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For subjects in English Language Studies, see 21G.217 - 21G.233.
First Year Discovery
21G.013 Discovering Multilingual Boston: Voices of Immigrant Communities
 ( ); partial term
Not offered regularly; consult department
Prereq: None
Units: 1-0-2 [P/D/F]
This discovery subject will expose first-year students to the 21G curriculum through exposure to the importance of global languages in our local community. Introduces Boston's multilingual richness and vibrant immigrant communities through an exploration of the city's diverse cultures and neighborhoods. Readings and films provide an overview of Boston's recent immigrant profile, document key issues within immigrant communities, and provide testimonies of lived experience. Field trips and guest speakers allow students to learn from organizations working with immigrants in Boston neighborhoods. Students have the option to produce a blog to document their findings and report on an immigrant community, struggle, or testimony. Class meets every other week over the course of the term. Subject can count toward the 6-unit discovery-focused credit limit for first-year students. Limited to 16; preference for first-year students.
Staff
21G.014 Introduction to Russian Politics and Society
 (); partial term
Prereq: None
Units: 1-0-2 [P/D/F]
Meets 9/12 to 12/5. Lecture: R2.30 (E40-418)
Introduces students to contemporary Russia through analysis of major political, social, and cultural trends and addresses how they have developed due to the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Considers the role of identity, state propaganda, civil society — including those in exile — and music both as an instrument of political power and popular resistance. Study materials include academic and media articles, recent documentaries, and video interviews with prominent figures in Russian science and culture. Subject can count toward the 6-unit discovery-focused credit limit for first year students. Limited to 15.
E. Zabrovski
No textbook information available
21G.015 Introduction to Buddhism, Mindfulness, and Meditation
(); second half of term
Not offered regularly; consult department
Prereq: None
Units: 1-0-0 [P/D/F]
Companion to the Fitness and Meditation class offered through MIT's Wellness program. Introduces students to the basic ideas of Buddhism, the history of Buddhism's transmission through East Asia, and core aspects of the philosophy of Humanistic Buddhism, including the role of meditation and mindfulness in Buddhist practice. Meets with the MIT Wellness Fitness and Meditation class; students must enroll in both to receive credit. Subject can count toward the 6-unit discovery-focused credit limit for first-year students. Limited to 18.
E. Teng
Studies in International Literatures and Cultures
Studies in International Literatures and Cultures make various modes of intercultural discourse available in English. Those subjects that deal with works from more than one nation give students the opportunity to pursue comparative studies. A significant number of subjects also allow students to study works from a single country.
21G.011 Topics in Indian Popular Culture
 ( )   
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Overview of Indian popular culture over the last two decades, through a variety of material such as popular fiction, music, television and Bombay cinema. Explores major themes and their representations in relation to current social and political issues, elements of the formulaic masala movie, music and melodrama, ideas of nostalgia and incumbent change in youth culture, and questions of gender and sexuality in popular fiction. Taught in English. Enrollment limited.
Staff
21G.022[J] International Women's Voices
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Same subject as 21L.522[J], WGS.141[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Introduces students to a variety of fictional works by contemporary women writers. International perspective emphasizes the extent to which each author's work reflects her distinct cultural heritage and to what extent, if any, there is an identifiable female voice that transcends national boundaries. Uses a variety of interpretive perspectives, including sociohistorical, psychoanalytic, and feminist criticism, to examine texts. Authors include Mariama Ba, Isabel Allende, Anita Desai, Maxine Hong Kingston, Toni Morrison, Doris Lessing, Alifa Riyaat, Yang Jiang, Nawal Al-Saadawi, and Sawako Ariyoshi. Taught in English.
Staff
21G.024[J] The Linguistic Study of Bilingualism
() 
(Same subject as 24.906[J])
Prereq: 24.900 or 24.9000
Units: 3-0-9
Lecture: MW1-2.30 (66-144)
Development of bilingualism in human history (from Australopithecus to present day). Focuses on linguistic aspects of bilingualism; models of bilingualism and language acquisition; competence versus performance; effects of bilingualism on other domains of human cognition; brain imaging studies; early versus late bilingualism; opportunities to observe and conduct original research; and implications for educational policies among others. Students participate in six online web meetings with partner institutions. Taught in English. Enrollment limited.
