Courses in Russian
Courses in Russian Language
A RUS 101 Elementary Russian I (3)
A communicative introduction to Russian for beginners, designed to develop basic skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing while mastering the grammatical structures and concepts on which those skills depend. Content focuses on practical survival and social functioning in today's Russian-speaking world as well as aspects of Russian culture, society, and history. Native speakers of Russian may not take this course. Students with only limited Russian gained from growing up in families where Russian was spoken may be allowed to enroll in this course with permission of the instructor. Transfer students who have had one year of Russian-language study are advised to enroll in A RUS 201. Students who have been granted University in the High School credit for second-year Russian may not enroll in A RUS 101, 102, 201, or 202 for credit. Students who have had two or more years of college-level Russian-language study are advised to consider SUNY study-abroad options for more advanced Russian study. Language courses must be taken in sequence. A student may not earn graduation credit for a lower-level course taken concurrently with a higher-level course or after receiving credit for a higher-level course in the sequence.
A RUS 102 Elementary Russian II (3)
Continuation of A RUS 101. Students refine their ability to express spatial location and the subject matters of their university courses. They are introduced to the system of "motion verbs" in Russian, time expressions, expressing direct action with the accusative case, and expressing possession and nonexistence using the genitive case. Native speakers of Russian may not take this course. Students with only limited Russian gained from growing up in families where Russian was spoken may be allowed to enroll in this course with permission of the instructor. Transfer students who have had one year of Russian-language study are advised to enroll in A RUS 201. Students who have had two or more years of college-level Russian-language study are advised to consider SUNY study-abroad options for more advanced Russian study. Language courses must be taken in sequence. A student may not earn graduation credit for a lower-level course taken concurrently with a higher-level course or after receiving credit for a higher-level course in the sequence. Prerequisite(s): A RUS 101 or equivalent, or permission of the instructor.
A RUS 201 Intermediate Russian I (3-5)
Continuation of A RUS 102. Students are introduced to verbal aspect in Russian. They develop further skills in "motion verbs" and time expressions. They learn the forms and uses of the dative and instrumental cases, thus completing their introduction to the Russian declension system. Native speakers of Russian may not take this course. Students with only limited Russian gained from growing up in families where Russian was spoken may be allowed to enroll in this course with permission of the instructor. Transfer students who have had one year of Russian-language study are advised to enroll in A RUS 201. Students who have had two or more years of college-level Russian-language study are advised to consider SUNY study-abroad options for more advanced Russian study. Language courses must be taken in sequence. A student may not earn graduation credit for a lower-level course taken concurrently with a higher-level course or after receiving credit for a higher-level course in the sequence. Prerequisite(s): A RUS 102 or permission of the director of the Russian program.
A RUS 202 Intermediate Russian II (3-5)
Continuation of A RUS 201. Students continue mastering "subjectless" constructions and the various devices in Russian for expressing ability and obligation. They gain new tools to express spatial location and motion, and to give and understand directions for finding places. They are introduced to the system of imperatives for Russian verbs. Native speakers of Russian may not take this course. Students with only limited Russian gained from growing up in families where Russian was spoken may be allowed to enroll in this course with permission of the instructor. Transfer students who have had one year of Russian-language study are advised to enroll in A RUS 201. Students who have had two or more years of college-level Russian-language study are advised to consider SUNY study-abroad options for more advanced Russian study. Language courses must be taken in sequence. A student may not earn graduation credit for a lower-level course taken concurrently with a higher-level course or after receiving credit for a higher-level course in the sequence. Prerequisite(s): A RUS 201 or permission of the director of the Russian program.
A RUS 397 Independent Study (1–6)
Directed reading and conferences on selected topics. May be repeated for credit. Prerequisite(s): junior or senior standing, and permission of instructor and program director. May not be offered in 2022-2023.
Literature and Culture Courses in English Translation
A RUS 161/161Z Russian Civilization (3)
The cultural and ideological development of Russia from the inheritance of the Byzantine Empire through the 1917 Russian Revolution. Includes various aspects of history, political systems, economy and culture and the arts. Conducted in English. Only one version of A RUS 161 may be taken for credit. May not be offered in 2022-2023.
A RUS 162/162Z Contemporary Russia (3)
Introduction to the society and culture of contemporary Russia, focusing in part on the continuities and differences between the Soviet and post-Soviet periods. Topics to be studied include: the linguistic and cultural revolution of the 1990s, individual adaptation to a new economic environment, official and unofficial attempts to “construct” a new Russia. Conducted in English. Only one version of A RUS 162 may be taken for credit.
A RUS 251 Masterpieces of 19th Century Russian Literature (3)
Survey of the development of Russian literature, particularly prose fiction, from the age of Pushkin to about 1900. Readings will be chosen from short stories and novels by the following writers: Pushkin, Gogol, Lermontov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, and Chekhov. Conducted in English.
A RUS 252 Masterpieces of 20th Century Russian Literature (3)
Survey of the development of Russian literature, particularly prose fiction, from the turn of the century to the death of Stalin (1953). Readings will be chosen from poems, short stories and novels by the following writers: Chekhov, Gorky, Olesha, Bulgakov, Babel, Pasternak, Zamyatin, Sholokhov, and others. Conducted in English. May not be offered in 2022-2023.
A RUS 253 Late Soviet-Period Russian Literature (3)
Survey of Soviet literature from the death of Stalin (1953) to the present. Readings taken primarily from prose fiction by such writers as Solzhenitsyn, Trifonov, Aksyonov, Shukshin, Bitov, and Erofeyev. Discussion of how the changing political situation affected writers and literature. Conducted in English. May not be offered in 2022-2023.
A RUS 280 Soviet and Russian Cinema (3)
Main trends in the development of Russian and Soviet cinema, from the silents of the early 20th century to the period of glasnost and the post-Soviet era. Introduction to the theories of Eisenstein, Vertov, Kuleshov, and others. Social and political issues explored through famous classic and contemporary films. Films are subtitled in English. Conducted in English. May not be offered in 2022-2023.
