Take me to the Fall Time Schedule
100(GNE 100)/ACABS 100/HJCS
100/Hist. 132. Peoples of the Middle East. (4). (HU).
This course will survey Middle Eastern political, social and cultural
history from Sumer (3000 BC) to Khomeini's Iran (1979-89). The
lectures, the readings, the visuals (web, movies, slides) are
all geared towards providing the student with a sense of the nature
of authority, political and cultural styles, the fabric of society, attitudes and behaviors, heroes and villains, that are and were
part of the heritage of those peoples who lived in the lands between the Nile and Oxus rivers, generally referred to as the Middle
East. Throughout the term you will have 4 quizzes (10%), a midterm
(25%) and an accumulative final exam (40%). A one page synopsis
of your readings will be due weekly for your discussion section.
Cost:2 WL:3
(Babayan)
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101(Arabic 101). Elementary
Modern Standard Arabic, I. (4). (LR). Laboratory
fee ($12) required.
This is the first course of a two-term sequence in elementary
Arabic. It is designed for non-concentrators and those who need
Arabic to fulfill the language requirement. It provides an introduction
to the phonology and script of Modern Standard Arabic and its
basic vocabulary and fundamental structures. It offers combined
training in listening, speaking, reading, and writing. There will
be a focus on simple interactive communicative tasks involving
teacher-student, student-student and group interactions. Reading
and cultural skills are developed through simple short texts and situational dialogues. There will be daily written assignments
involving supplying answers to certain drills and questions on
reading comprehension passages, filling out forms, and writing
short messages and paragraphs. Evaluation will be based on class
participation, weekly achievement tests, monthly comprehensive
tests, and a final. Regular use of the language laboratory or
recorded tapes for home use is required to reinforce classwork
and also to do the recorded assignments. Textbooks: (1) Programmed
Course in Modern Standard Arabic Phonology and Script by
McCarus-Rammuny, (2) Elementary Modern Standard Arabic
Part One by Abboud et al. (Lessons 1-10), (3) Supplementary Enrichment
Vocabulary to accompany EMSA by R. Rammuny, and (4) Standard Achievement
Tests to accompany EMSA by R. Rammuny. Cost:2
WL:3 (Rammuny, Staff)
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Times, Location, and Availability
103(Arabic 221). Intensive
Elementary Modern Standard Arabic, I. (6). (LR).
Laboratory fee ($16) required.
The sequence of Arabic 103 and 104 is designed for students concentrating
in Arabic or those who expect to use Arabic at an accelerated
rate. It is primarily intended for highly-motivated students who
want to study Arabic for academic purposes. Arabic 103 starts
with an intensive introduction to Arabic phonology and script
combined with basic oral communication practice. This is followed
by short reading selections and situational dialogues including
basic vocabulary and fundamental grammatical structures. The course
offers combined training in the four language skills, plus practice
in using the Arabic dictionary. Course requirements include daily
preparation of the basic texts and grammatical explanations, extensive
oral and written practice utilizing newly learned vocabulary and structures, and written assignments. These assignments involve
answers to certain drills and reading comprehension questions, filling out short forms, and supplying short messages and biographical
information. Course evaluation is based on class participation, daily written assignments, weekly achievement tests, monthly comprehensive
tests, and a final examination. Textbooks:(1) Programmed Course
in Modern Standard Arabic Phonology and Script by McCarus-Rammuny, (2) Elementary Modern Standard Arabic, Part One by Abboud
et al. (Lessons 1-15), (3) Supplementary Enrichment Vocabulary
to Accompany EMSA, and (4) Standard Achievement Tests to Accompany
EMSA. Cost:2
WL:3 (Bardenstein/Farghaly)
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Times, Location, and Availability
141(Iranian 201). Elementary
Persian, I. (4). (LR).
Persian has been called the French of the Near/Middle East. Certainly, Persia/Iran has been in the news. Persian is an Indo-European
language, related to English, etc. Its literature, like
other arts, is a major part of Near/Middle Eastern and Muslim
tradition. Persian 141 is the first term of a four-term sequence.
It takes the student through to the basic mastery of the skills
of reading and writing, and of comprehension and speaking. Cultural
as well as communicative skills are emphasized. By the end of the term the student should be well versed in these skills. Individual
students work with the instructor to polish and improve the student's
Persian language skills. The objective is language use. Students
who have special needs, such as those acquiring the knowledge
of Persian for reading purposes, only, or for communicative skills, only, will be given special attention, and special sessions. Similarly, students of Iranian heritage, who may know some Persian in its
colloquial form, will find the linguistic and cultural content
of this course stimulating.
