Course Schedule

RSSS 101 – Elementary Russian I

For the student with no previous experience in Russian.

RSSS 102 – Elementary Russian II

For the student with some knowledge of Russian.

RSSS 114 – How to Learn a Foreign Language

The goal of the course is to provide students with important tools to help them become successful foreign language learners. Students will become familiar with basic elements of language such as parts of speech and the pronunciation of new sounds as a means of enabling them to anticipate and effectively deal with problems in pronunciation, vocabulary building, and sentence formation that often come up in foreign language study. They will also learn about the intertwining of culture and language, such as how expressions of politeness and body language differ across cultures. They will also be exposed to different language teaching and learning styles, typical mistakes language learners make, and strategies for making language learning more effective. This information will be presented in the context of the wide variety of languages taught at the University of Arizona

RSSS 150B1 – East European Cinema in Social Context

East European Cinema in a Social Context (RSSS150) introduces students to a variety of excellent films that have come out of Eastern Europe in the last 100 years or so. Students will learn about the socio-political and cultural contexts of these films, the societies in which they were produced, and the events and situations that they depict. The goal of the course is to increase students' understanding and knowledge of Eastern European societies, cultures, and history while at the same time enhancing their appreciation and understanding of particular film masterpieces and cinema in general. By engaging them in the close study of these films, the course should help students develop analytical and viewing skills. Students should emerge from this course with a strong understanding of cinematic terms, an enriched understanding of diverse cultures of the region, and the tools for further exploration in a variety of academic disciplines (language, film, history, etc.). For purposes of this course, Eastern Europe includes the geographical area bounded by the Czech Republic in the west, Russia in the east; Poland in the north, and the former Yugoslavia & Greece in the south. We will watch a selection of movies from different areas.

RSSS 150B2 – Multicultural Russia

This course explores the diverse ethnic, linguistic, religious, and cultural identities of Russia's population, including the history of how such identities have evolved over time. We will discuss encounters and conflicts between mainstream and minority cultures, as well as the ways such encounters are viewed on the global stage and within Russia. By analyzing works of literature, films, historical documents, linguistics, works of art, musical recordings, and scholarship from the humanities and social sciences, students will become familiar with the most pressing debates on diversity, post-colonialism, and plurality in contemporary Russia.

RSSS 202 – Intermediate Russian II

Fourth semester Russian.

RSSS 275 – Eastern Europe & the Balkans: Constructing Identity in Contact and Conflict

This course is an interdisciplinary introduction to Eastern European and Balkan cultures, primarily those of Poland, Hungary, Ukraine, and the former Yugoslavia. When most people think of this region today, images of the most recent wars and chaos of post-Communist times come to mind. However, hidden behind these images is a region rich in history and culture: Viennese cafe culture meets the Mediterranean; world religions meet and intermingle, and the region's contemporary arts have influenced global culture. In this class we will explore this region's turbulent history, cross-cultural interactions, and common traditions and customs.

RSSS 280 – Sports and Empire: Sport in Soviet & Post-Soviet Eastern European Society

For almost 100 years, the Soviet Union and Russia have used large sporting events for both geopolitical and domestic purposes. In the Soviet Union sport was not only a means of entertainment, but also a key element of state propaganda. Through sport, the new Soviet person was to be made. By 1956, the Soviet Union took home more Olympic medals than the US team, setting the stage for a rivalry between capitalist and socialist states that would last throughout the Cold War era. This course will explore the birth of sport in Russia and Eastern Europe, trace how the Soviet system created a propaganda machine out of international sporting competition, and how the Soviet legacy continues into the modern day. We will also discuss contemporary sporting issues--such as doping scandals and the hosting of international events--to analyze how sport is used as a projection of identity, resistance and/or power in the global arena.

RSSS 302 – Advanced Grammar and Composition

RSSS 315 – Vampires and Werewolves: Slavic & East European Folklore in our Culture

This course will examine the ways in which the vampire and werewolf serve as metaphors for human fears and desires. Starting with East European peoples, we will explore how the folklore around the monsters symbolized "the other" and cultural taboos. We will trace how Western cultures engaged with, adopted and transformed the East European beliefs to reflect evolving conception of identity, social conflict, gender/sexuality, and the nature of good and evil

RSSS 320 – Criminal Russia: From Rasputin to Putin

In contemporary Russia -- marked by extreme inequality; political prosecutions; government discrimination against racial, ethnic, religious, and sexual minorities; extensive corruption, and prisoners' human rights violations -- the illegal has permeated the legal. "Criminal Russia" centers on the concept of power, and specifically, on the process of its consolidation and application by legitimate and illicit structures, and on the effect these processes have on different populations. To do this, the course begins with considering the influence of crime on the government in imperial Russia and the nation's fascination with a glorified criminal archetype. Then, moving to the more recent period, "Criminal Russia" explores the oppressive nature of the Soviet state, realized in unlawful mass incarcerations into Gulags; the interweaving of the criminal code into Russian politics; the rise and (alleged) fall of the Russian mafia; the country's penitentiary system as a reflection of societal power verticals and the collective sense of right and wrong; and the paradoxical place of the criminal culture within the national consciousness. Upon completing the course, students will be able: (1) to critically analyze issues of power (and power abuse) by the state and by its shadow using various disciplinary approaches, (2) to address issues of freedom, oppression, incarceration, and human rights, in Russia and elsewhere, and (3) to explain how counter cultures subvert dominant ideologies.

