| Unit name | The Nineteenth-Century Russian Novel |
|---|---|
| Unit code | RUSS20069 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | I/5 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Green |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | Department of Russian |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
Arguably Russian literature reached its zenith in the nineteenth century. Russian nineteenth-century writers are renowned for their psychologically penetrating prose, and their engagement with key social, political and moral questions. What does it mean to be Russian? Should Russia follow the West or forge its own path? How should we respond to modernization? Should we still believe in God? If not, how can we distinguish between right and wrong? What is the meaning of life, and how should we live? In this unit, you will discover how some of Russia’s greatest writers responded to these questions. You will read some of the greatest books ever written. You will explore these novels in the historical and cultural context of nineteenth-century Russia and consider key themes and ideas, as well as issues of narrative structure and form.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
For students of Russian, the unit builds on knowledge acquired in the Y1 programme. In terms of skills, you will improve your academic writing and presentation skills, engaging in greater depth with literary criticism and developing the ability to build your own argument. The unit lays the groundwork for the more advanced study of Russian literature in your final year and indeed for literary and cultural studies across your programme. Students from outside SML will enjoy synergies with their home disciplines; you will learn about a culture that is both similar to, and different from cultures you are familiar with, and will thereby gain in intercultural understanding.
An overview of content
The writers and novels studied will vary from year to year but may include some of the following: Pushkin’s Eugene Onegin; Turgenev’s Fathers and Sons; Khvoshchinskaia’s The Boarding-School Girl; Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment; Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina. You will explore the evolution of the nineteenth-century Russian novel in its social, political, intellectual, and cultural contexts. You will analyse Russian novels in detail, both in their form and their content, developing the ability to read a novel closely as well as to engage in a comparative discussion of texts. You will improve your ability to communicate about complex ideas and topics, both in written work and in oral presentations.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit?
Many find the experience of reading nineteenth-century Russian literature to be transformative. You will acquire an in-depth knowledge of a country and society (nineteenth-century Russia) that differs profoundly from twenty-first century Britain. You will encounter worldviews and values that are unfamiliar. Through engaging with the books and ideas on this unit, you will develop your skills of reflection in relation to your own life and the world around you.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
1) Recognize and assess the contributions of major Russian writers to wider debates about Russian society and culture.
2) Construct evidence-based written arguments, consisting of an in-depth analysis of a set primary text, appropriate to level I/5.
3) Synthesise and evaluate the existing scholarship on nineteenth-century Russian literature.
4) Demonstrate engaging and persuasive presentation skills.
Each week, you will have one two-hour class or two one-hour classes that will include, broadly, three types of learning: lecture, discussion, and presentation.
Lecture: Lectures equip you with foundational subject knowledge. Far from being a passive mode of learning, lectures help you build critical analysis and evidence-gathering skills by modelling textual interpretation and posing key questions related to the discipline. We will often have a lecture followed by plenary or small-group activities. The lectures will provide the basic contextual knowledge that will facilitate the analysis of specific documents.
Discussion: discussions are a student-centred mode of learning. You will discuss key questions about the texts, developing, sharing and defending your own arguments as we discuss the material together as a class, and/or in pairs and small groups.
Presentation: All students will deliver a presentation. Through participation in presentations, both as a presenter and an audience member, you will become familiar with the key critical debates on the topic and learn to engage with and critique existing ideas. You will also sharpen your presentation skills.
Beyond the classroom, you will devote much time to primary and secondary reading, essential in the humanities. You should anticipate reading in a number of different genres and media: play texts, memoirs, manifestos, visual illustrations, video clips, scholarly articles and book chapters. Reading is sometimes misunderstood as a ‘passive’ activity, but engaged reading is an active process, as you will not only be expanding your subject knowledge, but also developing your sense of empathy, imagination and critical judgment judgement.
In total, you will have 22 hours of class teaching and 178 hours of independent learning.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Presentation, 3 minutes (0%, Required for Credit) [ILO 4]. This presentation will lead into the first written assessment, which will be an expanded version of the presentation.
Critical source analysis and critique, 750 words (25%) [ILOs 2 and 3]
Research essay, 2500 words, (75%) [ILOs 1, 2, and 3]
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Participation in class discussions. In-class close readings of texts, receiving instructor input and peer feedback.
When assessment does not go to plan
When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the form or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are normally confirmed by the School shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the academic year.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. RUSS20069).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
