Week One: Nature(S) and Culture(S)

Russian Wedding Rituals RUS 299 Fall 2017 Sept. 18, 25; Oct. 2, 9 5:00 -7:00 PM Curtin 109

Dr. Meghan Murphy-Lee Office hours Curtin Hall 824 Monday 12- 1 PM 414-229-4949 Tuesday 11 AM- 12 PM [email protected] and by appointment

Course Description This course consists of an examination of the wedding ritual in Russia from a folkloric perspective. The class will be divided into time periods. First, we will study and discuss the pre-Christian or pagan period. The second class will discuss Russia’s Christian period. The third will focus on the Soviet era, while the final one will cover the contemporary, post-Soviet period. During each class, we will examine readings focusing on the particular period and will watch interviews and videos illustrating various parts of the wedding life cycle ritual.

Learning Outcomes Our primary goal is to achieve a more sophisticated understanding of Russian society and the folk beliefs that underpin many of them. Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to: 1. Critically analyze a folkloric or literary text 2. Write a final essay incorporating class readings and discussion 3. Interpret and comment on the relationship of Russia’s ancient beliefs and traditions regarding the life cycle ritual over time 4. Interpret folkloric and anthropological articles to better understand the beliefs of the Slavic people 5. Discuss in an articulate manner the issues connected to Slavic folklore.

Criteria A-Level B-Level -Analysis present but less -Clear analysis Critically analyze a folkloric or clear -Articulate presentation literary text -Minor articulation / -Clear understanding of comprehension the text problems -Proper citations may -Proper citations to texts lack significant comment from class or development Write an essay, incorporating -Relevant/accurate -Ideas may be unclear, or class readings and discussion content less clear than an A-range -Synthesis of ideas with paper clear understanding of -Engagement with the the texts and discussion texts, but less successfully than an A paper. -May have minor logical Interpret and comment on the -Logical consistency inconsistencies or relationship of Russia’s -Convincing argument fallacies ancient beliefs and traditions based on textual -Less convincing regarding the life cycle ritual analysis and class argument, or minor of wedding over time. discussions problems with analysis of material -May have minor logical -Logical consistency in Interpret folkloric and inconsistencies interpretation anthropological articles to -Less convincing -Convincing argument better understand the beliefs demonstration of based on textual of the Slavic people understanding of beliefs analysis and class or minor problems with discussions analysis of material -Analysis present but less --Clear analysis Discuss in an articulate clear -articulate presentation manner the issues connected -Minor articulation -Clear understanding of to Slavic folklore. problems with regard to the issues connected to the issues connected to Slavic folklore Slavic folklore

Class requirements and expectations This class will consist of readings and slides posted on Desire to Learn (D2L). You must take the reading quiz for each day before you can access the slides for that same day. You must read the assignments, take the quizzes, and post on the discussion board before you can access the test and essay assignments.

Responsibility for good class discussion is everyone’s, and therefore I expect that you will:  keep up with the reading  complete posts on D2L before class  complete writing assignments and tests on time

All readings are available in PDF on D2L and are listed below:

Marker, Gary, et al. Everyday Life in Russian History: Quotidian Studies in Honor of Daniel Kaiser. Slavica Publishers, 2010.

Matthews, Mervyn. Mila and Mervusya: A Russian Wedding. Seren Books/Poetry Wales Press Ltd, 1999. Rouhier-Willoughby, Jeanmarie. Village values: negotiating identity, gender, and resistance in urban Russian life-cycle rituals. Slavica Publishers, 2008.

Worobec, Christine D. "Witchcraft beliefs and practices in prerevolutionary Russian and Ukrainian Villages." The Russian Review 54.2 (1995): 165-187.

A credit hour is an amount of work represented in intended learning outcomes and verified by evidence of student achievement that is an institutionally-established equivalency and reasonably approximates not less than:

 Classroom lecture and 6 hours discussion

 Discussion board posting and 3 hours other assignments

 Reading and class preparation 5 hours

 Film viewing 1.5 hours

You must have access to a reliable broadband internet connection, or be willing to spend amounts of time on campus in a computer lab completing the work. UWM appreciable offers discounted broadband service through Time Warner Road Runner, or you can contact AT&T for DSL broadband service at http://www.att.com.