RSSS 325 – Eastern Orthodoxy in a Global Age

This course focuses on the history and doctrine of Eastern Christianity from its origins in the early Church through today, emphasizing the cultural manifestations of Orthodox doctrine: liturgy, iconography, pious practice. We will compare Eastern Orthodoxy to Western Christianity (Catholicism and Protestantism), and will examine various different national Churches within Eastern Orthodoxy (i.e., Byzantine, Bulgarian, Serbian, Modern Greek, the older "Oriental" Churches, etc.), with a primary focus on Russia. Eastern Orthodox Christianity is often perceived as being one of the more 'mystical' of Christian traditions, and we will explore the Orthodox vision of 'the mystical life', examining its basis in history and contemporary experience. We will also ask about the significance of Church doctrine and practice for the development of culture as a whole in the areas of the world in which Eastern Christianity predominates, and the ways in which that culture both differs from and relates to what we (perhaps inaccurately) call "Western" civilization. In general, Orthodox practice relies heavily on the senses, and the course is designed to be experiential. To that end, we will make at least one field trip to a local Orthodox Church during the course of the semester.

RSSS 328 – Women in Russia and Eastern Europe

This course focuses on the experiences both lived and imagined of women in Russia and Eastern Europe from the nineteenth century to the present day. We will examine the portrayal of women in print and visual culture and focus on how gender is depicted in a variety of contexts, including high and low literature; folklore and fiction; advertisements and film; political tracts and memoirs. Our discussion will consider questions of gender, sexuality, LGBTQIA+ rights movement, and the role of the family in day-to-day life and society at large; we will analyze how women's roles evolved in countries that went through radical and abrupt social and political changes.

RSSS 350 – The Soviet Experiment

Readings and discussion in English of representative Russian literary works from the 20th century.

RSSS 415 – Advanced Topics in Russian Language, Literature and Linguistics

A variable topics course taught in English or Russian (depending on subject material).

RSSS 490 – Identity, Language, & Nation

This course explores, through a range of topics and theoretical lenses, the relationship between language, identity, and larger social and cultural contexts in Russia, the Post-Soviet geopolitical arena and beyond. We will first examine the ways in which language is used to create personal and group identities and how different cultural, social, and national identities are set off against one another, and against the criteria for inclusion or exclusion within and across national boundaries and various human communities of practice. We will then examine how particular forms of speech, language varieties, and accents are tied to specific traits of speakers and the ways in which the perception of particular people and the way they communicate impacts the projection of social and cultural characteristics. Finally, we will explore the critical dimensions of the language-identity relationship, looking at the function of language to build and divide nations, define peoples, create inequalities, and shape ideologies and local literacy practices in communities, digital spaces, and educational settings. Students will examine various approaches to theorizing identity in sociolinguistics and second language acquisition studies, and will learn to disentangle such constructs as multilingual identity, national\local\ethnic identity, subjectivity, self-concept, mobile identity, digital identity, the self-system, etc.

RSSS 493C – Internship

Specialized work on an individual basis, consisting of training and practice in actual service in a technical, business, or governmental establishment.

RSSS 515 – Advanced Topics in Russian Language, Literature and Linguistics

A variable topics course taught in English or Russian (depending on subject material). Graduate-level requirements include graduate students being held to higher standards of proficiency in all exams and coursework. Graduate students will be given more challenging assignments and may have additional, separate meetings with the instructor.

RSSS 583 – History of the Russian Language

Diachronic study of the Russian language from Indo-European up to the modern period.

RSSS 590 – Identity, Language, & Nation

This course explores, through a range of topics and theoretical lenses, the relationship between language, identity, and larger social and cultural contexts in Russia, the Post-Soviet geopolitical arena and beyond. We will first examine the ways in which language is used to create personal and group identities and how different cultural, social, and national identities are set off against one another, and against the criteria for inclusion or exclusion within and across national boundaries and various human communities of practice. We will then examine how particular forms of speech, language varieties, and accents are tied to specific traits of speakers and the ways in which the perception of particular people and the way they communicate impacts the projection of social and cultural characteristics. Finally, we will explore the critical dimensions of the language-identity relationship, looking at the function of language to build and divide nations, define peoples, create inequalities, and shape ideologies and local literacy practices in communities, digital spaces, and educational settings. Students will examine various approaches to theorizing identity in sociolinguistics and second language acquisition studies, and will learn to disentangle such constructs as multilingual identity, national\local\ethnic identity, subjectivity, self-concept, mobile identity, digital identity, the self-system, etc.

RSSS 593C – Internship

Specialized work on an individual basis, consisting of training and practice in actual service in a technical, business, or governmental establishment.

RSSS 596J – Second Language Acquisition Research

The development and exchange of scholarly information, usually in a small group setting. The scope of work shall consist of research by course registrants, with the exchange of the results of such research through discussion, reports, and/or papers.

RSSS 315 – Vampires and Werewolves: Slavic & East European Folklore in our Culture

This course will examine the ways in which the vampire and werewolf serve as metaphors for human fears and desires. Starting with East European peoples, we will explore how the folklore around the monsters symbolized "the other" and cultural taboos. We will trace how Western cultures engaged with, adopted and transformed the East European beliefs to reflect evolving conception of identity, social conflict, gender/sexuality, and the nature of good and evil