RUSS 32 Reading Red: 20th Century Russian Fiction
This course examines the major works of 20th century Russian literature. During that century, the people of Russia experienced a series of cataclysmic events including two World Wars; the overthrow of the 300-year-old Romanov dynasty and the triumph of the Bolshevik revolution; a Civil War; the mass trauma of collectivization; the Great Terror of Stalinism; and the collapse of the Soviet Union. As we read and discuss novels, stories, poems, and plays written by the Russian writers of that time, we will consider the correlations and tensions between the Russian sociohistorical reality and artistic expression. In addition to readings from literary and historical sources, we will watch films created by some of the most celebrated Russian filmmakers as a well as the recent controversial documentary The Soviet Story produced by Latvian director Edvins Snore.
Instructor
Savic