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Times, Location, and Availability
151(Turkish 201). Elementary
Turkish, I. (4). (LR).
Part of the departmental sequence in modern Turkish language, this course aims at introducing and providing the opportunity
to practice the basic structures of Turkish. Although it specifically
focuses on enhancing spoken proficiency, reading, and writing
skills are taught and practiced through special readings and written
assignments. Students are evaluated in accordance with the provisional
Proficiency Guidelines prepared by the American Association of
Teachers of Turkic Languages, class participation, achievements
in weekly quizzes, a midterm, and a final examination. The required
texts are named by the person who happens to be teaching the course
in a given year.
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Times, Location, and Availability
200(Arabic 200)/Rel.
201/ACABS 200/HJCS 200. Introduction to World Religions: Near
Eastern. (4). (HU).
See Religion 201. (Williams, Jackson, Schramm)
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Times, Location, and Availability
201(Arabic 201). Intermediate
Modern Standard Arabic, I. APTIS 102. (4). (LR).
Laboratory fee ($16) required.
Arabic 201 continues the process of acquiring proficiency in Modern
Standard Arabic. Reading, listening, writing, and speaking skills
are developed through short texts, drill practice and interactive
exercise and activities. Required outside homework includes daily
written assignments and regular use of the tapes that accompany the course text. Evaluation is based on class participation, quizzes, tests, and a final examination. Textbooks: (1) Elementary Modern
Standard Arabic (EMSA), Part One (Lessons 21-30), (2) Supplementary
Enrichment vocabulary to Accompany EMSA, and (3) Standard Achievement
Tests to Accompany EMSA. Cost:2
WL:3
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Times, Location, and Availability
241(Iranian 401). Intermediate
Persian, I. APTIS 142. (4). (LR).
Persian has been called the French of the Near/Middle East. It
is an Indo-European language, related to English. Lack, or partial
lack, of the knowledge of the monumental historical achievements
of Iran is not only due to inadequate coverage by the media, but
also to some first and second generation Iranians' failure to
inform their children. This course invites students with an interest
in world affairs, and those children, and emphasizes not only
language, but culture. APTIS 241 continues 141/142. Its objective
is to lead the student to the improved mastery of the four language
skills – comprehension, reading, speaking, and writing. During the course the student will learn higher levels of language registers, will be exposed to samples of Persian patterns of communicative
skills via dialog, samples of expository prose, and of literature.
Emphasis is on the use of Persian in these four skills. In additional, multi-media exposure, including video and news material via SCOLA
and other means are utilized. Persian is the language of the class, with occasional discussions of linguistic matters in English.
Cost:1 WL:1
(Windfuhr)
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Times, Location, and Availability
251(Turkish 401). Intermediate
Turkish, I. APTIS 152. (4). (LR).
Part of the department sequence in modern Turkish. Those who enroll
in the class should have completed APTIS 152 or equivalent. All
participants are tested in ascertain their levels of proficiency
in the language and results determine the strategy to be followed
by the instructor. Normally the first few weeks are devoted to
structures and syntax not covered in the first year. The text
used for this is G. Lewis' Teach Yourself Turkish or its new equivalent.
M. Galin's Turkish Sampler is used for reading. The learning is
done through exercises, compositions, reading, translation and conversation. Student evaluation is based on class performance, written work, a midterm and final as well as a test to determine
level of proficiency. (Stewart-Robinson)
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Times, Location, and Availability
271(Slavic 271)/Armenian
271. Intermediate Western Armenian, I. APTIS 172
or 173. (4). (LR).
This course concentrates on reading Armenian texts with commentaries
on grammatical and stylistic points, and an equal emphasis on
conversation and frequent written work. Grade is based on performance, attendance and a final examination. The reading material consists
of the literature appended to Bardakjian's and Thomson's A
Textbook of Modern Western Armenian and a course pack. Cost:2 (Bardakjian)
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Times, Location, and Availability
274(Slavic 221)/Armenian
274. Armenia: Culture and Ethnicity. (3). (HU).
This course will explore various aspects of the Christian Armenian
identity, from the earliest times to the 1990s, against a historical
and political background, with a greater emphasis on the more
modern times. It will highlight the formation of the Armenian
self-image; its principle features (political, religious, cultural);
and its historical evolution in a multi-religious and multi-national
region that has undergone territorial and cultural transformations
and has experienced many conflicts, at times deadly, resulting
from the clash of national-ethnic identities and aspirations, governed and driven by oppression, distrust, religious and cultural
intolerance and aggressive political designs to name but a few.
