their equivalent:
ANTH 303 | (3) | Ethnographies of Post-socialism |
HIST 216 | (3) | Introduction to Russian History |
HIST 226 | (3) | East Central and Southeastern Europe in 20th Century |
HIST 306 | (3) | East Central Europe, 1944-2004 |
HIST 313 | (3) | Habsburg Monarchy, 1618-1918 |
HIST 316 | (3) | History of the Russian Empire |
HIST 326 | (3) | History of the Soviet Union |
HIST 406 | (3) | Topics: Russian History |
HIST 576D1 | (3) | Seminar: Topics in Russian History |
HIST 576D2 | (3) | Seminar: Topics in Russian History |
JWST 303 | (3) | The Soviet Jewish Experience |
POLI 329 | (3) | Russian and Soviet Politics |
POLI 331 | (3) | Politics in East Central Europe |
POLI 419 | (3) | Transitions from Communism |
SOCI 455 | (3) | Post-Socialist Societies |
Note: For pre/corequisites and availability of Anthropology (ANTH), Economics (ECON), History (HIST), Jewish Studies (JWST), Political Science (POLI), and Sociology (SOCI) courses, students should consult the offering department and Class Schedule.
Additional Information
Language Course Registration
A. Russian Studies offers Russian language courses at three levels, at both the regular and intensive track:
- – Beginner (RUSS 210 in the Fall and RUSS 211 in the Winter)
– Beginner Intensive (RUSS 215 in the Winter or in the Summer) - – Intermediate (RUSS 310 in the Fall and RUSS 311 in the Winter)
– Intermediate Intensive (RUSS 316 in the Fall) - – Advanced (RUSS 400 in the Fall and RUSS 401 in the Winter)
– Advanced Intensive (RUSS 415)
Students may choose to enrol in the regular track, or in the intensive track, or may complete their program by following different tracks (e.g. completing beginner intensive and then taking intermediate at the regular track).
Additionally, we offer two “bridge” courses focusing on reading authentic texts in Russian:
RUSS 327 (Reading Russian poetry) and RUSS 328 (Readings in Russian). Prerequisite: RUSS 311 or RUSS 316, or equivalent. Heritage speakers need to contact the instructor directly to obtain permission. No experience in literary analysis required.
B. Placement tests
Placement tests are administered during the first week of classes in the Fall and Winter semesters. Detailed schedule with times will be available on the bulletin boards outside room 343. Students without any prior knowledge of and /or exposure to Russian do not need to take the test and should enrol in RUSS 210 or RUSS 215 directly. All other students wishing to take a Russian class, must take the test. Please note that heritage speakers may not enrol in the Beginner-level classes.
In case your section is full, you should still come to class on the first day of classes and talk to your instructor. More spots often become available during add/drop and it is important that you keep up to date on the material covered in the first days.
Should you have any questions, please contact the maria.ivanova [at] mcgill.ca (Language Program Director).
Audit Sheets
Program Advisors
Director of Undergraduate Studies/ Undergraduate Advisor
Prof. Daniel W. Pratt
688 Sherbrooke West, Room 333
Montreal, QC H3A 2M7
daniel.pratt [at] mcgill.ca
Office hours: by appointment
Director of Language Programs/Language Advisor
Dr. Maria Ivanova
680 Sherbrooke West, Room 343
Montreal, QC H3A 2M7
maria.ivanova [at] mcgill.ca
Office hours: by appointment