REES 100. Current Issues in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies. 1-2 Unit.
Enrollment limited to REEES students. Scholars present analyses of methodologies, challenges, and current issues in the study of Russia, E. Europe, and Eurasia.
Same as: REES 200
REES 128. Literature of the former Yugoslavia. 3-5 Units.
What do Slavoj Zizek, Novak Djokovic, Marina Abramovic, Melania Trump, Emir Kusturica, and the captain of the Croatian national football team have in common? All were born in a country that no longer exists, the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1945-1992). This course will introduce masterpieces of Yugoslav literature and film, examining the social and political complexities of a multicultural society that collapsed into civil war (i.e. Bosnia, Kosovo) in the 1990s. In English with material available in Serbo-Croatian and Slovenian.
Same as: COMPLIT 128, SLAVIC 128
REES 145D. Jewish American Literature and Film. 5 Units.
From its inception, Jewish-American literature has taken as its subject as well as its context the idea of Jewishness itself. Jewish culture is a diasporic one, and for this reason the concept of Jewishness differs from country to country and across time. What stays remarkably similar, though, is Jewish self-perception and relatedly Jewish literary style. This is as true for the first-generation immigrant writers like Isaac Bashevis Singer and Anzia Yezierska who came to the United States from abroad as it is for their second-generation children born in the United States, and the children of those children. In this course, we will consider the difficulties of displacement for the emigrant generation and their efforts to sustain their cultural integrity in the multicultural American environment. We'll also examine the often comic revolt of their American-born children and grandchildren against their (grand-)parents nostalgia and failure to assimilate. Only by considering these transnational roots can one understand the particularity of the Jewish-American novel in relation to mainstream and minority American literatures. In investigating the link between American Jewish writers and their literary progenitors, we will draw largely but not exclusively from Russia and the countries of Eastern Europe.
Same as: AMSTUD 145D, ENGLISH 145D, JEWISHST 155D
REES 185B. Jews in the Contemporary World: The American Jewish Present & Past in Popular Culture, Film, & TV. 4-5 Units.
(HISTORY 185B is 5 units; HISTORY 85B IS 3 units.) Who are American Jews as depicted in popular media -- film, television, etc. -- since the Second World War? How are their religion, politics, mores, and practices represented and what ways, if at all, do such portraits reflect historical trends among Jews and society in general? What can be learned from film or tv about Jewish identity, notions of Jewish power and powerlessness, communal cohesiveness and assimilation, sexuality and the wages of intermarriage or race?.
Same as: CSRE 185B, HISTORY 185B, HISTORY 385C, JEWISHST 185B, SLAVIC 183
REES 200. Current Issues in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies. 1-2 Unit.
Enrollment limited to REEES students. Scholars present analyses of methodologies, challenges, and current issues in the study of Russia, E. Europe, and Eurasia.
Same as: REES 100
REES 204. Cities of Empire: An Urban Journey through Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean. 3-5 Units.
This course explores the cities of the Habsburg, Ottoman and Russian empires in the dynamic and turbulent period of their greatest transformation from the 19th century through the Two World Wars. Through the reading of urban biographies of Venice and Trieste, Vienna, Budapest, Cracow, Lviv, Sarajevo, Belgrade, Salonica, and Odessa, we consider broad historical trends of political, economic, and social modernization, urbanization, identity formation, imperialism, cosmopolitanism, and orientalism. As vibrant centers of coexistence and economic exchange, social and cultural borderlands, and sites of transgression, these cities provide an ideal lens through which to examine these themes in the context of transition from imperial to post-imperial space.
Same as: HISTORY 223E, HISTORY 323E, REES 304
REES 205. The Business of Socialism: Economic Life in Cold War Eastern Europe. 5 Units.
This colloquium investigates the processes of buying, making, and selling goods and services in Cold War Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. We will familiarize ourselves with a variety of approaches to writing the history of economic life and discuss to what extent they are applicable to state socialist systems. Our focus will not be on theories of socialism but on empirically grounded studies that allow for insights into how the system operated in practice and interacted with capitalism. We will, among others, explore the following questions: What was the role of the state in the economies east and west of the Iron Curtain? Are socialism and capitalism two incompatible systems? How did women experience and shape economic life after the Second World War? What had a greater impact on the economies of the region: Cold War politics or globalization?.
Same as: HISTORY 227B
REES 208. Constitutional Cultures in Transition: Constitutional Identities and Values in the Post-Soviet Space. 3-5 Units.
This course examines post-Soviet constitutional cultures and identities (with a focus on Armenia, Moldova and Ukraine). It explores the role of constitutional identity in post-Soviet transformation, regional integration and `Europeanization processes; analyzes constitutional values in post-Soviet countries; discusses why there is a disharmony between declared values and constitutional reality; and explores the role of the judiciary in the formation and preservation of constitutional identity.