There will be class discussions. Students will be required to
write one short term paper (5-7 pages long) and a final paper
(8-10 pages long) reflecting research on a selected topic. (Bardakjian)
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Times, Location, and Availability
364/MENAS 334/Hist. 334.
Selected Topics in Near and Middle Eastern Studies. (3).
(Excl).
See Middle Eastern and North
African Studies 334. (Cole)
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Times, Location, and Availability
381(Arabic 440). Introduction
to Arab Literature in Translation. Taught in English.
(3). (HU).
Materials in English translation will illustrate the progression
of Arabic Literary culture from the earliest recorded sources
to the present. Lectures and discussion, along with audio-visual
materials, will introduce the essentials of the history of the
Arabs and the cultural context expressed in their writings. Examination
of pre-Islamic poetry will lead to discussion of the religious
and historical texts of Islam. The literary legacy of the Caliphal
period will be presented. The Arabian Nights will be
seen to illustrate the popular culture of the times. Bell-lettrist
works and those of the Arab explorers, scientists, and philosophers
will be sampled. The contacts between the Arab world and the West
in the modern era will be seen to have resulted in new departures
in Arabic Literature, with the rise of the play, the short story, and the novel. Particular attention will be given to the works
of Naguib Mahfouz, the Egyptian winner of the Nobel Prize for
Literature. Students will write a series of short papers commenting
upon aspects of the works assigned. Credit will also be given
for attendance and for class discussion. A professor of Arabic
literature, the instructor is a much-published translator and commentator on Arabic literature. (LeGassick)
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Times, Location, and Availability
383. The Arab-Israeli
Conflict in Middle Eastern Literature. (3). (HU).
In this course, we examine the Arab-Israeli conflict as it is
portrayed in both Arab and Israeli literary traditions – poetry, short stories, novels, novellas, literary essays and personal
accounts – looking at how adversaries portray each other, how
mutual stereotypes are created and reinforced, or broken down
as the case may be, and how the conflict has shaped the development
of these respective literary traditions in quite different ways.
complementary courses and approaches which study the Arab-Israeli
conflict from a primarily political and historical point of view, this course offers the unique perspectives of looking at the conflict through the literature produced by parties to the conflict. Readings
will include works of Kanafani, Habiby, Khalifeh, Mahfouz, Idris, Nawab, Yehoshua, Grossman, Shammas, Oz, etc., and we
will also examine a selection of Arab and Israeli films and songs
pertaining to the conflict. (Bardenstein)
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Times, Location, and Availability
403(Arabic 421). Advanced
Intensive Modern Standard Arabic, I. APTIS 104 or
202. (6). (LR). Laboratory fee ($7) required.
This course emphasizes the use of Arabic language. That is, students
will develop the ability to: (1) communicate/speak in Arabic with
native speakers of Arabic; (2) understand spoken Arabic; (3) read
and understand selected readings taken from various genres of
modern prose fiction and non-fiction as well as Arabic newspaper
and magazines/ and (4) enhance writing skills. Use of Arabic is
emphasized throughout the whole course based on communicative
approaches to learning. Course grade is based on class attendance
and participation, written assignments, weekly quizzes and tests, and a final exam. Required text: Peter Abboud et al., Elementary
Modern Standard Arabic Part II (Lessons 30-45), Supplementary
Enrichment Vocabulary to Accompany EMSA, and Standard Achievement
Tests to Accompany EMSA. Successful completion of Arabic 403 will
fulfill the LSA language requirement. (Farghaly)
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Times, Location, and Availability
431(Arabic 430). Introduction
to Arabic Linguistics. APTIS 202 or 403. Taught in
English. (3). (Excl).
Arabic 431 is designed to provide a clear understanding of the
goals of linguistic theory and training in linguistic analysis
at the phonetic, phonological, morphological, syntactic, semantic
and pragmatic levels. Differences and similarities between traditional
treatments of Arabic and recent analyses of Arabic within the
generative paradigm will be highlighted. The diverse and dynamic
linguistic situation in the Arabic World will be examined. Since the structure of Arabic presents a challenge to most contemporary
linguistic formalisms, there will be frequent references and discussions
of relevant theoretical questions and controversial issues. Students
will gain insights into the structure of Arabic which will help those who wish to acquire the language for communicative purposes.
Students who are more interested in applied or theoretical work
in Arabic or linguistics will find the theoretical part particularly
useful. Course requirements include class participation, readings, presentations, quizzes and writing a term paper on an aspect of the structure of Arabic. Cost:1
WL: 3 (Farghaly)
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Times, Location, and Availability
440(Turkish 440). The
Literature of the Turks. (3). (Excl).