S. Flynn
No textbook information available
21G.025[J] Africa and the Politics of Knowledge
()
(Same subject as 21A.135[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Considers how, despite its immense diversity, Africa continues to hold purchase as both a geographical entity and meaningful knowledge category. Examines the relationship between articulations of "Africa" and projects like European imperialism, developments in the biological sciences, African de-colonization and state-building, and the imagining of the planet's future. Readings in anthropology and history are organized around five themes: space and place, race, representation, self-determination, and time. Enrollment limited.
D. Asfaha
21G.026[J] Global Africa: Creative Cultures
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Same subject as 21A.136[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.326)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Examines contemporary and historical cultural production on and from Africa across a range of registers, including literary, musical and visual arts, material culture, and science and technology. Employs key theoretical concepts from anthropology and social theory to analyze these forms and phenomena. Uses case studies to consider how Africa articulates its place in, and relationship to, the world through creative practices. Discussion topics largely drawn from Francophone and sub-Saharan Africa, but also from throughout the continent and the African diaspora. Taught in English. Limited to 18.
A. Edoh
21G.028[J] African Migrations
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Same subject as 21A.137[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.328)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Examines West African migration to France and to the United States from the early 20th century to the present. Centering the experiences of African social actors and historicizing recent dynamics, students consider what migration across these three regions reveals about African projects of self-determination, postcolonial nation-building, and global citizenship. Students also comparatively analyze the workings of contemporary French and American societies, in particular, the articulations of race and citizenship in the two nations. Taught in English. Limited to 18.
A. Edoh
21G.029[J] City Living: Ethnographies of Urban Worlds
()
(Same subject as 21A.402[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.419)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Lecture: MW1-2.30 (1-277)
Introduces the ways in which anthropologists have studied cities. Addressing the question of what constitutes the boundaries of life in the city, students familiarize themselves with key themes - such as the relation between city and countryside, space and place, urban economies, science, globalization, migration, nature/culture, kinship, and race, gender, class and memory - that have guided anthropological analyses of cities across the world. Via engagement with case studies and their own small fieldwork projects, students gain experience with different ethnographic strategies for documenting urban life. Taught in English. Limited to 25 across 21A.402 and 21G.419.
B. Stoetzer
No textbook information available
21G.030[J] Introduction to East Asian Cultures: From Zen to K-Pop
()
(Same subject as WGS.236[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.193)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Examines traditional forms of East Asian culture (including literature, art, performance, food, and religion) as well as contemporary forms of popular culture (film, pop music, karaoke, and manga). Covers China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, with an emphasis on China. Considers women's culture, as well as the influence and presence of Asian cultural expressions in the US. Uses resources in the Boston area, including the MFA, the Children's Museum, and the Sackler collection at Harvard. Taught in English.
E. Teng
21G.036[J] Advertising and Media: Comparative Perspectives
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Same subject as CMS.356[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.190, CMS.888)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Compares modern and contemporary advertising culture in China, the US, and other emerging markets. First half focuses on branding in the old media environment; second half introduces the changing practice of advertising in the new media environment. Topics include branding and positioning, media planning, social media campaigns, cause marketing 2.0, social TV, and mobility marketing. Required lab work includes interactive sessions in branding a team product for the US (or a European country) and China markets. Taught in English and requires no knowledge of Chinese. Students taking graduate version complete additional assignments.
Staff
21G.038 China in the News: The Untold Stories
(, )
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Subject meets with 21G.194)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Examines issues and debates crucial to understanding contemporary Chinese society, culture, and politics. Discusses how cultural politics frames the way in which China is viewed by mass media around the world and by China scholars in the West. Topics include the Beijing Olympic Games; Mao in post-Mao China; the new patriotism; leisure and consumer culture; the rise of the internet and web culture in urban China; media censorship, remix, and creative online culture. Analyzes the central debate over progress and the role played by the state, the market, and citizen activists in engineering social change. Uses documentaries and feature films to illustrate the cultural, social and political changes that have taken place in China since the 1980s. Includes two short writing assignments and a final paper. Taught in English.
Staff
21G.039[J] Gender and Japanese Popular Culture
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Same subject as 21A.143[J], WGS.154[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.591)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Examines relationships between identity and participation in Japanese popular culture as a way of understanding the changing character of media, capitalism, fan communities, and culture. Emphasizes contemporary popular culture and theories of gender, sexuality, race, and the workings of power and value in global culture industries. Topics include manga (comic books), hip-hop and other popular music, anime and feature films, video games, contemporary literature, and online communication. Students present analyses and develop a final project based on a particular aspect of gender and popular culture. Several films screened outside of regular class meeting times. Taught in English.
