Undergraduate Program: Russian

Russian

Russia has long captivated the West as a land of golden onion-domed churches, vast expanses, despotic tsars, ruthless commissars, long-suffering but large-hearted people, great writers, and, of course, the mysterious Russian soul. It is also now a place where over seven hundred US companies do business and where thousands of Americans work and study.

The Russian curriculum in MLC offers students courses in beginning through advanced Russian language study, Russian literature of the last two centuries, Russian civilization, art, architecture, folklore and film, as well as seminars focusing on Tolstoy and Dostoevsky. Students are also encouraged to take Russian Studies courses that cover such topics as the analysis of ongoing events in Russia, the cult and culture of secrecy, and the politics of identity. In addition, Russian majors generally study abroad in Russia for a summer or a semester

Concentration Requirements

1. Proficiency in Russian (course work through RUS 152);
2. Two language courses at the 200 level;
3. Two courses in Russian literature (one in the 19th, one in the 20th century);
4. Three more courses in Russian language, literature and culture;
5. Either the MLC Major Seminar or the Senior Thesis.
6. Language study in Russia is strongly recommended.

Russian Humanities Clusters

Russian Studies

Russian Studies, an interdisciplinary program of the College of Arts and Sciences, incorporates the perspective of several departments and the linguistic, historical and cultural background needed to understand Russia's past, to analyze its present, and to make responsible predictions about its future.

The four departments providing the core faculty for this program are MLC, History, Political Science, and Art and Art History, but a Russian Studies major or minor concentration includes courses in or cross-listed with Religion and Classics, Judaic Studies, Polish and Central European Studies, Film Studies, Women's Studies, Comparative Literature and Economics. An interdisciplinary approach comes naturally to our students, many of whom are doing a second major in history, political science or another area.

Concentration Requirements

1. Proficiency in Russian (course work through RUS 152) or some other approved combination of two UR Russian language courses;
2. Two courses in Russian literature and two in Russian history (one of each pair should be a survey course);
3. Two courses in Political Science with a Russian or international relations focus;
4. A senior thesis.

1. One Russian language course at the 151 level or higher;
2. One survey course in Russian literature;
3. One survey course in Russian history;
4. One course in a more specialized area of Russian history or literature (depending on whether the minor is to count as Social Science or Humanities);
5. One Political Science course with a Russian or international relations focus.

NOTE: The Russian Studies Major and Minor can be counted in either Humanities or Social Sciences, depending on your choice of courses.

Russian Studies Clusters

Russian and Russian Studies Faculty

• Brenda Meehan, Ph.D. (Rochester), Professor of History
• John Givens, Ph.D. (University of Washington), Associate Professor of Russian
• Kathleen Parthé, Ph. D. (Cornell), Professor of Russian, Director of the Russian Studies Program
• Randall Stone, Ph.D. (Harvard), Assistant Professor of Political Science
• Erika Wolf, Ph.D. (University of Michigan), Assistant Professor of Art & Art History
• Laura Givens, M.A. (University of Washington), Senior Lecturer in Russian.
• Anna Maslennikova, Ph.D. (St. Petersburg), Senior Lecturer in Russian

Russian and Russian Studies Courses

AH 253   Art & Politics in the 20th Century
AH 260   Russian Avant-Garde Art (1871-1930)
AH 270   KINOFOT: Soviet Cinema & Photography

PSC 251   Old & New Nationalisms in Europe
RSC 256   Global Post-Communist Economy
PSC 262   Post-Communist Politics
PSC 268   Transitions to Democracy
PSC 270   International Politics
PSC 271   Russia & Eastern Europe
PSC 292   Politics & Economics of Post-Communist Transformations

RUS 123/124   Background Studies in Russian Culture
RUS 126/127   Russia Now
RUS 128   Russian Civilization
RUS 190/235   Tolstoy's War & Peace as Novel, History, and Film
RUS 191/237   Dostoevsky
RUS 214   Russian Folklore
RUS 231   Great Russian Writers
RUS 232   Superfluous Men, Superior Women
RUS 239   Tolstoy & Dostoevsky
RUS 243   Chekhov & His Contemporaries
RUS 247   Secret Nation: The Cult & Culture of Secrecy in Russia
RUS 248   Politics of Identity
RUS 264   Writers in Exile: Russian Literature Outside of Russia
RUS 265   Russian Literature Between the Revolutions: 1917-1991
RUS 267   Russia Goes to the Movies
RUS 289   Dangerous Texts: Literature and Politics in Russia

RST 160   The New Europe: Formations & Transformations
RST 390   Supervised Teaching
RST 394   Internship (in Rochester's Russian émigré community)

STUDY ABROAD:
Study in St. Petersburg during the White Nights in June on the UR Summer Program (6 credits). Begin or continue your study of Russian. Eligible students receive grants from the Mildred Burton Fund for this program. Students also study for a semester or academic year in Russia through the CIEE and ACTR programs (up to four courses count toward the major).

CONTACT INFORMATION:
for Russian, Professor John Givens at (585) 275-4272.
for Russian Studies Program, Professor Kathleen Parthè, Director, at (585) 275-4176.