Foreign Culture Courses

FCUL 138 Scientific and Medical Terminology

4 hours

A study of scientific terms based on Greek and Latin: roots, prefixes, suffixes, and word formation. Especially useful for students in medical, biological, and related fields. No knowledge of Greek or Latin required.

FCUL 139, 239, 339, 439 Special Topics

Credit arr.

FCUL 185 First-year Seminar

4 hours

A variety of seminars for first-year students offered each January term.

FCUL 241 Russian Culture Through Film

4 hours

This course will cover 20th-century Russian/Soviet culture and history through the medium of film. We will begin with classics of early Soviet film (including Eisenstein, Vertov, Pudovkin) and then view and discuss classic films of the Stalinist era and WWII (1930s-50s). We will continue with classic films and comedies of the 1960s and '70s (including Ryazanov, Gaidai, Tarkovsky). The later 1980s-90s (glasnot, perstroika, and the post-Soviet era) witnessed the emergence of films that revealed difficult social and historical themes (for example: Little Vera; Burnt by the Sun; Prisoner of the Caucaus; Brother I). The course will conclude with discussion of film and society in present day Russia. Films are in Russian (with English subtitles). Readings and discussions are in English. Offered on a rotating basis. No prerequisite. (HEPT, Hist, Intcl)

FCUL 243 Time of Stalin: Literature and Memoirs

4 hours

This course, through the medium of literature and memoirs, focuses on Russia/Soviet Union in the early years after the Bolshevik Revolution (1917) until Gorbachev's glasnost and perestroika. Students will learn about the rise of Stalin, the time of terror and purges at the height of Stalin's regime (mid-1930s), WWII, the "Thaw" after Stalin's death in 1953, and the implications Stalinism has on present-day Russia. We will seek answers to the questions of how Stalin was allowed to rise to power, retain political control, and instigate policies that caused the deaths of approximately 20 million Soviet citizens—many of whom were Bolsheviks and loyal members of the Communist Party. Literary readings include memoirs, poetry, and novels. A significant part of the course concerns the role of women in the Bolshevik Revolution and their fate under Stalinism. This course fulfills requirements of international studies, women's studies, and Russian studies. The course is taught in English and readings are in English. (Same as WGST 243.) Offered alternate years. No prerequisite. (HEPT, Hist, Intcl, E, W)

FCUL 341 Russian Life and Culture

4 hours

A study of the cultural, political and social institutions that have shaped Russia from the time of Kievan Rus' to the present period. Key historical and philosophical themes will be discussed in reference to art, literature, architecture, music, and Russian Orthodoxy. The course is taught in English and readings are in English. Offered on a rotating basis. No prerequisite. (HE, Hist, Intcl)

FCUL 343 Soviet Dissidents: Vocation of Change

4 hours

This course will discuss the major writings and activities of Soviet dissidents Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Andrei Sakharov, and Natan Sharansky. Special emphasis will be placed on the socio-historical context and the important role of dissidents both in the Soviet Union and in the world arena during the last decades of the USSR (1960s-1991), and how the perception of dissident activity has changed over time. We will focus on questions of human rights, religious and creative freedom, refusniks, the right to emigrate, environmental concerns, ideological differences between East and West, the theories of Co-existence and Convergence, and the role of the West in these debates. When applicable, the role of these dissidents in current politics will be discussed. The course is taught in English and readings are in English. Offered on a rotating basis. No prerequisite. (HEPT, Hist, Intcl, W)

FCUL 347 The Dramas of Ibsen and Strindberg

4 hours

A study of representative plays of two of the most influential dramatists of the 19th and 20th centuries. This course is taught in English. No prerequisite. Does not count toward a major in Scandinavian studies. (HEPT)

FCUL 349 Norwegian Folk Art

4 hours

Exploring the artistic, cultural and historical aspects of folk art created in Norway from the Middle Ages through the end of the 19th century, students will gain a knowledge of traditional Norwegian values, customs, beliefs and way of life. Extensive use of material objects as well as slides of traditional Norwegian folk art, including architecture. (Same as ART 349.) (HE)

FCUL 451 Masterworks of 19th Century Russian Literature

4 hours

A survey of 19th century Russian literature (in translation) from Romanticism to Realism. Reading and discussion of selected works of major Russian authors, including Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Chekhov, Gogol, and Lermontov. The course is taught in English and readings are in English. Prerequisite: RUS 202, or consent of the instructor. (HEPT, Hist, E, W)

FCUL 452 Masterworks of 20th Century Russian/Soviet Literature

4 hours

A survey of 20th century Russian/Soviet literature (in translation) from 1900 to the present. Reading and discussion of works by major Russian/Soviet writers, including Gorky, Mayakovsky, Akhmatova, Mandelshtam, Zoshchenko, Pasternak, Solzhenitsyn, and Bulgakov. The course is taught in English and readings are in English. No prerequisite. (HEPT, Hist, E, W)