Official course descriptions may be found in the Undergraduate Catalog. Extended course descriptions for selected courses are given below.
RUS 101 Elementary Russian I
This is the beginning course to learning Russian. No prior knowledge is assumed. We start with the Russian alphabet and move on from there. The textbook used is Golosa: A Basic Course in Russian, which is a two-volume set currently in its 5th edition. The course also makes use of materials available on the Internet created by the authors of the textbook and by the instructor. In RUS 101 chapters 1-6 of Golosa Book 1 (both textbook and accompanying workbook) are covered.
The class meets five days per week for four credit hours. The course bears the FL and HU designations of the university core curriculum.
RUS 102 Elementary Russian II
Here we continue to build on the basics acquired in RUS 101. We finish the last four chapters of Golosa, Book 1 and cover the first two chapters of Book 2, both textbook and workbook. As in RUS 101 the course also makes use of materials available on the Internet created by the authors of the textbook and by the instructor.
The class meets five days per week for four credit hours. The course bears the FL and HU designations of the university core curriculum.
RUS 201 Intermediate Russian I
In this we continue with the same textbook and build upon the foundations of the first-year sequence. However, in second-year the pace is less intense because the class meets only three times per week for three credit hours. We cover chapter 3-6 of Golosa, Book 2, both textbook and workbook. If time permits, we also begin to introduce small pieces of Russian literature. The course bears the HU designation of the university core curriculum.
RUS 202 Intermediate Russian II
In this course we complete the study of the basics of Russian grammar. By the end of the second year the student will have a very large vocabulary and will have mastered most of the major issues in Russian grammar. We finish Golosa, Book 2 (chapters 7-10), both textbook and workbook. As a result more and more specimens from Russian literature are introduced to the student and by the end of the course the student is ready to begin larger works.
The class meets three days per week for three credit hours. The course bears the HU designation of the university core curriculum.
RUS 223 Russian Literature in Translation I
This is the first part of a two-semester sequence. In RUS 223 we study Russian literature from its beginning with the introduction of literacy to Kievan Rus’ until the 1880s. The goal of the course is to give the students as wide a sampling of different authors and genres as possible. Therefore we do not concentrate too much on any single author and we read poetry, prose (both short story and novel) and drama. Authors read include Pushkin, Gogol, Lermontov, Turgenev, Leskov, Dostoevsky, and Tolstoy. All works are read in English translation. No knowledge of Russian is required for this course.
The class usually meets two days per week (Tuesday & Thursday) for three credit hours. The course bears the HU and L designations of the university core curriculum. Usually taught in the fall semester.
RUS 224 Russian Literature in Translation II
This is the second part of a two-semester sequence. In RUS 224 we study Russian literature from roughly the 1880s to the current day. The goal of the course is to give the students as wide a sampling of different authors and genres as possible. Therefore we do not concentrate too much on any single author and we read poetry, prose (both short story and novel) and drama. Authors read include Chekhov, Gorky, Bunin, Blok, Bely, Zamyatin, Pasternak, Solzhenitsyn, etc. All works are read in English translation. No knowledge of Russian is required for this course.
The class usually meets two days per week (Tuesday & Thursday) for three credit hours. The course bears the HU and L designations of the university core curriculum. Usually taught in the spring semester.
RUS 252 Russian Folklore
In this course the student will be introduced to the basic genres and motifs of Russian folklore. Our survey starts with Russian folklore’s origin in Slavic paganism and concludes with the rise of modern, urban forms. We will read as wide a variety of genres as possible, including the folk epic, historical epics, the folk ballad, the folk tale, folk narratives, folk Christian narratives, songs, proverbs/sayings and the chastushka. In addition, we will cover the various superstitions of Russian folk belief as well as the most famous characters (Baba Yaga, the Firebird, etc.) of Russian folklore. This course will not only introduce the student to Russian folklore itself, but also to works of literature that have made use of it. Students will read all materials in English translation. No knowledge of Russian is required for this course.
The class usually meets two days per week (Tuesday & Thursday) for three (3) credit hours. The course bears the HU and L designations of the university core curriculum. Usually taught in the spring semester.
RUS 325 Dostoevsky
Introduction to the life and works of Fyodor Dostoevsky. In this course we cover Dostoevsky’s biography in some depth and we read most of his novels as well as several of his stories. We also cover some of Dostoevsky’s critical and publicistic work. The novels read include: Poor Folk, Notes from Underground, Crime and Punishment, The Idiot, The Devils (aka The Possessed), and The Brothers Karamazov. All works are read in English translation. No knowledge of Russian is required for this course.
The class usually meets two days per week (Tuesday & Thursday) for three credit hours. The course bears the W designation of the university core curriculum.
RUS 326 Tolstoy
Introduction to the life and works of Leo Tolstoy. In this course we cover Tolstoy’s biography in some depth and we read most of his novels and stories. We also cover some of Tolstoy’s non-fiction. The works read include: Childhood, Boyhood, Youth, Sevastopol Sketches, The Cossacks, War and Peace, Anna Karenina, Confession, etc. All works are read in English translation. No knowledge of Russian is required for this course.
The class usually meets two days per week (Tuesday & Thursday) for three credit hours. The course bears the W designation of the university core curriculum.
RUS 361 & RUS 362: Advanced Russian Grammar and Composition I & II
In these courses we focus on the acquisition of the advanced structures in Russian necessary for formal writing. In particular, attention is paid to the ability to use the participle and gerund forms (aka verbal adjectives and adverbs) in an active manner. Students will focus on the reading and writing of high-style Russian. In addition to reading excerpts of high-style literary Russian, the students will be asked to translate from English into Russian and to write compositions that make use of the structures covered. By the end of this sequence the student will have mastered all the basic grammatical structures of Russian and have mastered much high-style vocabulary. Progress from this point will be in the acquisition of vocabulary in a specific field, the mastering of idiomatic expressions, learning grammatical structures that are less frequently used, and so forth.