Expository writing based on analysis of selected texts or literatures in translation or writings interpreting the material culture of the ancient Near or modern Middle East. Specific topics vary with instructor. R1A satisfies the first half of the Reading and Composition requirement, and R1B satisfies the second half.

What is the difference between what is said and what is meant? Does it have any serious bearing on how humans are persuaded? In this course we will discuss such concerns through some of the greatest hits from the vast literary heritage of the Islamic world. Beginning with the famous pre-Islamic Hanging Ode of ʾImr al-Qays, each week we will introduce and explore samples from such celebrated poets as al-Farazdaq, al-Mutanabbī, Rūmī, Ḥāfiz, Bēdil, Ghālib, and conclude with one of Iqbāl’s masterpieces, The Mosque of Cordoba. In Muslim societies these names have long represented stylistic brilliance in speech, one that simultaneously meets the challenges of elucidation (bayān) and causing wonder (taʿjīb; ḥayrat angēzī). Along the way, we will also discuss the crucial place of eloquence (balāgha, faṣāḥa) in Muslim thought by exploring the ideas of its zenith in divine speech, as displayed in the Koran, and of its manifestation between divine and human speech, as found in the oration of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (d. 661), a major religious and historical figure. While neither is poetry as such, their literary weight stimulates the religio-cultural groundswell upon which poetry and the art of persuasion have long blossomed in Muslim societies. Through close reading, annotation, and college-level composition students will engage with key ideas and texts from a major literary tradition. The theme itself will prompt students to consider what it means to read and express effectively. The course is relevant to students interested in poetry, comparative literature, rhetoric, intellectual and cultural history, religion, Arabic, Persian, and Urdu literatures, and Islamic, Middle Eastern, and South Asian studies. No previous knowledge in these areas is assumed. All material will be supplied in English.

Requisites

• Previously passed an R_A course with a letter grade of C- or better. Previously passed an articulated R_A course with a letter grade of C- or better. Score a 4 on the Advanced Placement Exam in English Literature and Composition. Score a 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement Exam in English Language and Composition. Score of 5, 6, or 7 on the International Baccalaureate Higher Level Examination in English.

Credit Restrictions

Students will receive no credit for NE STUD R1B after completing NE STUD 1B.

Repeat Rules

Course is not repeatable for credit.

Requirements class fulfills