INTERNATIONAL CULTURES (IC)

The courses listed below are chronologically arranged according to cultural areas (e.g. courses on East Asia are numbered 120-129, 220-229, 320-329). For courses in classical cultures and languages (CL), see Classical Studies. 

Generic:  100-109, 201-209, 301-309, 401-419
Africa:  110-119, 210-219, 310-319
East Asian:  120-129, 220-229, 320-329
Eastern European:  130-139, 230-239, 330-339
Francophone:  140-149, 240-249, 340-349
Germanic: 150-159, 250-259, 350-359
Italian:  160-169, 260-269, 360-369
Spanish-speaking:  170-179, 270-279, 370-379

Note: All International Cultures courses are taught in English.

CROSSING BORDERS I

103.  INTERNATIONAL FAIRY TALES 3 cr.  Course examines the historical roots of fairy tales as well as their literary merits, fairy tales as a reflection of time, place, social norms, class discussions and independent research; in addition to in-depth study, students also write their own interpretation of a fairy tale for an original piece of creative writing that upholds the tenets of the fairy tale as discovered and developed during the course.

110.  UNDERSTANDING AFRICA THROUGH FILM 3 cr. (Formerly ML 215) Exploration of multiple dimensions of African societies that are little known or often misrepresented in the West. Through documentaries and movies, course highlights the history, traditions, and lifestyles of Africa as well as this continent’s vital role in the international arena. (Spring)

120.  JAPANESE CULTURE AND SOCIETY 3 cr.  This course enables students to have an overall view of contemporary Japan from diverse perspectives: religion, Japanese businessmen, -women, educational system, food, urban and rural areas, traditional and new cultural phenomena, traditional and contemporary dramas, ‘serious’ literature and ‘manga’ (comic books), high culture and mass culture.

130.  THE SOCIETY/CULTURE OF THE SLAVS: RUSSIANS, SLOVAKS, CZECHS  3 cr. Study and discussion of the societal, cultural, and historical background and evolving status of these various Slavs that provides a current appreciation of these peoples.

131.  THE WORLD OF FILM: RUSSIAN, SLOVAK, CZECH  3 cr . A survey of films by men and/or women directors from the cultures of these Slavic peoples that presents the values and views affirmed or criticized in their cultural contexts.

140.  FRANCE TODAY  3 cr.  Course designed to promote an understanding of French culture and society together.  Cultural topics include the historical influence on contemporary culture; French patterns of daily behavior; artistic expression; and societal, religious, and political institutions.  Topics serve as the basis for in-class discussion and composition assignments.

141. ROMANCING A CITY: PARIS THROUGH ART, FILM AND LITERATURE 3 cr. No prerequisite.  Course designed to provide in-depth examination of the heritage of Paris in art (architecture, painting, and music), film and literature as they reflect life through the centuries.

145.  FASHION IN FRENCH LITERATURE AND THE ARTS.  3 cr.  No prerequisite. In this course students study how clothes connect to culture, social interactions, as well as national, religious and ethnic identities.

146.  THE FRENCH IN THE AMERICAS  3 cr. A literature and culture course, in three parts: Part I – North America, primarily Quebec and other parts of French speaking Canada; Part II – North America with special emphasis on New England and Louisiana; Part III, the French Caribbean region, special emphasis on Haiti and Martinique, on the French and the impact of slavery, the legacy of colonialism; highlight on diversity 2 novels and epistolary literature, media, class discussion, individual and paired projects.

150. GERMAN FAIRY TALES 3 cr.  From the Brothers Grimm collections to Walt Disney’s animated versions of Cinderella and Snow White, fairy tales have entertained children and adults while imparting social and moral messages.  This course presents several popular fairy tales and the tools for interpreting them.

151.  EXPLORATIONS IN GERMAN CULTURE 3 cr.  This course explores themes such as national identity, love, revolution, and nature in German art, film, music, and literature from the legends of Siegfried to the mystical origins of the Currywurst.

160.  ITALY TODAY 3 cr.  This course explores the historical and cultural background of modern Italy, and it analyzes such themes as immigration, the role of women in politics, and the reasons underlying Italy’s current zero birth rate.

162. ITALIAN AMERICAN CULTURE AND CIVILIZATION THROUGH LITERATURE 3 cr.  (Formerly  ML 260) The Italian American experience from the late nineteenth century to the present.  Socio political issues seen through literary and other readings, and through cinema. Prerequisite: EN 111 112 or equivalent.

163. WOMEN IN ITALIAN SOCIETY THROUGH LITERATURE AND FILM.  3 cr. This course explores the shift in social, political, and economic roles of women in 20th-Century Italy.  It focuses on major Italian women writers and analyzes selective films that depict these changes.

164. ITALIAN LITERARY PARKS. 3 cr. This course analyzes the relationship between writing and the writer’s homeland. It focuses on major Italian writers and their literary, physical, and emotional portrayal of their place of origin.

