Document R. Master Course Syllabus
BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
Bloomsburg Pennsylvania
Department of Languages aud Cultures Course Syllabus
I. DATE PREPARED: October 2012
3. DEPARTMENT: Languages and Cultures
5. COURSE TITLE: East European Film, Literature and Culture
2. PREPARED BY: MykolaPolyuha
4. COURSE NUMBER: RUSSIAN 214
6. CREDIT HOURS: 3
Goal 7. Arts and Humanities: 2 GEP Goal l. Communication: 1 GEP
7. PREREQUISITES: None.
8. CATALOG DESCRIPTION: Explores the role of cinema, literature, print and electronic media in shaping society in East European countries. Along with learning about East European popular cultures, students analyze the relationship between media and politics. Special attention will be paid to cinema, television, radio, newspapers, contemporary literary works, and the Internet. The course is designed for.students seeking General Education Points in Arts and Humanities and Communication and is taught in English in combination of lecture and discussion, and formal and informal oral and written assignments. Open to all students and applicable toward a minor or a major in Languages and Cultures: Russian and East European Studies Track. No prerequisites. Normally offered every other year.
9. CONTENT OUTLINE: Individual faculty will use different approaches but will give considerable time to reading and discussing representative examples from contemporary Russian culture. As part of each group or individual assigurnent, faculty will introduce relevant literary, artistic, cinematographic, geographical, and historical terms and concepts helpful in comprehending the structure and cultural context of each topic. The following outline represents essential topics for RUSSIAN 214:
1) Periodization questions; national borders; ethnic identities, film terminology and concepts (genres, techniques, styles, directors, technology); overview of the history of Eastern Europe and Russia.
Possible films for discussion: Battleship Potemkin, Ivan the Terrible, Bed and Sofa, The Mother
2) Russian cinematography and literature. Films and literature about the Bolshevik Revolution; Cinematography
· and literature during Stalinism; Post-Stalinist period; Glasnost period; post-Soviet issues.
Possible films for discussion: Ivan's Childhood, The Cranes are Flying, Burnt by the Sun, Little Vera, Prisoner of the Caucasus, The Brother, Sisters, Night Watch
3) Polish cinematography and literature: periodization; "Polish School" film-makers; reexamining history; "Solidarity" films and literature; post-1989 "Hollywood-Poland" alliances; new directions.
Possible films for discussion: Knife in the Water, A Short Film about Killing (Dekalog 5), A Short Film about Love, Man of Marble, Kalyn, Day ofa Wacko
4) Ukrainian cinematography and literature: periodization; Olexander Dovzhenko; Serhiy Paradzhanov; post modern cinema and literature
Possible films for discussion: Earth, Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors
5) Hungarian culture; major writers and directors
Possible films for discussion: Children of Glory, Kontrol
6) Czech and Slovak fihns: periods; major directors and writers; politics and culture; Czech "new wave"; Prague Spring and "normalization"; post-1989 (after the "Velvet Revolution'') films and literature.
Possible films for discussion: Closely Watched Trains, Ko/ya, Shop on Main Street, Loves of a Blonde, Firemen's Ball; I Served the King of England, Daisies, Alice
7) Balkan Films (Romanian, Serbian, Croatian, Slovenian, Bosnian, Macedonian, Bulgarian, Albanian, Greek); beginnings; the Balkan wars of the 1990s in fihn and literature; post-war problems.
Possible films for discussion: Tito and Me; No Man's Land; Before the Rain; Wounds, Mission London; Kawasaki's Rose; 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days
I 0. METHODS: Most classes will include a combination oflecture and group work. Like most 100- and 200-level Languages and Cultures Department culture courses, this course should be capped at 30 to facilitate discussion and adequate attention to writing instruction and evaluation.
