Spring 2024
ARMENI 124 001 - LEC 001
Armenian Literature in Social Context
Modern and Contemporary Armenian Literature Across Empires, Nations, and Peoples
Myrna Douzjian
Class #:31283
Units:4
Instruction Mode:
In-Person Instruction
Offered through
Slavic Languages and Literatures
Current Enrollment
Total Open Seats:
11
Enrolled: 19
Waitlisted: 0
Capacity: 30
Waitlist Max: 3
No Reserved Seats
Hours & Workload
9 hours of outside work hours, and 3 hours of instructor presentation of course materials.
Other classes by Myrna Douzjian
Course Catalog Description
This course covers selected works and topics in Armenian literature treated in a broad socio-cultural context. In addition to introducing students to some of the Armenian literary masterpieces, the course offers a lens through which to view the socio-political issues and historical legacies that shape Armenian culture and identity, in Armenia and in diaspora, in today’s globalized world. Lectures, readings and discussions in English. No knowledge of Armenian language is required (students with knowledge of Armenian read in the original).
Class Description
May be repeated for credit.
Modern and contemporary Armenian literary production has a transnational history, tied to cultural centers in the Ottoman and Russian Empires, the Soviet Union, the Republic of Armenia, the Middle East, and Europe. This traversal of geographical boundaries forms the basis for the organizational logic of this course, which focuses on some of the Armenian literary masterpieces of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. These texts will offer a lens through which to view the socio-political contexts and cultural legacies that shape the attitudes of Armenian writers, artists, and intellectuals in Armenia and throughout the global diaspora.
The course will blend short lectures on the texts’ historical background with discussions that focus on textual analysis. Several films will complement our discussions about Armenian culture. We will draw connections between our generically and thematically diverse readings by considering the following questions throughout the semester: What do works of literature suggest about Armenian cultural identity and the identities of various “others”? How has literature represented catastrophic experiences (genocide, war, exile, and displacement)? What is the relationship between culture and politics? How has this relationship evolved?
Requirements: class participation; 100-200 pages of reading/week; weekly annotation assignments; midterm examination; final examination; and group project or individual ten-page paper.
Texts: TBA.
Class Notes
Prerequisites: None. Readings, lectures, and discussion in English. Students with knowledge of Armenian are encouraged to do at least some of the reading in Armenian.
Rules & Requirements
Repeat Rules
Requirements class fulfills
Meets Arts & Literature, L&S Breadth
Meets International Studies, L&S Breadth
Reserved Seats
Current Enrollment
No Reserved Seats
Textbooks & Materials
See class syllabus or https://calstudentstore.berkeley.edu/textbooks for the most current information.
Guide to Open, Free, & Affordable Course Materials
Associated Sections
None