Chinese

Essentials of structure, oral practice, introduction to the writing system.

Essentials of structure, oral practice, introduction to the writing system. (Prereq: LC 111)

Intensive course covering first-year Chinese in one semester for students who speak Mandarin but possess limited or no reading and writing skills. Listening and speaking skills are also developed; aspects of students’ Chinese heritage are explored.

Topic for Fall 2019: Forbidden Romance in Modern China. Introduces the fictional representations of amorous engagement in Chinese literary modernity. Examines how the modern lure of free will drove Chinese to redefine terms of affect, such as love, desire, passion, sexuality, loyalty, dedication, revolution, and sacrifice.

Review of structure and grammar, practice in conversation and writing, introduction to reading. (Prereq: LC112)

Review of structure and grammar, practice in conversation and writing, introduction to reading. Satisfactory completion of CAS LC 212 fulfills the CAS language requirement. (Prereq: LC211)

Panoramic overview of three thousand years of Chinese literature from its beginnings to the threshold of modernity. Discusses masterpieces of one of the world’s oldest continuous traditions in their cultural context and in the context of literatures around the world. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.

Topic for Spring 2019: Old Tales for New Times: Folklore in Modern and Contemporary China. An interdisciplinary approach to China’s most famous folk tales such as the Weaving Maiden and the Ox Herder, and the White Snake and Mulan. Traces the development of these stories in premodern times and their modern incarnation. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS

Readings in modern Chinese. Readings and discussion in Chinese of selected nonliterary and literary materials, including newspaper articles, short stories, and essays. Regular compositions required. (Prereq: LC 212)

Emphasizes communication skills in Chinese in interpretive, interpersonal, and presentational modes. Students learn contextually appropriate language use and explore cultural aspects in authentic communication examples, both in real-life interaction and media materials. Topic for Fall 2018: Chinese through Theater and Acting.

Prereq: (CASLC311) or consent of instructor.

Introductory readings in Classical Chinese for students of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean. Learn the shared literary language of premodern East Asia and read masterpieces of East Asian philosophy, history, poetry, and fiction in the original. Also offered as CAS LJ 314 and CAS LK 314.

Enhances students’ reading and writing skills by using Chinese literature in the original as primary material, including modern masterpieces by Lu Xun, Lao She, Zhu Zhiqing, Bei Dao, Mo Yan, Wang Xiaobo. Examines social contexts in which these texts were written.

A seminar on the major works of modern Chinese literature and cinema from the May Fourth period to the present, with a focus on close reading and visual analysis. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.