I. Condry
21G.040 A Passage to India: Introduction to Modern Indian Culture and Society
()
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Introduction to Indian culture through films, short-stories, novels, essays, newspaper articles. Examines some major social and political controversies of contemporary India through discussions centered on India's history, politics and religion. Focuses on issues such as ethnic tension and terrorism, poverty and inequality, caste conflict, the missing women, and the effects of globalization on popular and folk cultures. Particular emphasis on the IT revolution, outsourcing, the new global India and the enormous regional and subcultural differences. Taught in English.
Staff
21G.041[J] Foundations of East Asian Literature and Culture: From Confucius to the Beats
()
(Same subject as 21L.040[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Lecture: MW9.30-11 (2-103)
Studies foundational works from East Asia (China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam) with a focus on their cultural context and contemporary relevance and asks how "Literature" looks different when conceived through some of the world's oldest literatures beyond the West. Explores philosophical texts, history writing, poetry, stories and diaries, tales, and novels. Hones skills of reading, writing, and speaking with a sense of cultural sensitivity, historical depth, and comparative contemplation. Students who have taken this topic under 21L.007 cannot also receive credit for 21L.040.
W. Denecke
Textbooks (Fall 2024)
21G.042[J] Three Kingdoms: From History to Fiction, Comic, Film, and Game
()
(Same subject as 21H.352[J], 21L.492[J], CMS.359[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.133)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Analyzing core chapters of the great Chinese epic novel, Three Kingdoms, and its adaptations across diverse media, considers what underlies the appeal of this classic narrative over the centuries. Through focus on historical events in the period 206 BC to AD 280, examines the representation of power, diplomacy, war, and strategy, and explores the tension among competing models of political authority and legitimacy. Covers basic elements of classical Chinese political and philosophical thought, and literary and cultural history. Final group project involves digital humanities tools. Readings in translation. Films and video in Chinese with English subtitles.
E. Teng
21G.043[J] From Yellow Peril to Model Minority: Asian American History to 1968
()
(Same subject as 21H.107[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Lecture: TR1-2.30 (14E-310)
Provides an overview of Asian American history between the 1830s and 1968 and its relevance for contemporary issues. Covers the first wave of Asian immigration in the 19th century, the rise of anti-Asian movements, the experiences of Asian Americans during WWII, the 1965 immigration reform, and the emergence of the Asian American movement in the 1960s. Examines the role these experiences played in the formation of Asian American ethnicity. Addresses key societal issues such as racial stereotyping, xenophobia, ethnicity and racial formation, citizenship, worker activism, immigrant community building, the "model minority" myth, and anti-Asian harassment and violence. Taught in English.
Consult E. Teng
No required or recommended textbooks
21G.044[J] Classics of Chinese Literature in Translation
()
(Same subject as 21L.494[J], WGS.235[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.195)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Lecture: MW11-12.30 (2-103)
Introduction to some of the major genres of traditional Chinese poetry, fiction, and drama. Intended to give students a basic understanding of the central features of traditional Chinese literary genres, as well as to introduce students to the classic works of the Chinese literary tradition. Works read include Journey to the West, Outlaws of the Margin, Dream of the Red Chamber, and the poetry of the major Tang dynasty poets. Literature read in translation. Taught in English.
W. Denecke
Textbooks (Fall 2024)
21G.045[J] Global Chinese Food: A Historical Overview
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Same subject as 21H.156[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Introduces the history of Chinese food around the world. Illustrates how the globalization of Chinese food is deeply connected to Chinese migration patterns, expansion of Western influence in Asia, Chinese entrepreneurship, and interethnic relations in places of Chinese settlement. With an overview of earlier periods in Chinese history, focuses on the 18th through 20th centuries, specifically on major events in modern world history that affected the availability and demand for Chinese food. Considers environmental issues in relation to China's changing food systems. Includes a mandatory field trip to Boston Chinatown. Taught in English. Limited to 30.
Staff
21G.046 Modern Chinese Fiction and Cinema
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Subject meets with 21G.192)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Covers major works of Chinese fiction and film, from mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. Focusing on the modern period, examines how Chinese intellectuals, writers, and filmmakers have used artistic works to critically explore major issues in modern Chinese culture and society. Literature read in translation. Taught in English. Enrollment limited.