Same as: REES 308
REES 210. Readings in Russian Realism. 3-5 Units.
For graduate students or upper-level undergraduates. What did Realism mean for late imperial Russian writers? What has it meant for twentieth-century literary theory? As we seek to answer these questions, we read Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Turgenev, and Chekhov, alongside their brilliant but less often taught contemporaries such as Goncharov, Saltykov-Shchedrin, Leskov, Garshin, Korolenko, Gorky, Andreev, and Bunin. Taught in English; readings in Russian. Prerequisite: Three years of Russian.
Same as: SLAVIC 325
REES 213. US-Russia Relations After the Cold War. 2 Units.
A quarter century ago, the Soviet Union collapsed and the Cold War ended. At the time, Russian leaders aspired to build democratic and market institutions at home. They also wanted to join the West. American presidents Democrat and Republican encouraged these domestic and international changes. Today, U.S.-Russia relations are once again confrontational, reminiscent of relations during the Cold War. This course seeks to analyze shifts in U.S.-Russia relations, with special attention given to the U.S.-Russia relationship during Obama¿s presidency. Readings will include academic articles and a book manuscript by Professor McFaul on Obama's reset policy. Open to students with previous coursework involving Russia.
Same as: POLISCI 213, POLISCI 313
REES 224A. The Soviet Civilization. 4-5 Units.
(HISTORY 224A is an undergraduate course offered for 5 units; HISTORY 424A is a graduate course offered for 4-5 units.) Socialist visions and practices of the organization of society and messianic politics; Soviet mass state violence; culture, living and work spaces. Primary and secondary sources. Research paper or historiographical essay.
Same as: HISTORY 224A, HISTORY 424A
REES 225E. From Vladimir to Putin: Key Themes in Russian History. 4-5 Units.
Formative issues in Russian history from Muscovy to the present: autocracy and totalitarianism; tsars, emperors, and party secretaries; multi-ethnicity and nationalism; serfdom, peasantry; rebellions and revolutions, dissent and opposition; law and legality; public and private spheres; religion and atheism; patterns of collapse. Class format will be discussion of one to two assigned books or major articles per class.
Same as: HISTORY 225E, HISTORY 325E
REES 227. All Quiet on the Eastern Front? East Europe and Russia in the First World War. 3-5 Units.
Until recently history has been comparatively quiet about the experience of World War I in the east. Far from being a peripheral theater of war, however, the experiences of war on the Eastern Front were central to shaping the 20th century. Not only was the first shot of the war fired in the east, it was also the site of the most dramatic political revolution. Using scholarly texts, literature and film, this course combines political, military, cultural and social approaches to introduce the causes, conduct and consequences of World War I with a focus on the experiences of soldiers and civilians on the Eastern Front. Topics include: the war of movement, occupation, extreme violence against civilians, the Armenian genocide, population exchanges, the Russian Revolution and civil war, and the disintegration of empires and rise of nation-states.
Same as: HISTORY 227D, HISTORY 327D, REES 327
REES 231B. Understanding Russia: Its Power and Purpose in a New Global Order. 5 Units.
Russia presents a puzzle for theories of socio-economic development and modernization and their relationship to state power in international politics. The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 brought into being the new Russia (or Russian Federation) as its successor in international politics. Russia suffered one of the worst recessions and experienced 25 years of halting reform. Despite these issues, Russia is again a central player in international affairs. Course analyzes motivations behind contemporary Russian foreign policy by reviewing its domestic and economic underpinnings. Examination of concept of state power in international politics to assess Russia's capabilities to influence other states' policies, and under what conditions its leaders use these resources. Is contemporary Russia strong or weak? What are the resources and constraints its projection of power beyond its borders? What are the determinants of state power in international politics in the twenty-first century? Includes lectures, readings, class discussions, films and documentaries.
Same as: INTLPOL 231B, INTNLREL 131, POLISCI 213C
REES 237. Political Exhumations. Killing Sites Research in Comparative Perspective. 3-5 Units.
The course discusses the politics and practices of exhumation of individual and mass graves. The problem of exhumations will be considered as a distinct socio-political phenomenon characteristic of contemporary times and related to transitional justice. The course will offer analysis of case studies of political exhumations of victims of the Dirty War in Argentina, ethnic cleansing in former Yugoslavia, the Holocaust, communist violence in Poland, the Rwandan genocide, and the Spanish Civil War. The course will make use of new interpretations of genocide studies, research of mass graves, such as environmental and forensic approaches.
Same as: ANTHRO 137D, ARCHLGY 137, ARCHLGY 237, DLCL 237
REES 240P. Populism and the Erosion of Democracy. 5 Units.
