- Inter-faculty Studies in Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
- Bachelor's degree, first cycle programme, Computer Science
- Bachelor's degree, first cycle programme, Mathematics
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Computer Science
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Mathematics
„Russia Between East and West: Understanding Russians with a help of reportage” 3700-KON349-AL-OG
Russia is an important player in today’s world. There is an increasing need for expertise in Russian culture, politics, and society in a variety of fields, in both national and international arenas. At the same time, there is lack of understanding of what Russia really is today and what Russians are like? Where is this country on the line between East and West? How to interpret the changes that took place after the break-up of the Soviet Union? We will explore the myth of the “Great Patriotic War”, as well as phenomenon of Stalin’s unbreakable popularity in today’s Russia. We will also discuss the change of the soviet stance, the notion of homo sovieticus and its applicability today. We will discuss the role of political and intellectual elites in the crucial moments of Russian History and the rise of oligarchs. During the course we will also elaborate on the current state of the Russian society: public mood, protests, conformism, attitude to the powerful, propaganda effectiveness.
Students will have a chance to work on their own by conducting their own research on Russia in different displays of literature, fine arts, architecture, film or any other field depending on their interests.
Type of course
Learning outcomes
- broad overview of the basic principles governing the past, the present and the future of Russia with a focus on the culture and national psychology of Russians vis-à-vis Western Europeans
- acquaintance with the key texts on today’s
- ability to analyze the discourse on the discussed issue and present student’s own opinion.
Assessment criteria
Final grade depends on:
- Presence on the lectures
- Activity during the lectures
- Written assignments
- Final paper
Bibliography
Aleksander Radiszczew: Podróż z Petersburga do Moskwy. Książka i wiedza, 1951.
Nathan Thornburgh, In Search of Russia’s Big Idea, Time Magazine story on a 2007 re-tracing of Radishchev’s journey, http://content.time.com/time/specials/2007/personoftheyear/article/0,28804,1690753_1690757_1695382,00.html
Warłam Szałamow. Opowiadania Kołymskie. Rebis, 2010.
Tiziano Terzani: Dobranoc, Panie Lenin, Wydawnictwo:
Zysk i S-ka, 2011.
Ryszard Kapuściński: Imperium. Wydawnictwo: Czytelnik, 1993.
Jacek Hugo-Bader: Biała gorączka. Wydawnictwo Czarne, 2009.
Krystyna Kurczab-Redlich „Głową o mur Kremla”, Warszawa : W.A.B., 2007.
Swiatłana Aleksijewicz: Czasy secondhand. Koniec czerwonego człowieka. Wydawnictwo Czarne, 2014.
Peter Pomerantsev: Jądro Dziwności. Nowa Rosja. Wydawnictwo Czarne, 2015.
Barbara Włodarczyk: Nie ma jednej Rosji. Wydawnictwo Literackie, 2015
Additional information
Information on level of this course, year of study and semester when the course unit is delivered, types and amount of class hours - can be found in course structure diagrams of apropriate study programmes. This course is related to the following study programmes:
- Inter-faculty Studies in Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
- Bachelor's degree, first cycle programme, Computer Science
- Bachelor's degree, first cycle programme, Mathematics
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Computer Science
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Mathematics
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: