Russian 0871: History of Russian Film II: From Stalin to the Present
Spring Semester 1999 (99-2)
Wednesdays 1:00-4:59
CL 236
Vladimir Padunov
1421A CL
624-5713
e-mail: padunov+@pitt.edu
Office Hours: Mondays 11:00-12:00, Wednesdays
9:00-10:00, Fridays 11:00-12:00, and by appointment
See Supplementary Bibliography.
All reading assignments must be completed prior to the date indicated in the schedule of assignments. Each class meeting will begin with a review of the assigned reading. The review will be selective and will be supplemented with additional material and examples. Students are expected to be able to discuss the information contained in the assigned reading during the classroom discussions, both before and after screenings.
Students are expected to attend all classes. Most of the material that will be presented during the mini-lectures and the discussions of specific films will not be available outside of class. Attendance will be taken at each class meeting and students will receive a grade each meeting for participation in the discussions. Excused absences due to illness--personal or in the family--must be documented and absent students are responsible for acquiring relevant class notes. Two unexcused absences (that is, two weeks of classes) will result in an "F" for the course.
Each meeting of the course will consist of three parts: (i) an introductory mini-lecture by the instructor (15-20 minutes) to review the assigned reading for the class, to provide additional information about the state of the Russian film industry, and to establish a context for the film(s) to be screened: (ii) screening of the scheduled film (with related clips); and (iii) a discussion between students and the instructor of the film(s) screened and the assigned readings. Students are encouraged to meet with the instructor during scheduled office hours (or by appointment) to discuss thir work in the course (reading, participation, and papers).
The course includes an in-class midterm and final examination, the dates for which are indicated in the schedule of assigmnets at the end of this syllabus. The final exam will be taken in class on the date assigned by the registar (see the schedule of asssignments). The midterm and final examinations will consist of two sections: (1) identification of names, titles, dates, or events and (2) two essay-answers (out of four assigned topic-questions).
There will be periodic quizzes during the classroom meetings. Quizzes will not be announced in advance and will focus on a specific reading assignment, material on reading assigments covered in earlier discussions/lectures, or supplementary material introduced during earlier lectures.
The course is designed to fulfill the University of Pittsburgh's undergraduate writing requirement (W). As a consequence, a significant amount of attention will be paid to improving each student's writing skills and abilities. General issues concerning writing assignmnets and procedures will be discussed in class; specific writing problems and suggestions will be treated on the drafts of the assigned papers and in direct student-instructor consultations.
There will be four (4) papers assigned during the semester, each of which will be revised and rewritten after the instructor has commented on the writing draft. The papers (drafts and revisions) are due at the beginning of class on the assigned days. No papers will be accepted after the class and students will receive an "F" for the assignment. The due dates for the papers are indicated on the syllabus in the schedule of assignments.
Topics for each of the papers will be distrubuted in class on the dates indicated in the schedule of assignments. The instructor will provide students with a list of four to six possible topics fo each assignment. Each of the topics will be discussed briefly in class. Students wishing to write on a topic of their own choice must first receive permission from the instructor. Any student not present in class on the day topics are distributed in responsible for obtaining a copy from a classmate.
Students are encouraged to meet with the instructor to discuss their topic before beginning work on it. Students should also review their reading, lecture and discussion notes, as well as the Viewing Questions that will be distributed prior to each screening. The instructor will assist sudents in finding historical and critical sources that are necessary and important to their topic.
All papers should be four pages in length and must include a fifth page to list the works cited. Endnotes (in the event they are necessary) are to be placed between the text of the essay and the works cited page. All pages must have a header (indicating the student's name and the page number). The format for the papers--printing, paper, margins, spacing, headers, page numbering, etc.--described at length in Joseph Gibaldi, MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 4th edition (NY: MLA 1995). Before the first topics are distributed, the instructor will review the format of the papers and the procedures for citation and documentation with the students.
Secondary sources must be used in each of the essays, and all secondary sources must be credited in the body of the text and in the list of works cited. Each paper must use at least two secondary sources. All citations, notes, and documentation must conform with the standard, scholarly format as described in the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. Failure to use secondary sources will result in an automatic "F" grade on any draft of paper; failure to credit sources--accurately, partially, or totally--constitutes plagiarism and will result in administrative action against the student. Plagiarism is described in the MLA Handbook, section I.7 (26-29). Students are encouraged to question the instructor about plagiarism both during the lecture/discussion meetings and during office hours.
Students will be evaluated on the basis of their participation in class discussion and analysis, the four assigned papers, quizes, midterm and final examinations. Students are encouraged to consult with the instructor during office hours concerning their work in the course. Grades will be calculated using the following formula: participation (10%), papers (30%), quizzes (10%), midterm (25%), and final (25%) examinations.