11. STUDENT LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
Student Learning ObjectiveUpon completion of this course, students
will be able to: / Gen. Ed. Goal with GEPs / Related VALUE Rubric and Rubric Element(s)
1. Apply approaches and methods of cultural enquiry, particularly, from historical and philosophical perspectives to understand Russian
worldview / Goal 7. Arts and Humanities / Rubric: Critical Thinking Element: Explanation oflssues
2. Analyze critically the historical, ethical, political, cultural, environmental, circumstantial settings and conditions that influence the ideas in Russian cinematography, literature, and culture / Goal 7. Arts and Humanities / Rubric: Critical Thinking Element: Evidence
3. Interpret specific works of cinematography and literature using a range of ways of reading and a range
of interpretative strategies. / Goal 7. Arts and Humanities / Rubric: Reading
Element: Interpretation
4. Write coherent, polished
interpretive essays on cultural, cinematographic, and literary tonics / Goal I. Communication / Rubric: Written Communication Element: Context and Purpose;
Content Development; Conventions; Sources and Evidence
Rubric: Oral Communication Element: Organization
5. Produce well-organized oresentations / Goal I. Communication
The reading assignments, use of strategic approaches, applications of texts to social concerns, and written assignments associated with the texts that form the content of East European Culture and Civilization are aimed at acquiring and applying "knowledge from the arts and humanities to analyze [and] evaluate ... the artistic and literary traditions of our diverse world." Given that culture and civilization are inextricably integrated with Arts and Humanities and, therefore, a significant portion of historical study includes creative, philosophical, literary, and performative works, RUSSIAN214 fulfills 2 GE points for General Education Goal 7, Arts and Humanities. The course also devotes considerable time and attention to student writing. Instruction and feedback are provided for both informal writing (e.g., notes, in-class writing, quizzes, homework) and for the formal essay assignments. The emphasis on writing and learning to express one's thoughts is reflected in the weight given to formal papers in assigning final grades, justifying I GE point for General Education Goal I, Communication. RUSSIAN 214 is designed to supp01t the department's established program goals, the mission of the university to internationalize its curriculum, and to enhance the university's General Education program.
12. STUDENT ASSESSMENT (may vary in practice from instructor to instructor): For stndent learning objectives I, 2, and 3, assessment is botb formative and summative, and may include contributions to discussion, in-class writing, homework, informal responses to reading, quizzes, examinations, and formal essay assignments. For student learning objectives 4 and 5, assessment is both formative (e.g., preparing outlines and drafts) and summative (final polished presentation or essay).
13. EVALUATION OF INDNIDUAL STUDENT PERFORMANCE (may vary in practice from instructor to instructor): Stndent learning objectives 1, 2, and 3, are assessed by specific questions in the quizzes and final examination. Objectives 4 and 5 are assessed by formal oral presentations and the final formal writing assignment.
14. COURSE ASSESSMENT: To assess stndent learning objectives I through 5, this course will use two types of instruments: I) test blueprinting for quizzes and objective examinations which link test items to the student learning objectives and the cognitive demand; and 2) rubrics for essay, papers, and presentations. As requested by the General Education Council, data will be reported to the Office of Planning and Assessment using the Rubric elements listed in section 11 of this syllabus and will be used to periodically evaluate the course to ensure that it continues to meet General Education Stndent Leaming Objective and curricular goals.
15. SUPPORTING MATERIALS AND REFERENCES: Materials in Andruss Library indicated by an asterisk.
Ball, Alan M. Imagining America: Influence and Images in Twentieth-Century Russia. Rowman & Littlefield, 2003.
Barker, Adele Marie (editor). Consuming.Russia: Popular Culture, Sex, and Society Since Gorbachev. Duke University Press, 1999.
Bazan!, Jan and Nina Bazantova Frances Starn. The Czech Reader: History, Culture, Politics. Duke University Press Books, 2010.
Berlin, Isaiah. Russian Thinkers. Penguin Classics, 2008.
Berry, Ellen E.; Anesa Miller-Pogacar (editor). Re-Entering the Sign: Articulating New Russian Culture.
University of Michigan Press, 1995.
Beumers, Birgit (editor). Pop Culture Russia! Media, Arts, and Lifestyle. ABC-CLIO, 2005.
---. Russia on Reels: The Russian Idea in Post-Soviet Cinema. I. B. Tauris, 1999.