170.  CONTEMPORARY SPANISH CULTURE THROUGH FILM  3 cr.  Through a series of films and cultural texts, this course examines contemporary Spanish culture, from after the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) up to the present.  It explores how the cinema as a medium was used to critique and undermine the restrictive cultural politics of the Franco dictatorship.  (Spring)

171.  CONTEMPORARY LATIN AMERICAN CINEMA  3 cr.  This course explores the major trends and movements in Latin American cinema from the 1980s to the present. Through the analysis of representative films from Latin America, students are introduced to the development of a variety of cinematic styles, with particular focus on the historical contexts in which the films were produced.

198.  SUPERVISED STUDY 3 cr.  Supervised independent study on special topics.

199. SPECIAL TOPICS IN INTERCULTURAL PERSPECTIVES 1-3 cr.  One or several aspects of a culture or cultures—either in the country of origin or as American heritage—especially as found in its language, literature, ideas or art forms. Course may be repeated with a different subject.

CROSSING BORDERS II

201.  INTRODUCTION TO CULTURAL STUDIES 3 cr.  Course explores the field of Cultural Studies from theoretical and practical perspectives, to show how critical analysis of culture—from the high culture of literature and visual arts to the popular culture of television, advertising, music, and comic books—can uncover underlying values of a society.  Course is essential for all students planning to study abroad, for they will gain a better understanding of how U.S. society fits within a globalized cultural context.

210. LITERATURE FROM FRENCH-SPEAKING AFRICA 3 cr.  In this course students read various genres of literature by African authors and develop an understanding of the heritage of French-speaking countries which were part of the French Colonial Empire until the 1960s.

220. JAPANESE POPULAR CULTURE 3cr. Popular culture focuses on the lives of the ordinary people rather than the aesthetics of the elites.  For over a century Westerners have been fascinated by the exotic nature of Japanese art and philosophy but their attention has mainly been directed on the culture of the elite class.  This course instead focuses on the culture of ordinary Japanese, their interests, their lifestyles, and their activities.

221. A HALF CENTURY OF POSTWAR WRITINGS IN JAPAN 3 cr.  This course explores the works of authors such as Mishima, Tanizaki, Abe, two Nobel Prize winners, Kawabata and Oe.

230. SHORT FICTION OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY:  RUSSIAN, SLOVAK, CZECH  3 cr.  (Formerly ML 205) Survey of translated short stories and/or novellas from the literatures of these Slavic peoples in the nineteenth century, presenting how these peoples represented their values and views of nineteenth-century society, history, and culture.

231. SHORT FICTION SINCE 1900:  RUSSIAN, SLOVAK, CZECH  3 cr. (Formerly ML 206)  Survey of translated short stories and/or novellas from the literatures of these Slavic peoples since 1900, presenting how these peoples represented their values and views of society, history, and culture of the time.

232.  HUNGARIAN CULTURE AND SOCIETY 3 cr. This course gives students an opportunity to explore aspects of contemporary Hungarian society and cultural traditions. It highlights the most outstanding representatives and works  of Hungarian history and politics, ethnography, literature, music, film, and fine arts.

240. SUB-SAHARAN FRANCOPHONE NOVELS  3 cr.  Students become familiar with major novels by African writers that represent life, culture and aspirations of the colonial as well as post colonial periods of French-speaking countries South of the Sahara.

241.  FRANCOPHONE LOUISIANA 3 cr. This course explores the cultural and literary legacy of francophone Louisiana, from the colonial period—that is, before the Louisiana Purchase—to the contemporary era.  Topics to be covered include Creole and Cajun cultures, New Orleans as a Creole city, the free people of Color in pre- and post-Civil War Louisiana, and the role of literature and culture in the preservation of francophone heritages.

250. LITERARY REPRESENTATIONS OF THE HOLOCAUST 3 cr.  Course examines representations of the Holocaust in European literature.  Through readings and discussion, students identify continuities and differences in the representation of the Holocaust given authors’ historical, emotional and cultural relationship to the event and authors’ language, focus, and message given their perspectives and chosen genres.

251. THE GERMAN LANGUAGE, PAST AND PRESENT 3 cr.  Course provides students with a general, linguistic history of the German language while considering the social and cultural ramifications of developments such as language standardization.  Topics include the development from Proto-Indo-European to New High German, and a discussion of the German language today.

260.  ITALIAN LITERATURE AND FILM 3 cr. The course analyzes Italian novels that have a cinematic counterpart, concentrating on how the spectacle of film gives a different reading from that of the novel to show the changing conditions of 20th- and 21st-century Italy.

261. ITALIAN AND ITALIAN AMERICAN SPIRITUALITY THROUGH LITERATURE AND FILM 3 cr.  Franciscan ideology and theology and its cultural, literary and artistic influences on Italian and Italian American literature and film.

262.  FAITH, REASON AND ART IN ITALIAN AND ITALIAN AMERICAN LITERATURE 3 cr. (Formerly ML 270) How faith, reason and art interact in Italian and Italian American literature.

263.  MODERN   ITALY   AND   MASS   MIGRATION   THROUGH LITERATURE 3 cr. (Formerly ML 275) Historical and cultural background of modern Italy, especially through the works of Ignazio Silone. Study of the conditions of Southern Italy which led to mass migration to the United States in the past century.

