Department of Modern Languages & Comparative Literature

The Department of Modern Languages & Comparative Literature (MLCL) conducts research and teaching in German, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, Hebrew, Hindi-Urdu, Persian, Turkish, and in comparative literature. Majors combine their coursework with Study Abroad and international internships, and acquire insight into other cultures and into dimensions of literature that cut across national boundaries. The BA prepares students to enter an increasingly global workplace permeated by cultural and linguistic diversity.

Language Center

The James Geddes Jr. Language Center, on the fifth floor of 685 Commonwealth Avenue, includes language laboratories, specially equipped classrooms, audiovisual production facilities, and libraries of audiovisual materials. Use of these facilities is required for many courses and is assigned for supplementary work in other courses.

Foreign Language Specialty Residences

Chinese, German, and Japanese houses enable majors, minors, and students taking courses in one of these languages to use the language daily and to strengthen their knowledge of the language and culture of the countries. Chinese House is at 178 Bay State Road; German House is at 209 Bay State Road; Japanese House is at 206 Bay State Road. For more information, visit reslife.

Majors and Minors in Modern Languages & Comparative Literature

Students may choose a major or a minor in Chinese, comparative literature, German, Japanese, or Russian. Minors are also available in Arabic and Hebrew.

Language and literature majors frequently prepare themselves for careers or advanced study in international relations, government, education, journalism, and translating. Students in premedical or prelaw programs find the majors and minors in modern languages a satisfying way to broaden their programs of study.

Minors

The department encourages CAS students, whatever their major, to obtain the greatest benefit from their foreign language requirement by pursuing a minor in their chosen language. Advanced courses in a language or its literature increase proficiency in that language, present the great works and epochs of the literature, and acquaint students with the contemporary culture and that culture’s roots in the past. A grade of C or higher is required in all courses taken toward the minor. Students plan a minor program with their advisor, consisting ordinarily of six courses in their language or literature at the 240 level or above. Minors are available in Arabic (1142), Chinese (1107), German (1103), Hebrew (1111), Japanese (1108), Russian (1106), and comparative literature (1141). Internships taken during Boston University’s or other study abroad programs may not be credited toward minors offered by the department. Minors have specific course requirements; these are detailed for each minor in the following pages.

College of Arts & Sciences Language Requirement

Detailed information is available under Foreign Language requirements for the Bachelor of Arts Program. Several options are available for students who must fulfill the college language requirement. Information concerning these options is listed for each language.

Courses in Other Departments

Students are encouraged to consult the offerings of the Departments of Romance Studies, Classical Studies, and English.

Boston University Study Abroad Programs in Dresden, Haifa, Istanbul, Kyoto, Rabat, Shanghai, and Singapore

These programs feature intensive language courses as well as literature, civilization, and linguistics courses. Detailed information is available from the Study Abroad Office or online.

Courses in Literature or Civilization in English Translation

The following courses are offered in 2011/2012 with lecture, discussion, and readings in English. Any of these courses may be taken for humanities divisional credit. Some may satisfy major and minor requirements within specific programs. The courses are described in their respective language sections.

• CAS LC 250 Masterpieces of Classical Chinese Literature
• CAS LC 251 Masterpieces of Modern Chinese Literature
• CAS LC 283 Chinese Civilization
• CAS LC 286 Topics in Chinese Culture
• CAS LG 250 Masterpieces of German Literature
• CAS LG 282 Marx, Nietzsche, Freud
• CAS LG 283 The Faust Tradition
• CAS LH 250 Masterpieces of Modern Hebrew Literature
• CAS LH 282 Agnon and Oz: In Search of Modernity
• CAS LJ 250 Masterpieces of Japanese Literature
• CAS LJ 251 Modern Japanese Literature
• CAS LJ 283 Modern Japanese Culture in Cinema
• CAS LJ 451 Topics in Japanese Literature
• CAS LK 283 Modern Korean Culture Through Cinema
• CAS LR 250 Classics of Russian Prose
• CAS LR 285 Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky
• CAS LT 281 Istanbul at the Crossroads
• CAS LY 284 Arabs Write War: Poetry, Prose, and Drama Since 1948
• CAS LY 470 Topics in Arabic Literature (meets with CAS XL 470)
• CAS LZ 280 Persian Epic and Romance
• CAS LZ 281 Rumi and Persian Sufi Poetry
• CAS XL 222 Introduction to Comparative Literature: Western Literature
• CAS XL 223 Introduction to Comparative Literature: Middle Eastern Literature
• CAS XL 224 Introduction to Comparative Literature: East Asian Literature
• CAS XL 225 Introduction to Comparative Literature: South Asian Literature
• CAS XL 356 The Heretical Jew (meets with CAS RN 336)
• CAS XL 381 Topics in Gender and Literature (meets with CAS WS 305)
• CAS XL 383 Dante’s Hell
• CAS XL 459 Primo Levi Within Holocaust Literature (meets with CAS LI 459 and CAS RN 459)
• CAS XL 470 Topics in Comparative Literature (meets with CAS LY 470)
• CAS XL 520 Theory of the Novel
• CAS XL 540 Theory and Practice of Literary Translation
• CAS XL 556 Topics in Literature and Culture (meets with CAS EN 584)
• CAS XL 560 Topics in Religion and Literature