What is populism, and how much of a threat to democracy is it? How different is it from fascism or other anti-liberal movements? This course explores the conditions for the rise of populism, evaluates how much of a danger it poses, and examines the different forms it takes.
Same as: POLISCI 140P
REES 254. Animism, Gaia, and Alternative Approaches to the Environment. 3-5 Units.
Indigenous knowledges have been traditionally treated as a field of research for anthropologists and as mistaken epistemologies, i.e., un-scientific and irrational folklore. However, within the framework of environmental humanities, current interest in non-anthropocentric approaches and epistemic injustice, animism emerged as a critique of modern epistemology and an alternative to the Western worldview. Treating native thought as an equivalent to Western knowledge will be presented as a (potentially) decolonizing and liberating practice. This course may be of interest to anthropology, archaeology and literature students working in the fields of ecocriticism and the environmental humanities/social sciences, students interested in the Anthropocene, geologic/mineral, bio-, eco- and geosocial collectives, symbiotic life-forms and non-human agencies. The course is designed as a research seminar for students interested in theory of the humanities and social sciences and simultaneously helping students to develop their individual projects and thesis.
Same as: ANTHRO 154C, ANTHRO 254C, ARCHLGY 154, ARCHLGY 254, DLCL 254
REES 259C. Ecological Humanities. 3 Units.
What sort of topics, research questions, approaches, theories and concepts lead to an integration of various kinds of knowledges? Ecological Humanities provides a conceptual platform for a merger of humanities and social sciences with earth and life sciences, soil science and forensic sciences. The course will discuss such selected topics as the Anthropocene, geologic/mineral and exhumed subjects/personae, bio- and geosocial collectives, symbiotic life-forms, non-human agencies, and forensic landscapes as examples of this merger.
Same as: ANTHRO 159C, ANTHRO 259C, DLCL 259C
REES 260. History and Politics of Russian Language. 3-4 Units.
How did standard Russian develop? Who determines how the language is spoken and written? How does Russian interact with other languages of the region (such as Ukrainian and Yiddish)? This class examines the development of the standard literary Russian language, focusing on the 19th century, the Soviet period, and post-Soviet language politics. Taught in English, reading in Russian.
REES 299. Directed Reading. 1-12 Unit.
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REES 300. MA Capstone Seminar. 1-3 Unit.
Required for and limited to REEES MA candidates. Colloquia with CREEES Director and Associate Director to assist with refinement of research topic, advisor support, literature review, research, and thesis writing.
REES 301B. History and Politics in Russian and Eastern European Cinema. 5 Units.
From 1945 to the mid-80s, emphasizing Polish, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and Yugoslav contexts. The relationship between art and politics; postwar establishment of film industries; and emergence of national film movements such as the Polish school, Czech new wave, and new Yugoslav film. Thematic and aesthetic preoccupations of filmmakers such as Wajda, Jancso, Forman, and Kusturica. Permission of instructor required prior to the first day of classes.
Same as: FILMSTUD 245B, FILMSTUD 445B
REES 304. Cities of Empire: An Urban Journey through Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean. 3-5 Units.
This course explores the cities of the Habsburg, Ottoman and Russian empires in the dynamic and turbulent period of their greatest transformation from the 19th century through the Two World Wars. Through the reading of urban biographies of Venice and Trieste, Vienna, Budapest, Cracow, Lviv, Sarajevo, Belgrade, Salonica, and Odessa, we consider broad historical trends of political, economic, and social modernization, urbanization, identity formation, imperialism, cosmopolitanism, and orientalism. As vibrant centers of coexistence and economic exchange, social and cultural borderlands, and sites of transgression, these cities provide an ideal lens through which to examine these themes in the context of transition from imperial to post-imperial space.
Same as: HISTORY 223E, HISTORY 323E, REES 204
REES 304G. War and Society. 4-5 Units.
(HISTORY 204G is an undergraduate course offered for 5 units; HISTORY 304G is a graduate course offered for 4-5 units.) How Western societies and cultures have responded to modern warfare. The relationship between its destructive capacity and effects on those who produce, are subject to, and must come to terms with its aftermath. Literary representations of WW I; destructive psychological effects of modern warfare including those who take pleasure in killing; changes in relations between the genders; consequences of genocidal ideology and racial prejudice; the theory of just war and its practical implementation; how wars end and commemorated.
Same as: HISTORY 204G, HISTORY 304G
REES 308. Constitutional Cultures in Transition: Constitutional Identities and Values in the Post-Soviet Space. 3-5 Units.
This course examines post-Soviet constitutional cultures and identities (with a focus on Armenia, Moldova and Ukraine). It explores the role of constitutional identity in post-Soviet transformation, regional integration and `Europeanization processes; analyzes constitutional values in post-Soviet countries; discusses why there is a disharmony between declared values and constitutional reality; and explores the role of the judiciary in the formation and preservation of constitutional identity.
