Courses by Term

See below for the courses being offered in East European, Eurasian, and Russian Studies this term, including the meeting times and course instructor. To see all of the courses offered by the EEERS Department this academic year, please check the left hand tabs. You may also check what courses have been taught the last several academic years in order to see the range of courses we have offered, some of which will be offered again in the near future. For courses descriptions for all courses, please see the ORC on the Registrar's website, in particular the sections for East European, Eurasian, and Russian Studies courses; Russian Language courses; and Ukrainian Language courses.

COURSES OFFERED SPRING 2026:

RUSS 3 Beginning Russian  An introduction to Russian as a spoken and written language.-Filimonova

RUSS 29 Intermediate Russian The sequence RUSS 28 and RUSS 29 completes the cycles of second-year Russian. Special emphasis is placed on such difficult areas as participles, aspects and verbs of motion. The course includes extensive reading, video work and vocabulary building. -Plagmann 

RUSS 43 Advanced Russian In these seminar courses, numbered in the forties, advanced learners and native speakers of Russian have an opportunity to read texts in their original Russian and to study aspects of Russian intellectual history and the literary tradition in depth. The course focus varies from year to year and may concentrate on particular topics and phenomena (e.g. popular culture, media, humor, poetry, and translation). The course also continues work on advanced grammar and is conducted in Russian. Students will complete a project in Russian. -Somoff 

EEER 37 Chekhov and the Healing Arts The great Russian writer, Anton Chekhov (1860-1904) is not only credited with pioneering the modern short story form and inventing modern theater, but he was also a beloved and practicing doctor. Chekhov's works can be read as a guide to the non-medical healing arts, including humor, adventure, compassion, and art itself. We will draw on his works, as well as on Chekhov's own epistolary advice, with the goal of learning "how to write like Chekhov."-Patyk. LIT; WCult:W.

EEER 38.15/ JWST 5.01 Homelands and Diasporas: Russian Jews on Three Continents Drawing on a variety of disciplines, such as anthropology, history, sociology, political science, and cultural studies, and sources ranging from academic works to works of fiction and films, the course first explores the history and culture of Russian (pre-1917) and especially Soviet Jews (1917-1991)—a major and significant segment of the world Jewry—prior to the massive immigration of the 1970s-1990s. The rest of the course involves a comparison of the experience of Russian-speaking Jews in the three major countries they have immigrated to—Israel, US, and Germany—as well as those remaining in Russia today.-Kan.

EEER 38.28/ COLT 50.01 Literature and Ideology in Eastern Europe The course will focus on the politics and contexts of language functioning in literary works as an instrument of ideological influences as well as the tool of counterinfluence, or resilience, to various kinds of ideological pressure. We will analyze a selection of literary works representing new and updated genres and styles, with a special look at literary works as war testimony "after Bucha" in Ukraine. Among the considered authors are winners of prestigious literary prizes.  -Kolomiyets. LIT; WCult:NW. Course Syllabus.

EEER 38.xx Media and Mind Control [new course] -Patyk

EEER 39  Wonder Works from Ukraine This course explores Ukrainian folklore, including vampire legends, rites of passage, and fairy tales. We will uncover the patterns and meanings behind these narratives and customs, reflecting on their enduring appeal to modern writers, artists, and ourselves. Students will collaborate with peers in Ukraine on projects such as the art of pysanka workshop and gather contemporary folklore from Ukraine-based informants (via Zoom), examining the vital role folklore plays in the wartime experiences of present-day Ukrainians.-Somoff. INT or LIT; WCult:W.

EEER 50.03 20th Century Russia An examination of major developments and problems in twentieth-century Russian history with particular attention to the consequences of the October Revolution, Leninism, civil war and its impact, politics and society during the New Economic Policy of the 1920s, the formation of the Stalinist system and its historical legacy, the Krushchev era, the Brezhnev years of "stagnation," Gorbachev's perestroika and the problems of transition to a law based on democratic and open market system of the Russian Federation, the successor state to the Soviet Union. Open to all classes.-Finkel. SOC; WCult:W.

UKRA XX.xx Seminar on Ukrainian Literature, Language, and Culture [New Course]  *tentative -Somoff.