RUSSIAN LITERATURE

The course falls into the learning area "Literatures and cultures" and is entitled “History of Russian Literary Theory and Criticism". It focuses on some key aspects of Russian literary thought of 19th and 20th century, outlining major stages of its history and central figures.

1. Knowledge and understanding
● Acquisition with the history of Russian literary theory and criticism, key concepts and major trends.
● Familiarization with the central figures of Russian literary thought and criticism.
● Understanding of the most important methodological approaches to literature.
● Development of cultural awareness, critical analysis, creative thinking and intellectual independence.

2. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding
● Students will learn how to demonstrate a basic knowledge of key features of cultural and historical analysis of literary texts.
● Students will learn how to use a basic special vocabulary for discussing literary history development, how to build a structured and reasoned argument to support ideas about a literary text and evaluate secondary sources, both orally and in writing
● Students will be able to interpret historical and cultural contexts of the Russian literary criticism in its historical context.
● Students will be able to discuss key critical concepts in the context of various manifestations in the history of Russian literature; students will be able to critically analyse and apply theoretical approaches to the material

3. Judgment capacity
● Students will be able to gather, process and evaluate critically information from a variety of paper and electronic sources.
● Students will develop conceptual approach to the materials they will be working with and will learn how to provide in their final essay substantial proof for the ideas that were developed as a result of their individual research.
● Students will develop skills for independent research and the ability to analyse critical texts.

4. Communication skills
● Development of verbal and written communicative skills in target language.
● Development of quality of expression of ideas (appropriate register/specialised terms) in target language
● Development of linguistic competence (grammar, spelling, etc.) in target language (for those who choose to write an essay in Russian)

5. Learning skills
● Development of awareness of and engagement with range of debates and critical (secondary) works in target language.
● Development of independent analyses and interpretation with primary sources in target language.
● Development of reference skills and bibliography. Knowledge of how to work with the primary and secondary sources in the process of individual research for the final paper (bibliography, quotation, formatting references).

The knowledge of the historic, cultural and literary evolution of Russia of 19th and 20th centuries. Russian language at B1/B2 level is required.

The lectures will cover the following topics: The status of literature in Russia; Literary criticism and literary theory; Academic literary schools and change of methodological approaches to literature; Development of Russian literary criticism in the 19th century; Criticism and crisis of realism at the beginning of the twentieth century; After the revolution. 1920s. Major literary groupings; Marxist and Sociological school in Soviet literary theory; Russian Formalism; Mikhail Bakhtin; Socialist Realism; Stalin's literary and political campaigns; Post-Stalinist criticism; Structuralism; Late Soviet period; The era of perestroika; Post-Soviet reflection on Soviet culture; Development of Russian literature without censorship; Crisis of the Institute of Literature; Theories of Russian postmodernism.

A bibliography will be given at the beginning of the course by the Lecturer.

Final essay either in Russian or in English (1,500-2,000 words).
The students will have to demonstrate that they have read the PRIMARY TEXTS in-depth and can analyse them, using SECONDARY SOURCES to contextualize the material.
The list of topics will be given at the beginning of the course by the lecturer.

Lectures in Russian language.

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