The objective of the course is to share information on the literary
activities of the Turkish people from 600 AD when they were in
Central Asia to their present home in Asia Minor. Taught in English
with English translations of prose and poetry, it will serve Near
Eastern concentrators, undergraduates, graduates and other interested
students, to savor a literature that began with a few "quatrains"
and is, today, on a par with the best of literatures, both in
quality and quantity. Meeting three times a week, the course will
consist of lectures and discussions focusing on background, historical
contexts and critical appraisals of literary material. Students
will be expected to prepare short essays on works read and have
a final examination. WL:3
(Stewart-Robinson)
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Times, Location, and Availability
461(GNE 442)/Hist. 442.
The First Millennium of the Islamic Near East. Junior
standing. Taught in English. (3). (Excl).
Team taught by Professors Bonner (NES and Lindner (History), this
is the first course in a two-course introductory sequence (442
and 443) that covers Near Eastern history from the era of Muhammad
to the present. Our purpose is to introduce you to (and give you
some practice in ) methods of studying the Near East as well as
to some of the content of Near Eastern history; we expect no previous
background in the field. This course begins with the background
and rise of Islam and ends in the heyday of the Ottoman Turkish
and Safavid Persian empires, circa 1700. Although the basic organization
of the course is chronological, we will discuss topics in such
areas as politics and governance, religion (formal and "folk,"
including theology and mysticism), law, foreign relations and war, art and architecture, literature, economics, and social life.
The classes will include lectures by (and probably discussions
between) the instructors, and there will also be weekly class
discussion of the assigned readings. In addition to the final
examination, students will be expected to prepare two three-page
exercises based on the readings, which will consist of modern
scholarly works and translated medieval sources. WL:4
(Bonner/Lindner)
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Times, Location, and Availability
465(GNE 483). Islamic
Mysticism. Taught in English. (3). (Excl).
Beginning with the Qur'anic origins of Islamic mysticism and its
early Christian and ascetic influences, this course will explore the central themes and institutional forms of Sufism, a stream
of Islam which stresses the esoteric (mystical) dimensions of
religious faith. It will reflect upon the inward quest and devotions
of Muslim mystics as these have been lived and expressed in art, theology, literature, and fellowship since the 8th century BC.
Concepts of the self, divine love, self-perfection, the mystical
path with its states and stages, and mystical knowledge will be
introduced through a study of key philosophical and didactical
treatises of Sufism as well as specimens from its rich tradition
of ecstatic mystical poetry. Course requirements include three
short papers, a class presentation, and a term paper. Format:
lectures and discussions. (Knysh)
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Times, Location, and Availability
478/Armenian Studies
478. Classical Armenian I. (3). (Excl).
This course is designed for students with no previous knowledge
of Classical Armenian. Emphasis will be on grammar and readings
of classical and medieval Armenian texts. Classes will meet three
times a week. Students will be assigned homework and will be required
to take a midterm and a final. Robert W. Thomson's textbook, An
Introduction to Classical Armenian and supplementary materials
will be used. (Bardakjian)
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Times, Location, and Availability
486(GNE 446). Modern
Middle Eastern Literature. Taught in English. (3).
(HU).
Section 001 – Mapping the Arab Renaissance. The different
histories of the Arab Nahdah (Renaissance)have mainly been a reflection
of the different mappings of the problematically complex relationship
between the Arab World and the West, as pivoted on the French
invasion of Egypt in 1798. This course will offer a cultural, literary reading of the Arab Renaissance from the standpoint of
its forerunners, from Al-Jabarti to Jabra, while dealing with
some of the highly ignored events of the nineteenth century that
were played down by most of the historians of the Nahdah: the
publication of the Bulaq edition of The Book of the Thousand and One Nights in 1935; Shidyaq's 1855 Al-Saq 'ala Al-Saq; the 1865
Protestant translation of the Bible into Arabic; Bustani's Encyclopedia; the 1882 "Darwin Affair," etc. A special emphasis
will be put on the interactions between orality and literacy within the history of narrative art in modern Arabic literature, against the emergence of the Arabic novel as a literary genre. The course
will attempt to subvert some of the prevalent, mainly Egypt-oriented
notions about the emergence of the Arabic novel, and re-examine
some of the Levantine counter-arguments. Readings will include
a course-pack and a selection (in English) of different histories
of modern Arabic literature. Students will be evaluated through
class performance, an oral presentation and a term paper. Cost:2 (Shammas)
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Times, Location, and Availability
495(GNE 495)/WS 471/Hist.
546/Religion 496. Gender and Politics in Early Modern Islamdom.
Students should preferably have had one course in
Islamic Studies. Taught in English. (3). (Excl).
The general aim of the course is to understand gender roles in
Islam, both from a legal and religious perspective, as well as
from behind the veil and the walls of royal harems. An introduction
to Muslim understandings of gender and sex, first, through a survey
of those sacred texts (Quran & Hadith) that came to define
gender as well as the roles and mores of women and men in their
relationships. Sexuality and the erotic will then be studied through
other forms of popular Islamic literature such as Tbelles lettresU
and mystical poetry. Finally, gender participation in the political
and cultural life of the Safavi, Ottoman and Mughal courts shall
be explored to view the interplay between theory and practice
in early modern Islamdom. Weekly readings and preparation for
class discussions. A mid-term and final exam. One final research
paper. (Babayan)
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Times, Location, and Availability
501(Arabic 501). Advanced
Arabic Conversation and Composition. APTIS 404. (3).
(Excl).
The objectives of this course are to develop fluency and accuracy
in understanding, speaking, and writing modern standard Arabic, and to expand students' awareness of Arab-Islamic culture and civilization. The course is based on a variety of literary texts
and authentic cultural audio-visual materials including slides, video cassettes, and films. The course materials reflect not only the literary but also the cultural, social, and political trends
of contemporary Arab society. Occasionally, students are required
to read outside topics and give brief presentations. Evaluation
is based on daily preparations, weekly written compositions, monthly
tests, and a final paper in Arabic. Textbook is Advanced Standard
Arabic by Raji Rammuny. Parts One and Two. (Rammuny)
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Times, Location, and Availability
551(Turkish 511). Readings
in Ottoman Turkish. APTIS 252 and 452. (2). (Excl).
This course is the next stage in the acquisition of proficiency
in the reading and interpretation of Ottoman printed or archival
material in the Arabic script dealing with the literature and administration of the Ottoman Empire until the early nineteenth
century. The texts that are read in this course are xeroxed and distributed in class. Evaluation varies. (Stewart-Robinson)
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Times, Location, and Availability
561(Arabic 551). Modern
Arabic Fiction, I. APTIS 202 or 403. Taught in English.
(2). (Excl).
Selected examples of contemporary imaginative prose writing, such
as short and long fiction and drama, will be studied. Readings
will be in Arabic and class discussions will be in English. (LeGassick).
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Times, Location, and Availability
563(Arabic 553). Modern
Arabic Nonfictional Prose. APTIS 202 or 403. Taught
in English. (2). (Excl).
This course introduces the work of major Arab writers of the 19th
and 20th centuries. Variable in focus according to the interests
of the class, readings are selected for translation, analysis, and commentary. The course explores the historical progression
in the development of political and societal theories in modern
times in the Arab world. (LeGassick)
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Times, Location, and Availability
581(Arabic 521). Medieval
Arabic, I. APTIS 202 or 403. Taught in English. (3).
(Excl).
This course is designed for students who wish to learn Arabic
for academic purposes. We will begin with the sound and writing
system of Arabic, paying attention to accurate pronunciation of
sounds and writing Arabic words and phrases with a pleasing hand.
Then, we will move to reading, translating and discussion short
passages selected from the Qur'an, Hadith, and medieval Islamic
literature. There will be daily reading and written assignments.
Evaluation will be based on class participation and performance, monthly tests and a final exam.
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Times, Location, and Availability
583. Medieval Arabic
Historical and Geographical Texts. APTIS 404. (3).
(Excl). May be repeated for a total of 9 credits.
Subtitle: Introduction to Medieval Arabic Biographical Literature.
Biography is one of the most distinctive genres of Arabic literature.
It is also an important element in the history and historiography
of the Islamic Near East. In this course, we read biographical
texts taken from a variety of periods and genres. Much emphasis
on developing navigational skills; main requirement is a good
reading knowledge of Arabic. (Bonner)
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Times, Location, and Availability
587/Hist. 531. Studies
in Pahlavi and Middle Persian. (3). (Excl).
This course has a two-fold aim, the introduction to the Middle
Persian language, and the vast literature written in this language
by the adherents of two world religions. Zoroastrianism and Manichaeism, the small corpus of Middle Persian inscriptions of the Sasanian
dynasty. It has no prerequisites, and is designed for the general
student of linguistics, Indian linguistics, history, comparative
religion, literature and Near Eastern studies. There will be a
special additional component for language study proper. (Windfuhr)
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Times, Location, and Availability
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