Russian
Academic Department Introduction
Wellesley’s Russian Department was founded in the 1940s by famed author and critic Vladimir Nabokov. We teach Russian in the broader context of Russian society, culture, visual art, and music. Our innovative language courses make use of movies, music, and history. Numerous activities both inside and outside the classroom are designed to enrich students’ appreciation of the achievements and fascinating traditions of Russian civilization.
Learning goals
Converse fluently in Russian.
Comprehend important primary and secondary texts from the Russian literary tradition.
Discover and delineate the major themes of Russian literature and culture from the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries.
Programs of Study
Russian major
Students express an understanding of Russian culture clearly and persuasively.
Course highlights
A Russian-language course designed to supplement RUSS 277 above, though RUSS 377H may be taken independently. Students will read and discuss, in Russian, major short works by Tolstoy.
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Probably no writer has been so detested and adored, so demonized and deified, as Dostoevsky. This artist was such a visionary that he had to reinvent the novel in order to create a form suitable for his insights into the inner life and his prophecies about the outer. To this day readers are mystified, outraged, enchanted, but never unmoved, by Dostoevsky's fiction, which some have tried to brand as "novel-tragedies," "romantic realism," "polyphonic novels," and more. This course challenges students to enter the fray and explore the mysteries of Dostoevsky themselves through study of his major writings.
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An odyssey through the fiction of the great Russian novelist and thinker, beginning with his early works (Sevastopol Stories) and focusing on War and Peace, though two major achievements of Tolstoy's later period (A Confession, The Death of Ivan I'lich) will conclude the course. Lectures and discussion will examine the masterful techniques Tolstoy employs for his intensive explorations of human existence, from mundane detail to life-shattering cataclysm. Students are encouraged to read as much of the Maude translation of War and Peace (Norton Critical Edition) as possible before the term begins.
Places and spaces
Our cozy lounge fosters community among Russian faculty and students. Faculty meet informally here with students, as well as hold cultural events and share Russian meals.
Research highlights
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Senior Lecturer Alla Epsteyn and co-author Maia Solovieva wrote a chapter, “Extracurricular Activities in Russian Language and Culture Programs: Challenges and Perspectives,” in The Art of Teaching Russian (2020), an edited volume on Russian language instruction combining the latest research, pedagogy, and practice.
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Beware of House Slippers (2019) is a film written, acted, and produced by students in RUSS 306: Advanced Russian II. Set on the Wellesley campus, it imitates the stylistic and plot devices of the film Beware of the Car!, a 1966 comedy by Eldar Ryazanov.
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Shea McCarthy ’23 conducted an independent study of Natalia Rakhmanova’s 1976 Russian translation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, paying particular attention to the translator’s methods for rendering the novel’s songs and riddles.
Opportunities
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Internships
During the summer, in collaboration with American Councils, we offer two Russian-language internships in Tbilisi, Georgia. We also offer one virtual internship with the American Association of Teachers of Slavic and East European Languages.
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Study abroad
We support Russian-language study-abroad programs in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia, Latvia, and Georgia. Learn more about Wellesley study abroad.
Beyond Wellesley
Beyond Wellesley
Russian, the eighth most commonly spoken language in the world, and considered a critical language by the U.S. State Department, can get you a job. American emissaries with a nuanced knowledge of the Russian language and cultural norms are urgently needed.
Recent Employers
Department of Russian
106 Central Street
Wellesley, MA 02481