Fall 2025 Courses with Russia, East Europe, and Eurasian Content

Fall 2025
Select Courses in Russian, East European, 
and Eurasian Studies
 

Note: The courses listed below are not an exhaustive list of courses being offered on the REEE region. Please see course explorer for additional classes.

*Check with Advisor or FLAS Coordinator whether the course will fulfill area studies course requirements

EURO 385/FR 385/GER 385/PS 385 Politics of the European Union*

Konstantinos Kourtikakis

Sec A. – 2:00OM-3:20 PM, MW, 206 David Kinley Hall

Considers the history of the European Union and its current functions and operations. Focuses on the ongoing process of political and cultural integration. Consists of sections in Illinois and abroad, interacting extensively via the worldwide web.

EURO 500 Dialogue on Europe*

Amanda Smith

Sec A – 1:00 PM-2:50 PM, T, 1112 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling

Exploration of a variety of subjects about the European Union and EU-US relations and comparative perspectives. This transatlantic relationship will be studied via a series of expert lectures offered by University of Illinois faculty and visiting scholars.

Approved for Letter and S/U grading. May be repeated to a maximum of 4 hours in separate terms if topics vary. Prerequisite: Priority given to students in the MAEUS and EUC FLAS Fellowship programs, other graduate students welcome by permission of the instructors.

This proseminar offered by European Union Center staff explores a variety of subjects related to Europe, the European Union, and issues concerning the European Union Center’s academic programming. Topics covered range from current political, cultural, and scientific issues in Europe; different disciplinary perspectives on Europe; and aspects of professional development such as mentorship, networking, and the presentation of a profession self. The seminar provides a kind of “laboratory” space for students to improve their analytical and communication skills for academic and professional conversations on Europe, from research to career interests.

EURO 501 EU Institutions and Governance*

Amanda Smith 

Sec A – 12:00 PM-2:50 PM, R, 307 English Building

A graduate-level introduction to the European Union, its history, decision-making processes, legal framework, and political and economic effects. Undergraduates need prior approval from instructor to register for this course. Not intended for undergrad.

GLBL 499 Special Topics: Research Design and Writing 

Maureen Marshall

Sec MM, 12:00PM-1:50PM, TR, 174 Wohlers Hall

This practical course will take students through the process of writing up area and global studies research with the goal of making significant progress on a major piece of academic writing, such as a thesis or research paper. In the first half of the course, students will learn about the main elements of academic published work (such as topics and questions, backgrounds and literature review, and methods) while generating their own questions, arguments, and bibliographies and planning out their written project. The second half of the course is dedicated to getting to work on writing and learning techniques to communicate effectively and efficiently in writing. Through weekly assignments, discussions, editing, critiques, and revisions, students will sharpen their ability to write with clarity while making progress on their own written research project. This course is open to students in African Studies; European Union Studies; Global Studies; Latin American and Caribbean Studies; Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies; and South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies.

HIST 252 /JS 252 The Holocaust 

Peter Fritzsche

Sec B, 9:30AM-10:50AM, TR, 160 English Building

Exploration of the Holocaust in historical perspective by examining European anti-Semitism, political developments in Germany, the rise to power of the Nazis, and the origins of the Holocaust with first-hand accounts, films, and historical texts, concluding with the legacy of the Holocaust in the contemporary world.

The Holocaust in Historical Perspective: The purpose of this general education course is to provide students from all backgrounds with an introduction to the complex events in twentieth-century Europe now known as the Holocaust, and to explore the various interpretations that scholars have offered to attempt to explain the Holocaust as well as the global legacy of the Holocaust. We will examine perpetrators, bystanders, and victims, the role of anti-Semitism, the interaction of war and genocide, the relationships between German and other European actors, the responses of Jewish communities, and the memory of the Holocaust. There will be a midterm and a final, but the primary focus of the course will be on student engagement with the texts in three short papers spread out across the semester.