---. A History of Russian Cinema. Berg Publishers, 2007.
Billington, James H. The Face of Russia: Anguish, Aspiration, and Achievement in Russian Culture. TV Books, 1999.
---. The Icon and the Axe: An Interpretive History a/Russian Culture. Alfred A. Knopf, 1966.
Borenstein, Eliot. Overkill: Sex and Violence in Contemporary Russian Popular Culture. Cornell University Press, 2008.
Bowlt, John E. and OlgaMatich (editors). Laboratory of Dreams: The Russian Avant-Garde and Cultural Experiment. Stanford University Press, 1999.
Boylr, Eloise M. and Generva Gerhart. The Russian Context: The Culture behind the Course in Russian. Pearson, 2012.
Brashinsky, Michael; Andrew Horton (editors). Russian Critics on the Cinema of Glasnost. Cambridge University Press, 1994.
Candee, Nancy (editor). Soviet Hieroglyphics: Visual Culture in Late Twentieth-Century Russia. Indiana University Press, 1995.
Diment, Galya; Yuri Slezkine (editor). Between Heaven and Hell: The Myth of Siberia in Russian Culture.
Macmillan, 1993.
Draitser, Emil. Taking Penguins to the Movies: Ethnic Humor in Russia. Wayne State University Press, 1998. Efimova, Alla and Lev Manovich (editors). Tekstura: Russian Essays on Visual Culture. University of Chicago
Press, 1993.
Elfimov, Alexei. Russian Intellectual Culture in Transition: The Future in the Past. Transaction Publishers, 2003. Emery, George (editor). Contemporary East European Poetry: An Anthology. Oxford University Press, 1994.
Epstein, Mikhail N., Aleksandr A. Genis, and Slobodanka M. Vladiv-Glover. Russian Postmodemism: New Perspectives on Post-Soviet Culture. Berghalm Books, 1999.
Franklin, Simon and Ennna Widdis (editors). National Identity in Russian Culture: An Introduction. Cambridge University Press, 2004.
Friedberg, Maurice. Russian Culture in the l 980s. Center for Strategic and International Studies, 1985. Garbowski. Christopher. Krzysztof Kieslowski 's Decalogue Series: The Problem of the Protagonists and Their
Self-Transcendance. East European Monographs, 1996.
Gerhart, Genevra. The Russian's World: Life and Language. Slavica, 2002. Gillespie, David. Russian Cinema: Inside Film. Longman, 2003.
Gleason, Abbott and Peter Kenez; Richard Stites (editors). Bolshevik Culture: Experiment and Order in the Russian Revolution. Indiana University Press, 1989.
Goscilo, Helena and Andrea Lanoux (editors). Gender and National Identity in Twentieth-Century Russian Culture. Northern I11inois University Press, 2006.
Hashamova, Yana. Pride and Panic: Russian Imagination of the West in Post-Soviet Film. Intellect Books, 2007. Henry Hardy (editor). The Soviet Mind: Russian Culture under Communism. Brookings Institution Press, 2004. Howard, Jeremy. East European Art: 1650-1950. Oxford University Press, 2007.
Iordanova, Dina. Cinema of Flames: Balkan Film, Culture, and the Media. British Film Institute, 2008. Kelly, Catriona; David Shepherd (editor). Constructing Russian Culture in the Age of Revolution, 1881-1940.
Oxford University Press, 1998.
Kon, Igor and James Riordan (editor_s). Sex and Russian Society. Indiana University Press, 1993. Lawton, Anna M. Imaging Russia 2000: Film and Facts. New Academia Publishing, 2004.
Marsh, Rosalind (editor). Women and Russian Culture: Projections and Self-Perceptions. Berghahn Books, 1998. Mesropova, Olga. Kinotalk: Russian Cinema and Conversation. Slavica Publishers, 2006.
Milne, Lesley (editor). Reflective Laughter: Aspects of Humour in Russian Culture. Anthem Press, 2004.
* Parts, Lyudmila (editor). The Russian Twentieth-Century Short Story: A Critical Companion. Academic Studies
· Press, 2010.