Same as: REES 208
REES 326. The Russian Revolution: Politics, Society, Culture. 3-5 Units.
The centennial of the Russian Revolution of 1917 serves as the occasion for this course, which surveys the political, social, and cultural upheavals that transformed Russia under the last Tsars and the first Soviet commissars. The course will be offered in conjunction with the exhibition "The Crown under the Hammer: Russia, Romanovs & Revolution," jointly sponsored by the Hoover Institution and the Cantor Arts Center at Stanford and opening at both venues on October 18, 2017. Several class sessions will be held at the Hoover Institution, where students will be invited to examine archival documents, rare books and periodicals, and the visual arts, including propaganda posters, photographs, motion picture film, and paintings in the collections of the Hoover Institution Library & Archives. One class session will be held at the Cantor Arts Center. The course is open to undergraduate and graduate students.
REES 327. All Quiet on the Eastern Front? East Europe and Russia in the First World War. 3-5 Units.
Until recently history has been comparatively quiet about the experience of World War I in the east. Far from being a peripheral theater of war, however, the experiences of war on the Eastern Front were central to shaping the 20th century. Not only was the first shot of the war fired in the east, it was also the site of the most dramatic political revolution. Using scholarly texts, literature and film, this course combines political, military, cultural and social approaches to introduce the causes, conduct and consequences of World War I with a focus on the experiences of soldiers and civilians on the Eastern Front. Topics include: the war of movement, occupation, extreme violence against civilians, the Armenian genocide, population exchanges, the Russian Revolution and civil war, and the disintegration of empires and rise of nation-states.
Same as: HISTORY 227D, HISTORY 327D, REES 227
REES 348. Slavic Literature and Culture since the Death of Stalin. 3-5 Units.
The course offers a survey of Soviet and post-Soviet literary texts and films created by Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian artists and marginalized or repressed by the Soviet regime. The first part of the course will focus on the topics of opposition and dissent, generational conflict, modernization, Soviet everyday life, gender, citizenship and national identity, state-published and samizdat literature, "village" and "cosmopolitan" culture, etc. The second part of it will be devoted to the postmodernist aesthetics and ideology in the dismantlement of totalitarian society, as well in the process of shaping post-Soviet identities. The reading materials range from the fictional, poetic, and publicistic works written by Noble-prize (Solzhenitsyn, Brodsky, Alexievich) and other major writers of the period to the drama, film, and popular culture.
Same as: SLAVIC 148, SLAVIC 348
REES 408C. Architecture, Acoustics and Ritual in Byzantium. 1-3 Unit.
Onassis Seminar "Icons of Sound: Architecture, Acoustics and Ritual in Byzantium". This year-long seminar explores the creation and operations of sacred space in Byzantium by focusing on the intersection of architecture, acoustics, music, and ritual. Through the support of the Onassis Foundation (USA), nine leading scholars in the field share their research and conduct the discussion of their pre-circulated papers. The goal is to develop a new interpretive framework for the study of religious experience and assemble the research tools needed for work in this interdisciplinary field.nnNOTE: This course is only offered on the graduate level and undergraduates would be admitted by request (sending a letter expressing interest to the instructor and specifying what other courses in music or art history has prepared them to tackle this subject) and special permission only.
Same as: ARTHIST 408C, MUSIC 408C, RELIGST 308C
REES 409. Theories of the Image: Byzantium, Islam and the Latin West. 5 Units.
This seminar explores the role of images in the three major powers of the medieval Mediterranean: the Umayyads, the Carolingians, and the Byzantines. For each the definition of an image- sura, imago, or eikon respectively-became an important means of establishing religious identity and a fault-line between distinct cultural traditions. This course troubles the identification of image with figural representation and presents instead a performative paradigm where chant or recitation are treated as images. As such, students will be able to see the connections between medieval image theory and contemporary art practices such as installation.
Same as: ARTHIST 209C, ARTHIST 409, CLASSICS 158, CLASSICS 258
REES 801. TGR Project. 0 Units.
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REES 85B. Jews in the Contemporary World: The American Jewish Present & Past in Popular Culture, Film, & TV. 3 Units.
(HISTORY 85B is 3 units; HISTORY 185B is 5 units.) Who are American Jews as depicted in popular media-- film, television, etc.-- since the Second World War? How are their religion, politics, mores, and practices represented and what ways, if at all, do such portraits reflect historical trends among Jews and society in general? What can be learned from film or tv about Jewish identity, notions of Jewish power and powerlessness, communal cohesiveness and assimilation, sexuality and the wages of intermarriage or race?.
Same as: CSRE 85B, HISTORY 85B, JEWISHST 85B