Staff
21G.048[J] Images of Asian Women: Dragon Ladies and Lotus Blossoms
()
(Same subject as 21A.141[J], WGS.274[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Lecture: R1-4 (4-265)
Explores some of the forces and mechanisms through which stereotypes are built and perpetuated. In particular, examines stereotypes associated with Asian women in colonial, nationalist, state-authoritarian, and global/diasporic narratives about gender and power. Students read ethnography, fiction, and history, and view films to examine the politics and circumstances that create and perpetuate the representation of Asian women as dragon ladies, lotus blossoms, despotic tyrants, desexualized servants, and docile subordinates. Students are introduced to debates about Orientalism, gender, and power.
M. Buyandelger
No textbook information available
21G.049[J] French Photography
() 
(Same subject as 4.674[J], 21H.145[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Introduces students to the world of French photography from its invention in the 1820s to the present. Provides exposure to major photographers and images of the French tradition and encourages students to explore the social and cultural roles and meanings of photographs. Designed to help students navigate their own photo-saturated worlds; provides opportunity to gain practical experience in photography. Taught in English. Enrollment limited.
C. Clark
21G.050[J] Looking East/Looking West
(New)
()
(Same subject as 21H.247[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Examines how objects and images mediate encounters between people and helped define the "Orient" and the "Occident." Explores the visual and material culture as well as textual accounts produced by and consumed during encounters between European and Asian travelers, diplomats, artists, writers, and tourists since the seventeenth century. Considers the frameworks scholars have used to understand these encounters and how we might deploy those frameworks ourselves. Employs historical thinking to work on our skills of visual and cultural analysis. Questions how these legacies of material and visual exchange have shaped the community within Boston area.
C. Clark, H. Nagahara
21G.052 French Film Classics
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
Prereq: None
Units: 2-2-8
History and aesthetics of French cinema from the advent of sound to present-day. Treats films in the context of technical processes, the art of narration, directorial style, role of the scriptwriter, the development of schools and movements, the impact of political events and ideologies, and the relation between French and other national cinemas. Films shown with English subtitles. Taught in English.
Staff
21G.053 Understanding Contemporary French Politics
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Credit cannot also be received for 21G.353
Examines the changes in contemporary French society through the study of political debates, reforms and institutions since 1958. Analyzes the deep influence of politics on cultural and social life, despite a decline in political participation. Revisits public controversies and political cleavages, from the Algerian war to postcolonial issues, from the birth of the European Union to the recent financial crisis, and from the moral "revolution" of the seventies to the recognition of new families. Course taught in English. Enrollment limited.
Staff
21G.054[J] France: Enlightenment and Revolution
()
(Same subject as 21H.241[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Explores the question of whether the French Enlightenment caused the French Revolution. Studies France prior to 1789, analyzes some of the most critically corrosive works of the French Enlightenment, and considers how ideas circulated through France and Europe in the eighteenth century. Examines the role of enlightened ideas in France during the revolutionary decade from 1789 to 1799.
M. Ghachem
21G.055[J] Media in Weimar and Nazi Germany
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Same subject as CMS.311[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 2-2-8
Debates over national and media identity in Weimar and Nazi Germany. Production and use of media under extreme political and social conditions with a focus on films (such as Nosferatu, Berlin, M, and Triumph des Willens) and other media. Media approached as both texts and systems. Considers the legacy of the period, in terms of stylistic influence (e.g. film noir), techniques of persuasion, and media's relationship to social and economic conditions. Taught in English. Enrollment limited.
Staff
21G.056[J] The "Making" of Modern Europe: 1789-Present
()
(Same subject as 21H.143[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.356)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Lecture: MW11-12.30 (56-191)
Provides an overview of European history from 1789 to the present. Explores how the ideas of "European" and "modern" have been defined over time. Explores major events and the evolution of major tensions and issues that consumed Europe and Europeans through the period, including questions of identity, inclusion/exclusion, religion, and equality. Places major emphasis on the fiction, visual culture, and films of the century as the products and evidence of political, social and cultural change. Taught in English.
