Home

Chinese: Language, Literature, Culture (including courses in English)

View courses in

  • CAS LC 111: First-Semester Chinese
    Essentials of structure, oral practice, introduction to the writing system.Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: The Individual in Community.
    • The Individual in Community
  • CAS LC 112: Second-Semester Chinese
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS LC 111.
    Essentials of structure, oral practice, introduction to the writing system.Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: The Individual in Community.
    • The Individual in Community
  • CAS LC 116: Chinese Reading and Writing 1
    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. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: The Individual in Community.
    • The Individual in Community
  • CAS LC 211: Third-Semester Chinese
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS LC 112.
    Review of structure and grammar, practice in conversation and writing, introduction to reading. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: The Individual in Community.
    • The Individual in Community
  • CAS LC 212: Fourth Semester Chinese
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS LC 211.
    Review of structure and grammar, practice in conversation and writing, introduction to reading. Satisfactory completion of CAS LC 212 fulfills the CAS language requirement. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub areas: The Individual in Community, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • The Individual in Community
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS LC 216: Chinese Reading and Writing 2
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS LC 116; , or placement test results.
    Intensive course covering second-year Chinese in one semester for students who speak Mandarin. Training in listening and speaking, but emphasis is on reading and writing; aspects of students' Chinese heritage are also explored. Satisfactory completion of CAS LC 216 fulfills the CAS language requirement. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub areas: The Individual in Community, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • The Individual in Community
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS LC 250: Masterpieces of Classical Chinese Literature (in English translation)
    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. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • Aesthetic Exploration
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS LC 251: Masterpieces of Modern Chinese Literature (in English translation)
    Modern Chinese literature tells stories of trauma, accommodation, and resistance. It offers private and public records of tumultuous transitions. This course focuses on great works of transformative importance. Authors include Lu Xun, Wang Meng, and Jin Yong. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • Aesthetic Exploration
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS LC 260: Gateway to Asian Cultures
    Panoramic introduction to the cultures of East and South Asia in comparative perspective (China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, India). Examines shared foundations, transformative inflection points, sites, peoples, and ideologies over the past two millennia through primary texts and media. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. Effective Spring 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • Aesthetic Exploration
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS LC 280: Chinese Classics in Today's World (in English translation)
    Discusses canonical texts, such as the "Five Confucian Classics" and "Four Books," which for millennia have defined Chinese culture, and reflects on their appeal, significance, and current comeback in Chinese pop culture and politics. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • Historical Consciousness
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS LC 282: Old Tales for New Times: Folktale in Modern China
    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 incarnations. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Historical Consciousness, Critical Thinking.
    • Aesthetic Exploration
    • Historical Consciousness
    • Critical Thinking
  • CAS LC 285: Topics in Chinese Literature (in English translation)
    May be taken for credit as topics vary. Topic for Spring 2022: The East Asian imagination on non-human beings as a means for thinking about what it means to be human. Major readings from Chinese, Japanese, and Korean literary works (mythology, folk tales, fiction, and drama) and visual texts (animation and film), with a focus on representations of human-like animals, ghosts, monsters, and gods.
  • CAS LC 287: Screening Modern China (in English translation)
    Major Chinese films interpreted in light of modern Chinese history and culture. Focus on questions of national and cultural identity in films from the 1980s to the present day by directors from Mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. In English. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • Aesthetic Exploration
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS LC 311: Third Year Modern Chinese 1
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS LC 212.
    Readings and discussion in modern Chinese of a range of authentic materials, including essays, newspaper articles and multi-media recourses. Explore social issues in contemporary Chinese society (e.g. love and marriage, education, employment, population, housing problem, etc.) and compare them with the other countries. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS LC 312: Third Year Modern Chinese 2
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS LC 311; or consent of instructor. Enrollment in BU's Study Abroad Shanghai Programs.
    Readings and discussion in modern Chinese of selected nonliterary and literary materials,including newspaper articles, short stories, and essays. Regular compositions required.
  • CAS LC 313: Chinese through Theater and Performance
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS LC 311; or consent of instructor.
    This course explores communication through reading, writing, discussing and performing theater in Chinese. It focuses on linguistic, para-linguistic, and cultural aspects in authentic drama, and help learners express ideational, emotional, and social meanings in theatrical settings that simulate real life. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Digital/Multimedia Expression, Creativity/Innovation, Teamwork/Collaboration.
    • Digital/Multimedia Expression
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
    • Creativity/Innovation
  • CAS LC 315: Classical Chinese
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS LC 212 or CAS LC 216; or consent of instructor.
    Learning the basic syntactical, lexical, and semantic features of classical Chinese by reading original ancient texts from Pre-Qin to the Qing, and examining how active classical Chinese is in modern Chinese, in order to understand this cultural and linguistic heritage. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • Aesthetic Exploration
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS LC 319: Practical Chinese: Chinese in Intercultural Communication
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS LC 311; or consent of instructor.
    Learn how Chinese communicate differently with people from other cultures. Develop real life communication skills to use Chinese appropriately in diverse contexts (small talk, refusal, request, etc.) through analyzing authentic conversations, role-play, reading, case studies, and interacting with native speakers.
  • CAS LC 320: Advanced Classical Chinese
    Readings of classical Chinese poetry, philosophy, and short and long fiction for students with a foundation in literary Chinese. Selected materials address perennial human questions and are drawn from the past three millennia of the Chinese textual tradition. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
    • Aesthetic Exploration
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
  • CAS LC 322: Business Chinese
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS LC 311; or consent of instructor.
    Advanced Chinese language course focuses on both oral and written communication to prepare students for employment or research in a variety of China-related fields or in Chinese-speaking communities. Specific topics vary by semester. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Oral and/or Signed Communication, Teamwork/Collaboration.
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
    • Oral and/or Signed Communication
    • Teamwork/Collaboration

Related Bulletin Pages

Beyond the Bulletin