Russian, Soviet and post-Soviet literature from the 1900 to the present viewed in a socio-cultural and political context. The class is taught in English, on the basis of English translations; students with knowledge of Russian are encouraged to do at least some of the reading in the original.

The Soviet century, with its wars, revolutions, purges, and brief yet intense period of societal relief (otherwise known as the Thaw) has produced one of the richest and most controversial literatures of modern times. We will spend this semester reading works in different genres (poetry, novel, short prose, non-fiction) from the various “layers” of literary production— works written for official Soviet publication, works written in Emigration, and works written in the “Underground”, avoiding censorship and remaining unpublished for long decades until very recently. Our task will be to explore and appreciate a variety of styles and understandings of history, of the self and of the requirements of the artistic form. Texts will be read in English; our work will include elements of Creative Writing as well as possibility of translation work for those students who study Russian. Among the authors who will be covered in this class are: Isaak Babel, Mikhail Bulgakov, Anna Akhmatova, Varlam Shalamov, Lydia Chukovskaia, Joseph Brodsky.

Repeat Rules

Course is not repeatable for credit.

Requirements class fulfills