* SLAV 0666a / FILM 0666a / HUMS 0666a, Six Global Perspectives on Monsters  Marijeta Bozovic

What—and who—is a monster? How—and why—do monsters in literature and film terrify and entertain us? This course uses the figure of the monster as a lens for interrogating the boundaries of the human. How are “we” manufactured, naturalized, policed? We read and watch with an eye toward how monstrous figures—grotesque, excessive, opaque—stage cathartic and disturbing crises in identity, unsettle the fantasy of bodily coherence, and mark the boundaries of the foreign and the disposable. Drawing on ambitious theoretical frameworks but grounded in pleasurably horrifying case studies, we investigate what can be seen, said, and understood within cultural texts, and how monsters expose the limits of legibility itself. Through close readings and film analysis, the class reveals how the monstrous operates not only as a figure of fear but as a powerful tool for rethinking power, representation, and the boundaries of knowledge.  WR, HU
TTh 9am-10:15am

* SLAV 3120a / FILM 3007a / RSEE 3120a / UKRN 3120a, Cinematic Ukraine: Culture, Identity, and Memory  Olha Tytarenko

This course traces the evolution of Ukrainian cinema from the avant-garde experiments of the 1920s to the vibrant post-2014 film resurgence. Exploring themes of national identity, historical memory, and resistance to political and cultural oppression, we analyze how filmmakers have shaped Ukraine’s self-conception through film. Topics include the poetic cinema of the 1960s, post-Soviet transition films, and contemporary works responding to war and cultural sovereignty. Students will engage critically with cinematic language, narrative structures, and visual aesthetics while incorporating perspectives from postcolonial theory and memory studies. The course features guest lectures from Ukrainian film directors and hands-on cinematographic workshops. Weekly thematic units pair films with historical and theoretical readings, offering a dynamic exploration of Ukraine’s place in global cinema and cultural history. None  HU
T 1:30pm-3:25pm, Th 6pm-9pm

* SLAV 3220b / MUSI 4365b / RSEE 2210b / RUSS 2210b, Introduction to Russian & Soviet Music, 1800-1950  Nari Shelekpayev

Through a blend of immersive listening assignments and reading materials this seminar invites an exploration of the world of Russian and Soviet music, with a particular focus on the genres and forms that have left a mark on the musical landscape. We listen and analyze excerpts from operas, suites, sonatas, concertos, symphonies, and other musical pieces to learn how the historical and musical contexts have shaped the evolution of these genres and forms in Russian and Soviet music. This seminar expects to go beyond a mere historical overview; it delves into the genealogy of Russian and Soviet musical traditions, connecting them with their Western counterparts. It suggests that Russian and Soviet composers not only absorbed the influences of European music but also reimagined musical structures, and crafted original texts that seamlessly wove together established canons and innovative concepts. Additionally, this seminar aligns music with the key themes of intellectual and political history in Russia and the Soviet Union. We analyze how the multifaceted relationship between nationalism and Orientalism, the debates between Slavophiles and Westernizers, and the challenges of and responses to modernity have left their mark on the musical expressions of the time. We examine the historical context where it holds particular significance: for example, in the case of Dmitry Shostakovich's 7th Symphony.  HU
TTh 4pm-5:15pm

* SLAV 3240a / HELN 3080a / HSAR 4283a / RUSS 3890a, Paper Icons  Justin Willson

Print profoundly transformed how people thought about images and the nature of depicted subject matter. This seminar examines the impact of print through the prism of the early modern Balkans, Eastern Europe, and Russia. Our focus is on the trajectory of looseleaf prints, though we attend to the relation of standalone compositions and book printing. We begin in the fifteenth century, with the earliest Greek and Cyrillic prints, and end in the late nineteenth century, exploring, along the way, the techniques of woodcut, engraving, monotype icon tracings, and lithography. Key themes are the epistemic challenges posed by an ephemeral medium, the archaeology of medieval iconography, economies of loss, pilgrimage cartography, Slavic poetics and the emblem, and the monastic pastoral. Primary sources in translation complement secondary readings, shedding light on key artistic actors. Extensive use is made of the Greek and Slavic collections at the Beinecke and Yale University Art Gallery.  No previous coursework in art history is required. 
Th 1:30pm-3:25pm