Paul, David W. Politics, Art, and Commitment in the East European Cinema. Palgrave Macmillan, 1984. Petro, Nicolai N. Christianity and Russian Culture in Soviet Society. Westview Press, 1989.
Procaccia, Uriel. Russian Culture, Property Rights, and the Market Economy. Cambridge University Press, 2007.
Pyrah, Robert and Marius Turda (editors). Re-Contextualising East Central European History: Nation Culture and Minority Groups. Legenda, 2010.
Richard Stites. Russian Popular Culture: Entertainment and Society Since 1900. Cambridge University Press, 1992.
Richard Taylor (editor). Trans. Alan Badger. Early Cinema in Russia and Its Cultural Reception. University of Chicago Press, 1998.
Richmond, Yale. From Nye/ to Da: Understanding the Russians. Intercultural Press, Inc., Fourth edition. 2008. Rzhevsky, Nicholas (editor). The Cambridge Companion to Modern Russian Culture. Cambridge University
Press, 1998.
Shalin, Dmitri N. (editor). Russian Cultnre at the Crossroads: Paradoxes of Pas/communist Consciousness.
Westview Press, 1996.
Slater, Thomas J. (editor). Handbook of Soviet and East European Films and Filmmakers. Greenwood Press, 1991.
Volkov, Solomon. The Magical Chorus: A Histmy of Russian Culture from Tolstoy to Solzhenitsyn. Trans.
Antonina W. Bouis. Alfred A. Knopf, 2008.
Wigzell, Faith. Reading Russian Fortunes: Print Culture, Gender, and Divination in Russia from 1765.
Cambridge University Press, 1998.
Youngblood, Denise J. Russian War Films: On the Cinema Front, 1914-2005. University Press of Kansas, 2007.
16. PROTOTYPE TEXTS:
Armstrong, Todd Patrick. Perspectives on Modern Central and East European Literature: Quests for Identity.
Palgrave Macmillan, 200I.
Imre, Anik6. East European Cinemas. Routledge, 2005.
RUSSIAN 214: EAST EUROPEAN FILM, LITERATURE AND CULTURE (Office of Planning & Assessment 11-18-13)
CRITICAL THINKING VALUE RUBRIC
Student Learning Objective / Rubric Elements / Capstone4 / Milestones
3 2 / Benchmark
1 / Benchmark Not Met
0
1. Apply approaches / Explanation of issues / Issue/problem to be considered / Issue/problem to be considered / Issue/problem to be considered / Issue/problem to be considered / Assign a zero to any work sample
and methods of / critically is stated clearly and / critically is stated, described, and / critically is stated but desc1iption / critically is stated without / or collection of work that does not
cullural enquiry, / described comprehensively, / clarified so that understanding is / leaves some terms undefined, / clarification or description. / meet Benchmark (1) performance.
particularly, from / delivering all relevant information / not seriously impeded by / ambiguities unexplored, boundaries
historical and / necessary for full understanding. / omissions. / undetermined, and/or
philosophical / backgrounds unknown.
perspectives to
understand Russian
worldview.
2. Analyze critically / Evidence / Information is taken from / Information is taken from / lnfonnntioo is taken from / Information is taken from source(s) / Assign a zero to any work sample
the historical, ethical, / Selecting and using / source(s) with enough / source(s) with enough / source(s) with some / without any / or collection of work that does not
political, cultural, / information to investigate a / interpretation/evaluation t? / interpretation/evaluation to / interpretation/evaluation, but not / interpretation/evaluation. / meet Benchmark (1) performance.
envitorunental, / lboint of view or conduJion / develop a comprehensive analysis / develop a coherent analysis or / enough to develop a coherent / Viewpoints of experts are taken as
circumstantial settings / or synthesis. / synthesis. / analysis or synthesis. / fact, \vithout question.
and conditions that / Viewpoints of experts are / Viewpoints of experts ate subject / Viewpoints of experts a.re taken as
influence the ideas in / questioned thoroughly. / to questioning. / mostly fact, with little questioning.
Russian
cinematography,
literatme and culture.
READING VALUE RUBRIC