HIST 355/JS 335 Soviet Jewish History

Anastasiia Strakhova

Sec A, 10:00AM-10:50AM, MWF, 1090 Lincoln Hall

An examination of how Jewish life and culture contributed to the creation of the world's first socialist society. Makes use of primary sources, scholarly essays and monographs, archival documents, literature, memoirs, film, and visual culture as a way of introducing students to Soviet Jewish History, from the reign of the last tsar, Nicholas II, to the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Special topics to be examined include: the breakup of the Pale of Settlement during the Great War; the role of Jews in revolution and revolutionary culture; Soviet nationality policy; shtetl culture; antisemitism; everyday life; the purges of the 1930s; the Jewish experience in World War II; the Holocaust; and mass emigration.

 When the Soviet Union was established in 1922, its Jewish population numbered 2.5 million, making it the third largest in the world, after the United States and Poland. A relatively benevolent period of indigenization (korenizatsiia), when Yiddish schools and culture received state sponsorship, was followed by the Great Purge and the death of prominent Jewish writers and poets. The Nazi occupation and the destruction of at least two million Jews in the Soviet Union overshadowed the persecutions of the 1930s. State antisemitism following the creation of the State of Israel and the Soviet Jewry movement defined Jewish history in the Soviet Union after the Holocaust. Exploring these and other topics in the history of Jews in the Soviet Union, this course traces the following questions: How were Jewish identities transformed during the Soviet period? What did it mean to be a Jew in the Soviet Union? How did Soviet Jewry persevere and restore after the collapse of the USSR?

PS 186 Drones and Asymmetric Warfare*

Nicholas Grossman

Sec OL1, 

Explores strategic and moral issues associated with unmanned aerial vehicles, commonly known as drones. Robotic aircraft already play an important role in 21st century warfare, counter-terrorism, and intelligence operations, and will become increasingly prominent as the technology advances. Students will develop an understanding of drones, asymmetric warfare, and related concepts, will explore academic findings and debates on these topics, and will develop the ability to critically engage with media coverage and politicians’ statements on these topics.

PS 390 American Foreign Policy*

Nicholas Grossman

Sec A, 2:00PM-3:20PM, TR, 160 English Building

Considers the major foreign policy decisions currently confronting the United States government: analyzes their background, principal issues, and alternative actions, as well as the policy formulation process.

PS 486 International Institutional Order*

Xinyuan Dai

Sec A, 9:30AM-10:50AM, TR, 301 Architecture Building

How does international order emerge and evolve? This course examines international order as facilitated by international law and organizations, across diverse issue areas including international security, trade, human rights and the environment. We examine topics such as the role of the United States in creating and leading the international order, discontent among elites and the public in Western industrialized nations over the contemporary order, and the growing contention from the enlarging BRICS+ and the global South about the future of the international order.

PS 488 International Human Rights Law*

Gino Pauselli

Sec A, 9:30AM-10:50Am, TR, 1090 Lincoln Hall

International human rights are a fundamental yet contested norm in global politics. This course analyzes the post-WWII legal framework, central actors, mechanisms, and the effectiveness of the human rights regime. Topics include the causes of human rights violations, methods of assessment, and the roles of domestic politics, institutions, and civil society. The course also explores the influence of external forces, states, NGOs, and international institutions on human rights practices.

REES 200 Intro to Russia and Eurasia

Elizabeth Abosch

Sec A, 9:30AM-10:50Am, TR

Survey of the societies and states formerly constituted as the Soviet Union. Interdisciplinary and team-taught. Combines lectures, discussions, and films covering the history, political science, economics, sociology, and culture of the area.

REES 550/REEC 495 Seminar in REEE Studies/Senior Seminar

Markian Dobczansky

Sec UG, 3:00PM-4:50PM, M, 1032 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling

Sec G, 3:00PM-4:50PM, M, 1032 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling

Interdisciplinary seminar normally taken in the senior year. Involving faculty in a number of disciplines, this course approaches understanding Russia, Eastern Europe, and Eurasia and the methodologies of its study through questions of identities, cultural values, and change.