270.  ART AND SOCIETY IN EARLY MODERN SPAIN  3 cr.  This course introduces students to the idea that art can meet objectives that exceed aesthetic values as it explores the relationship of art to society, politics, religion and imperial ideology.

298. SUPERVISED STUDY 3 cr. Supervised independent study on special topics.

299. SPECIAL TOPICS IN INTERCULTURAL PERSPECTIVES 1-3 cr.  One or several aspects of a culture or cultures—either in the country of origin or as American heritage—especially as found in its language, literature, ideas or art forms. Course may be repeated with a different subject.

CROSSING BORDERS III

301.  LITERARY THEORY AND CRITICISM 3 cr.  An exploration of the field of literary theory through a survey of the history and major trends in literary criticism.  Topics covered include structuralism, deconstruction, postmodernism, psychoanalysis, Marxism and feminism, all of which provide different angles from which literature and its cultural connotations can be studied.

302.  INTERNATIONAL CULTURES THROUGH CINEMA 3 cr.  Course traces major trends and movements that have emerged from various national cinemas and contributed to historical development of film as an international art form. Students view selected films and consider how they reflect cultural and historical contexts and reflect global creative confluences. Course materials offer a comprehensive culture based overview of international film history.

303.  INTERNATIONAL FILM AND LITERATURE 3 cr.  Students experience "culture" critically by analyzing film and literary works in a global context; development of ability to establish connections between literary and cinematic works emerging from majority and minority cultures; study of comparative methods to understand literary diversity; critical knowledge of cinematic and literary themes, motifs, structures, narratives, points of view, and values that are typical of various regions of the world.

304.  MASTERPIECES OF WORLD LITERATURE 3 cr. (Formerly ML 211) Survey of translated literary works by authors from one or more cultures/populations involving any time period and one or more literary genre(s).

340.  CHINA THROUGH THE EYES OF THE FRENCH  3 cr.  French literature within the context of correspondence, travel literature and narratives with a particular focus on works authored by Far East-bound French travelers, missionaries and diplomats.

343.  FRANCO-ITALIAN CROSS-CULTURAL RELATIONS  3 cr. In this course students examine Italian influences on the political, religious, artistic and social structure of French culture.

350.  GERMAN LITERATURE FROM THE MARGINS 3 cr.  This course provides critical perspective on gender, multiculturalism, and tolerance through the lens of literature written by non-native speakers of German, Jewish authors, and women.

351. DICTATORSHIP IN 20TH-CENTURY EUROPE: PERSPECTIVES, PROBLEMS, REPRESENTATIONS 3 cr.  Cross-listed with History, this course examines personal and collective experiences of dictatorships in Europe, including the National Socialist Regime and the German Democratic Republic.

360.  DANTE’S DIVINE COMEDY 3 cr. (Formerly ML 320)  Study in modern English translation of Hell, Purgatory and Paradise with special attention to theological issues as well as literary content.  Dante is examined as both a supreme poetic craftsman and a church reformer.

361.  ITALIAN HUMANISM AND RENAISSANCE 3 cr.  (Formerly ML 325) Study of Italian Humanism and the Renaissance through the writings of Petrarch, Alberti, Machiavelli, Michelangelo, Vittoria and Collonna and Leonardo da Vinci.  Includes and intensive, on-site learning tour.  Travel fee required.

362. DANTE’S CITIES:  ROME, FLORENCE, L’AQUILA, SIENA  3 cr. (Formerly ML 350) Study of the Divine Comedy and Vita Nuova, showing how these reflect the social, cultural and artistic representation of late medieval Italy.  Includes an intensive, on-site learning tour of the cities which have influenced Dante’s art.  Travel fee required.

370.  HISPANIC WOMEN WRITERS 3 cr.  This course includes the reading and analysis of the writings of contemporary U.S. Latina and Latin American women, such as Sandra Cisneros, Julia Alvarez, Cristina Garcia, Esmeralda Santiago, Isabel Allende, Zoe Valdes, Luisa Valenzuela, Laura Esquivel, among others.  The approach is literary, cultural, and comparative, while emphasizing critical thinking and writing as a process.

398.  SUPERVISED  STUDY 3 cr. Supervised independent study on special topics.

399.  SPECIAL TOPICS IN INTERCULTURAL PERSPECTIVES 1-3 cr.  One or several aspects of a culture or cultures—either in the country of origin or as American heritage—especially as found in its language, literature, ideas or art forms. Course may be repeated with a different subject.

CROSSING BORDERS IV

401.  SPECIAL TOPICS IN INTERNATIONAL CULTURES 3 cr. A topical seminar that explores an aspect of international cultures.  Students will integrate and apply readings in critical theory to a research project of their own choice.  Course with a different topic may be repeated for credit. Open to advanced students of all majors.

496. INTERNATIONAL CULTURES INTERNSHIP 3 cr. Supervised and directed experiential learning in a position relevant to a cultural area within the major. Pass/Fail only. No more than 3 credits may be applied toward completion of the major. Open only to majors. Permission of department Chair required.

498.  ADVANCED SUPERVISED STUDY 3 cr. Supervised independent study on special topics.  For advanced students.