E. Kempf
No textbook information available
21G.057[J] Gender, Race, and Environmental Justice
()
(Same subject as 21A.407[J], STS.022[J], WGS.275[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Provides an introduction to the analysis of gender in science, technology, and environmental politics from a global perspective. Familiarizes students with central objects, questions, and methods in the field. Examines existent critiques of the racial, sexual and environmental politics at stake in techno-scientific cultures. Draws on material from popular culture, media, fiction, film, and ethnography. Addressing specific examples from across the globe, students also explore different approaches to build more livable environments that promote social justice. Taught in English. Limited to 18.
B. Stoetzer
21G.058[J] Race and Migration in Europe
()
(Same subject as 21A.132[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.418)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Addresses the shifting politics of nation, ethnicity, and race in the context of migration and globalization in Germany and Europe. Provides students with analytical tools to approach global concerns and consider Europe and Germany from cross-cultural and interdisciplinary perspectives. Familiarizes students with the ways in which histories of migration, travel, and colonial encounters shape contemporary Europe. Introduces the concepts of transnationalism, diasporic cultures, racism, ethnicity, asylum, and mobility via case studies and materials, including film, ethnography, fiction, and autobiography. Taught in English. Limited to 18.
B. Stoetzer
21G.059 Paradigms of European Thought and Culture
()
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
URL: https://languages.mit.edu/areas-of-study/german-studies/
Lecture: M EVE (7-10 PM) (14E-310)
Subject surveys the main currents of European cultural and intellectual history in the modern period. Introduces a set of ideas and arguments that have played a formative role in European culture, and acquaints students with exemplars of critical thought. Readings begin with the Protestant Reformation and move through the French Revolution up to the post-WWII period. Figures to be considered include Luther, Descartes, Kant, Hegel, Rousseau, Smith, Marx, Freud, Beauvoir, and Foucault. Class discussions set these texts into the context of European culture. Topics to be considered are artworks by Goya, David, and Duchamp; the architecture of Schinkel; the music of Bach; and the literature of Goethe. Taught in English.
P. Urlaub
Textbooks (Fall 2024)
21G.062[J] Gateway to Japanese Literature and Culture
()
(Same subject as 21L.493[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.562)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Surveys the nature, history, and distinctive features of Japanese literature and cultural history from the beginnings through the threshold of modernity. Examines various genres of poetry, historiography and mythological lore, prose tales and fiction, diaries, essays, Noh and puppet plays, short stories and novels; and helps students appreciate the texts' relevance in the historical and cultural context in which authors wrote them, in the broader context of literary traditions from around the world, and for the humanistic and aesthetic powers that make them poignant to us today. Showcases how authors increasingly enjoyed adapting, redoing, and satirizing earlier models, while constantly developing new expressive forms suited to the urgent needs of their time. Includes an eco-literature lab, a creative writing lab, and a history-writing lab for collaborative experimentation.
W. Denecke
21G.063 Anime: Transnational Media and Culture
()
(Subject meets with 21G.596)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Explores anime (Japanese animated films and TV shows) as a study in flows among media and cultures. Discusses Japan's substantial share of the TV cartoon market and the reasons for anime's worldwide success. Focuses on cultural production and the ways anime cultures are created through the interactive efforts of studios, sponsors, fans, broadcasters, and distributors. Uses anime scholarship and media examples as a means to examine leading theories in media and cultural studies, gender and sexuality, technology and identity, and post-industrial globalization. Taught in English.
Staff
21G.064 Introduction to Japanese Culture
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Subject meets with 21G.592)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Examines the major aesthetic, social, and political elements which have shaped modern Japanese culture and society. Readings on contemporary Japan and historical evolution of the culture are coordinated with study of literary texts, film, and art, along with an analysis of everyday life and leisure activities. Taught in English. Limited to 18.
Staff
21G.065[J] Japanese Media Cultures
()
(Same subject as CMS.354[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.593)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Examines storytelling media in twentieth and twenty-first century Japan, situating emerging media aesthetics and practices alongside broader shifts in cultural and social life. Engages with pivotal works in a wide range of media including film, literature, anime, manga, and video games, as well as critical concepts in Japanese media studies. Taught in English. 21G.593 includes additional work in Japanese. Enrollment limited.
Consult P. Roquet
21G.066[J] Gateway to Korean Literature and Culture
()
(Same subject as 21L.491[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Introduction to two millennia of Korean literature and culture. Discusses texts, artifacts, and films in their cultural context and from a comparative global perspective. Explores poetry; historiography, story-telling, drama and fiction; philosophical and religious texts and practices; and visual materials. Includes creative exercises to help students develop their own Korean wave and K-drama passions with a critically informed eye.