REL 120/HIST 168/JS 120 A History of Judaism

Eli Rosenblatt

Sec A, 12:00PM-1:20PM, TR, 165 Noyes Laboratory

Examines the social, political, economic, and intellectual history of the Jews from Abraham to the present-day, with particular attention to Jewish thought and society.

RUSS 260 Medicine & Russian Literature 

Tetyana Dzyadevych

Sec A, 12:30PM-1:50PM, MW, G32 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling

Examines cultural significance of medicine and the figure of the physician, and understandings of illness and health, primarily in literature of Russia and the USSR from the 1860s to present. Asks what larger issues are at stake in the literary representation of medical practice by physicians and non-physicians alike in the Russian and Soviet contexts; investigates what medicine and literature offer each other, and the bearing on this of the latter's formal, aesthetic qualities. Considers how medical practice is conditioned by the broader culture, how medical discourse, knowingly or unknowingly, 'borrows' from, is conditioned by, or otherwise reciprocally involved with other greater or peripheral discursive spheres. Reads fiction by leading literary figures who were physicians (Chekhov, Bulgakov, Veresaev, and Aksyonov); fiction by "lay" authors about doctors and medical practice (such as Solzhenitsyn); memoirs by physicians (tales of training and practice, apologies, denunciations); memoirs by patients; 'real' and fictional case histories; theoretical and methodological readings.

RUSS 322/CWL 324/ENGL 322 Dostoevsky

David Cooper

Sec U3, 2:00PM-3:20PM, TR, 321 Gregory Hall

Introduction to the major works of Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. No Russian required.

RUSS 511 Russian Literature 1800-1855

Valeria Sobol

Sec A, 2:00PM-4:20PM, M, 1134 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling

Graduate-level study of major literary trends and developments in Russian literature from 1800-1855, from early romanticism to the emergence of a realist tradition, in criticism, drama, poetry, and prose.

Prerequisite: Ability to read in Russian.

RUSS 522 Dostoevsky

David Cooper

Sec G4, 2:00PM-3:20PM, TR, 321 Gregory Hall

Study of Dostoevsky's works in the original Russian, historical and philosophical contexts, current critical approaches.

SLAV 117/CWL 117 Russ & E Euro Science Fiction 

Richard Tempest

Sec A, 3:00PM-4:50PM, MWF, 1065 Lincoln Hall

Survey of the science fiction writing of Russia and the countries of Eastern Europe since 1750, with particular emphasis on the post-World War II period. The role of the Science Fiction tradition in the respective national cultures. The influence on Russian and East European Science Fiction of Anglo-American Science Fiction. All readings are in English.

SLAV 419/MACS 419 Russian & East European Film

George Gasyna

Sec G, 11:00AM-12:20PM, TR, G58 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling

SEC UG, 11:00AM-12:20PM, TR, G58 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling

Study and analysis of major film makers, genres, trends, and theories, including the 1920's Soviet avant garde and the Polish and Czech "New Wave" since 1953; lectures, discussions, screenings, term paper. No reading knowledge of Russian required, except for majors in Slavic Languages and Literatures.

SLAV 452/CWL 453 Slavic Cultural Studies: Kyiv: Biography of a City 

Valeria Sobol

Sec G4, 2:00PM-4:20PM, W, 307 Gregory Hall

Sec U3, 2:00PM-4:20PM, W, 307 Gregory Hall

This course traces the historical, social, and artistic development of Kyiv as a city and as an idea from the medieval period to the present day. As we read a variety of literary works and watch several films in which Kyiv figures prominently, we will think about what makes up this city’s “text” and pay special attention to its frequently competing Ukrainian, Russian, Polish, and Jewish versions. The course is conducted in English, and all the texts will be available in English translations.

