---

[WesMaps 98/99 Home Page] [Course Search] [Course Search by CID]

Speak, Memory: Autobiography and Memoir in Russian Literature RUSS220 SP

Memoirs and autobiographical prose have been a major genre of Russian literature, particularly for women, since the 18th century. They offer a chance for the individual to make sense of his or her relationship to larger historical forces and allow writers of fiction and poetry to reflect on the tensions between biography and the creative process. We will read major works from the 18th century to the present, including Nadezhda Durova's account of her life on the front lines in the Napoleonic Wars; Dostoevsky's prison memoirs; the poet Mandelstam's reminiscences of a prerevolutionary childhood and his wife's account of Stalin's terror; and intense memories of childhood by Marina Tsvetaeva and Vladimir Nabokov. Attention will be paid throughout the course to related theoretical problems (narratology, feminism, historiography, etc.). All works will be read in English translation.

MAJOR READINGS

EXAMINATIONS AND ASSIGNMENTS

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS and/or COMMENTS

COURSE FORMAT: Discussion Lecture

REGISTRATION INFORMATION

Level: UG Credit: 1.00 Gen Ed Area & Dept: HA RUSS

Prerequisites: None

Last Updated on MAR-22-1999