Y. Noh
21G.067[J] Digital Media in Japan and Korea
()
(Same subject as CMS.351[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.597)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Examines the social, cultural, and political stakes of digital culture in Japan and Korea. Focuses on digital media use (and abuse), including the internet, streaming and mobile media, gaming, robots, and augmented realities; the digital remediation of older media; and methods for the study of online life. By considering how digital media use has developed in each country and reshaped identity, politics, public space, and creative practice, students build a conceptual and critical vocabulary for the comparative study of algorithmic cultures. Taught in English.
P. Roquet
21G.068 The Invention of French Theory: A History of Transatlantic Intellectual Life since 1945
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Examines post-WWII French theory. Discusses how theorists such as Lacan, Cixous, Derrida, and Debord were perceived in France and the US. Explores transatlantic intellectual debates since 1989 and the "new" French theory. Topics include: communism, decolonization, neo-liberalism, gender and mass media. Taught in English.
B. Perreau
21G.070[J] Latin America and the Global Sixties: Counterculture and Revolution
()
(Same subject as CMS.355[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Close reading of political issues, cultural artifacts, and social actors of Latin America during and in the wake of the revolutionary 1960s. Examines how culture and politics addressed the need to conceptually organize a series of events that were equally momentous and confusing. Questions the established stereotypes and assumptions about Latin America and the sixties that are portrayed in its contemporary, often nostalgic, revivals. Focuses on the ideas that defined Latin America's participation in a global trend of political upheavals, emerging youth cultures, and demands for social justice. Taught in English. Enrollment limited.
P. Duong
21G.072[J] The New Latin American Novel
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Same subject as CMS.353[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Students read newly translated, recent fiction from Latin America and consider contemporary issues in, and approaches to, reading and writing literature in the 21st century. Debates the concept of contemporary in these texts and whether we can still talk about a Latin American novel. Reflects on issues of interpretation, authorship, gender, genre, media, ideology and theories of the novel, Latin American literary history, and translation. Authors may include César Aira, Mario Levrero, Samanta Schweblin, Yuri Herrera, Ena Lucía Portela, Valeria Luiselli, Roberto Bolaño, Marlon James, and J. P. Cuenca. Enrollment limited.
P. Duong
21G.073[J] The Spanish Incubator
( ) 
(Same subject as 21L.590[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-3-3
Students travel to Spain to explore the country's influence on our understanding of contemporary culture, from its role as the crucible of the international avant-garde, to its genesis of political art and writing, to its Civil War that ignited the artistic passion of authors around the world, to the exuberant liberation after 40 years of dictatorship. Readings include Hemingway, Lorca, Orwell, Neruda, memoirs of Americans of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, Spanish poetry of the war and repression that followed, and the films of Saura and Almodovar. Films, readings, field trips to museums, and cultural events enable students to understand the full context in which today's vibrant Spanish democracy emerged. Contact Literature about travel fee and possible funding opportunities. Enrollment limited. Application required; contact Literature Headquarters for details.
M. Resnick
21G.075[J] Global Chinese Migration, 1567-Present
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Same subject as 21H.253[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.196)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Examines Chinese migration in historical and comparative perspective, beginning in 1567 with the lifting of the imperial ban on private maritime trade. Covers migration to diverse venues across the globe, including tropical colonies, settler societies, Chinese frontiers, and postcolonial metropoles. Topics include the varied roles of Chinese migrants in these diverse venues, the coolie trade and anti-Chinese movements, overseas students, transnational networks, cultural adaptation, and the creolization of Chinese food in migrant communities. Critically examines the degree to which this transnational migration has produced a "Global Chinese" identity. Taught in English.
E. Teng
21G.077[J] Introduction to the Classics of Russian Literature
()
(Same subject as 21L.490[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.618)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Explores the works of classical Russian writers of the 19th and 20th centuries, including stories and novels by Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Chekhov, Bunin, Nabokov, Platonov, and others. Focuses on their approaches to portraying self and society, and on literary responses to fundamental ethical and philosophical questions about justice, freedom, free will, fate, love, loyalty, betrayal, and forgiveness. Taught in English; students interested in completing some readings and a short writing project in Russian should register for 21G.618.