SLAV 452/CWL 453 Slavic Cultural Studies: Diasporic and Exilic Lit

Olha Khometa

Sec T3, 12:30PM-1:50PM, MW, 1024 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling

SEC T4, 12:30PM-1:50PM, MW, 1024 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling 

Selected topics in the literatures of Russia and Eastern Europe. Topics covered will range from in-depth studies of specific authors, time periods, and thematic discussions of specific genre and literary traditions. Readings in English unless specified.

UKR 113 Ukrainian Culture 

Olha Khometa

Sec OK, 2:00PM-3:20PM, TR, G32 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling

Course situates Ukrainian culture in the broad context of Slavic nations. Acquaints students with Ukrainian culture from the origins of Kyivan Rus' in the Middle Ages to the present. Includes highlights of historical-cultural events, an overview of literature and of the arts, as well as an outline of Ukrainian folklore. No knowledge of Ukrainian required.

The goal of this course is to acquaint students with Ukrainian culture from the origins of Kyivan Rus in the Middle Ages to the present. The course will examine the many facets that make up culture: history, politics, language, literature, folklore, religion, music, art, cinema, education, etc. It will also place Ukrainian culture in the broader context of the Slavic nations and peoples. Topics in contemporary Ukrainian culture will be given special emphasis. Lectures and readings will all be in English.

For other languages and courses available through the BTAA contact 

BCS 201 – Second Year Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian I

Peter Wright

10:00 AM-10:50 AM, MTWR, 1018 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling

POL 101 Elementary Polish I

Laura Davies Brenier

Sec X, 10:00AM-10:50AM, MTWR, 313 Gregory Hall

POL 201 Second Yr Polish I

George Gasyna

Sec E, 11:00AM-11:50AM, MTWR, 1038 Literatures, Cultures & Ling

Russ 101 First-Year Russian

Tetyana Dzyadevych

Sec D, 10:00AM-10:50AM, MTWR, 207 Gregory Hall

Sec E, 11:00AM-11:50AM, MTWR, 207 Gregory Hall

Sec F, 04:00PM-04:50, MTWR, G30 Literatures, Cultures & Ling

RUSS 201 Second-Year Russian I

Laura Davies Brenier

Sec A, 01:00PM-1:50PM, MTWR, 1018 Literatures, Cultures & Ling

Tetyana Dzyadevych

Sec B, 11:00AM-11:50AM, MTWR, 313 Davenport Hall

RUSS 301 Third Year Russian I

Laura Davies Brenier

Sec A, 11:00AM-11:50AM, MWF, 1118 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling

RUSS 501 Russian for Grad Students I

Richard Tempest

Sec A, 12:00PM-1:20PM, WF, 1068 Lincoln Hall

Provides training in academic Russian for graduate students in social sciences and humanities. Designed for advanced learners of Russian who are interested in developing more specialized language skills. The content of the course will be tailored to the needs of the specific group.

TURK 201 Elementary Turkish I

Ayse Ozcan, Eman Saadah

Laboratory, Sec AE1, 09:00AM-09:50AM, F, G3 Literatures, Cultures & Ling

Lecture, Sec AE1, 09:00AM-09:50AM, MTWR, 1040 Literatures, Cultures & Ling

TURK 403 Intermediate Turkish I

Ekin Alpay, Ayse Ozcan, Eman Saadah

Sec A, 10:00AM-10:50AM, MTWR, 1140 Literatures, Cultures, & Ling

TURK 405 Advanced Turkish I

Ayse Ozcan, Ekin Saadah, 

Sec A2, 11:00AM-12:20PM, MW, 1018 Literatures, Cultures & Ling

UKR 101 Basic Ukrainian I

Tetyana Dzyadevych, Tala Naumovska, 

Sec A, 10:00AM-10:50AM, MTWR, 1118 Literatures, Cultures & Ling

UKR 201 Second-Year Ukrainian I

Tetyana Dzyadevych, Tala Naumovska, 

Sec A, 11:00AM-11:50AM, MTWR

YDSH 101 Beginning Yiddish I

Butler, D

Section BTA, 09:00AM-10:00AM, F

Section BTA, 09:00AM-10:30AM, MW