Objectives
Russian and East European studies is an interdisciplinary program for students concentrating in other departments of the University. The purpose of the program is to allow students with an interest in Russia and the nations of Eastern Europe to acquire knowledge and to develop skills in addition to those gained in other concentrations. The program combines and integrates courses from a number of departments and requires students to participate in an interdisciplinary seminar or program of independent study that results in a formal research project. Students must elect the program in addition to their regular concentrations; transcripts will indicate that they have completed the requirements of the program.
How to Become a Program Member
Interested students who have no background in Russian or any other East European language are advised to begin language training (with RUS 10a) in their first year. Appropriate placement of those with some knowledge of Russian can be arranged by consultation with Professor Swensen of the Germanic and Slavic languages department. Progress toward the program certificate will also be facilitated by early enrollment (usually in the sophomore year) in HIST 147a (Imperial Russia).
Committee
Andrew Swensen, Chair
(German and Slavic Languages)
Steven Burg
(Politics)
ChaeRan Freeze
(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)
Gregory Freeze
(History)
Robin Feuer Miller
(German and Slavic Languages)
Antony Polonsky
(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)
Requirements for the Program
A. Students must complete the following courses: HIST 147a (Imperial Russia), HIST 147b (Twentieth-Century Russia), and four semesters of Russian language.
B. Completion of one advanced course dealing with Russia, the former Soviet Union, or Eastern Europe in three of the four disciplines participating in the program (history, literature, politics, economics). Note that HIST 147a and 147b fulfill the history requirement. See list below.
C. Participation in the senior interdisciplinary seminar, REES 97a and b, when offered or completion of one semester of independent study, REES 98a or 98b, under the direction of one or more members of the program faculty. The seminar will investigate a single problem that benefits from interdisciplinary analysis. Seminar topics vary from year to year.
Courses of Instruction
REES 97a and b Senior Seminar
For students completing Russian and East European Studies Program. Signature of the program chair required.
Seminar on topics determined by student interests. Requires research using Russian or other East European language materials.
Usually offered every year.
Staff
REES 98a Independent Study
Signature of the instructor and the program chair required.
Usually offered every year.
Staff
REES 98b Independent Study
Signature of the instructor and the program chair required.
Usually offered every year.
Staff
Elective Courses
The following courses approved for the program are not all given in any one year, so the Course Schedule for each semester should be consulted.
Transition and Institutional Economics
Comparative Economic Systems
A History of the Jews in Warsaw, Lodz, Vilna, and Odessa
History and Culture of the Jews in East-Central Europe to 1914
History and Culture of the Jews in East-Central Europe, 1914 to the Present
East European Politics
Graduate Seminar: Selected Topics in Comparative Politics
Nineteenth-Century Russian Literature
Chekhov
The Heroine in Nineteenth-Century Russian Literature
History of Russian and Soviet Film
Dostoevsky
Tolstoy
A Survey of Twentieth-Century Russian Theater: Chekhov to the Present
Twentieth-Century Russian Literature, Art, Film, and Theater
Russian Prose: Undergraduate Seminar
Russian Poetry: Undergraduate Seminar
Nabokov