M. Khotimsky
21G.078[J] Latin America Through Film
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Same subject as 21H.172[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Traces Latin American history through film and analyzes how this medium represents events in the recent and distant past. Weekly movies provide a window through which to analyze themes such as colonialism, national formation, revolution, gender, race relations, popular mobilizations and counterinsurgency. Examines films for how they represent a particular group or country, the reality they capture or obscure, and the message they convey.
T. Padilla
21G.084[J] Introduction to Latin American Studies
()
(Same subject as 17.55[J], 21A.130[J], 21H.170[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.784)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Lecture: TR11-12.30 (66-154)
Examines contemporary Latin American culture, politics, and history. Surveys geography, economic development, and race, religion, and gender in Latin America. Special emphasis on the Salvadoran civil war, human rights and military rule in Argentina and Chile, and migration from Central America and Mexico to the United States. Students analyze films, literature, visual art, journalism, historical documents, and social scientific research.
T. Padilla
Textbooks (Fall 2024)
21G.085[J] Imperial and Revolutionary Russia: Culture and Politics, 1700-1917
()
(Same subject as 21H.244[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Analyzes Russia's social, cultural, and political heritage in the 18th and 19th centuries, up to and including the Russian Revolution of 1917. Compares reforming and revolutionary impulses in the context of serfdom, the rise of the intelligentsia, and debates over capitalism. Focuses on historical and literary texts, especially the intersections between the two.
E. Wood
21G.086[J] Soviet and Post-Soviet Politics and Society: 1917 to the Present
()
(Same subject as 17.57[J], 21H.245[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Lecture: TR1 (1-150) Recitation: F1 (1-132, 5-232)
Explores the political and historical evolution of the Soviet state and society from the 1917 Revolution to the present. Covers the creation of a revolutionary regime, causes and nature of the Stalin revolution, post-Stalinist efforts to achieve political and social reform, and causes of the Soviet collapse. Also examines current developments in Russia in light of Soviet history. Enrollment limited.
E. Wood
Textbooks (Fall 2024)
21G.087[J] Introduction to Russian Studies
()
(Same subject as 21H.144[J])
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Explores Russian culture and society by analyzing its unique position at the crossroads of Europe and Asia throughout medieval, Imperial, Soviet, and contemporary periods. Investigates a variety of topics: defining the borders of the country and shaping its relationship with the outside world; changes in living spaces from rural to urban, development of cultural centers; and daily life, customs, and traditions. Includes readings in literature, history, and cultural studies, as well visual arts, music, and film. Limited to 25.
E. Wood, M. Khotimsky
21G.094[J] Cinema in Japan and Korea
()
(Same subject as CMS.352[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.594)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Focuses on landmark art cinema from both countries while providing a thorough introduction to film style. Each week examines a different component of film form, using the close analysis of specific films in their cultural and historical context. Explores the use of video essays as a form of critical analysis. Taught in English.
P. Roquet
21G.095[J] Cultures of Popular Music in East Asia: Japan, Korea, China
()
Not offered regularly; consult department
(Same subject as 21M.297[J], WGS.150[J])
(Subject meets with 21G.595)
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Explores a variety of music cultures in contemporary East Asia. Emphasizes examples from Japan, but forays elsewhere, including South Korea and China. Uses writings, videos, and recordings of musical performances, events, and objects in a variety of contexts to better understand how the concept of culture gives insight into gender, class, sexuality, race, ethnicity, nationhood, and individual identities. Explores ethnographic approaches to musical cultures with a focus on the last thirty years. Topics include Japanese hip-hop, K-Pop idols, Vocaloids (virtual idols), Chinese popular music and protest, street music, streaming and online distribution for global music, and experimental music. Students conduct ethnographic fieldwork and produce sonic presentations. No music experience nor technical expertise required. Taught in English.
I. Condry
21G.111 Chinese Calligraphy
()
Prereq: None
Units: 3-0-9
Lecture: T2-5 (2-142)
Provides an introduction to the ancient art of Chinese calligraphy and its traditional uses. Studies the history of the Chinese writing system and develops skills through guided reading, classroom discussion, and systematic practice with brush and ink. Students work on a small calligraphy project based on their own interest. Taught in English; no prior knowledge of Chinese language required. Limited to 25.
P. Gao
No required or recommended textbooks
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