Required Electronic Literacy: Be familiar with Microsoft Word or similar word processing program. Be familiar with Adobe Acrobat. Check your UWM email and course management software (D2L) and its associated D2L email EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Course Website As we mentioned earlier, this course is administered through the set of online course management tools known as Desire to Learn, or D2L. If you have studied at UWM before, you are most likely familiar with this system already. The course website can be accessed at h t t p: / /d2 l .uwm. e du . When you go to this site, log in. Your username is your UWM email account name (without the @uwm.edu) and your password is your ePanther password. Once you are on the site, you will need to click on our course title in the set of classes for which you are registered for this semester. A handout on access to D2L will be sent to you with this syllabus. A 24-hour help desk for D2L is available. You can reach it by calling (414) 229-4040 (if you are within the Milwaukee area). Alternately, you can call toll-free at 877-381-3459. You can also email h e [email protected] , although an email may not be the most expeditious way to get a response in an emergency.

PLEASE NOTE THAT UNLESS THERE IS A CAMPUSWIDE D2L ISSUE, TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES WITH D2L and/or WITH YOUR COMPUTER ARE NOT A VALID EXCUSE FOR NOT COMPLETING YOUR WORK. In some cases, if the student presents proper documentation of a technical issue which is truly beyond her or his control, I can accommodate her or him. On proper documentation, see “Dealing with Technical Issues” which was sent to you with the syllabus and can also be found on the content page of your D2L site.

Save and back up your work frequently to TWO INDEPENDENT, PERMANENTLY AND PERSISTENTLY AVAILABLE LOCATIONS. One location might be your local hard drive, while the 2nd could be a location in the cloud such as Google Drive or email to yourself. Don’t risk losing all your work at the very last minute. This problem is preventable.

Distribution of Grades o Attendance and in class discussion 25% o 1 test on readings and class discussion 25% o 1 short essay (2-3 pages) based on readings, discussion and films seen in class 25% o 4 Discussion board postings 25%

Grading Scale: B+ = 88-89 C+ = 78-79 D+ = 68-69 F = 59 and below A = 93-100 B = 83-87 C = 73-77 D = 63-67 A- = 90-92 B- = 80-82 C- = 70-72 D- = 60=62

About reading: These are complex texts, and they require careful reading. This reading cannot be rushed, and you will miss out on much of what makes these works meaningful if you try to plow through them in a hurry. So, make sure you give yourself plenty of time to complete assigned readings – figure at least two minutes per page bare minimum. To prepare for class discussions, quizzes and exams, make copious notes while reading, study the footnotes, note anything that does not make sense so you can ask about it, and continually question and analyze your and others’ responses to the text.

. Attendance and Discussion (25%) Since discussion of the texts and films are a vital part of the class, attendance will be taken at each meeting.

. Short essay (25%) This short essay will be based on the readings and discussion and will offer you the opportunity to integrate the knowledge you have gained. You will be given a choice of 2 topics and must write a 2-3 page essay on this topic. All references to the work in question must be cited.

. Exam (25%) This exam is designed to gauge your conversance with the critical concepts and aspects of historical and cultural contexts discussed in class and presented during lectures and student presentations. They are take-home, open-book, but not group exams. You will be given one week to complete the exam and must submit it before class on the exam date. The exam consists of two parts: Identifications (people, concepts, characters, historical events, etc.) drawn from lectures and class discussion, and essay (readings and films), which will ask you to interpret the works we have read and viewed based on class discussion.

. Discussion Board Posting (25%) Once per week, I will post discussion questions. In this instance, every student must post one answer of at least 200 words. This answer must be original and have at least two specific references to the text. Both quizzes and postings count for up to five points in accordance with the following scale: o 5 points: complete and specific answer o 4 points: complete answer with missing reference to the text o 3 points: answer that is incomplete or too short o 2 points: answer without any specific reference to the text and is too short o 1 point: incomprehensible answer which shows no understanding of the text

Schedule of Assignments (tentative)

First Discussion board posting Sept. 24

Exam Sept. 27 Second Discussion board posting Oct. 1 Third Discussion board posting Oct.8 Fourth Discussion board posting Oct. 15 Short Essay Oct. 25

Course Policies Electronic devices: Turn them off and stow them away during class. Laptops are OK for note taking or viewing the reading materials. Please, no Facebook, general surfing, or any activities that are not directly related to the class.

Deadlines: I generally will not accept any late or make-up assignments for any reason. If a real emergency prevents you from getting your work done, please contact the Dean of Students and be ready to provide verifiable documentation.

Absences: If you miss a class, your attendance for that day will be zero. Alternative arrangements can be made only for religious observances and documented illness (see Dean of Students procedure under ‘Deadlines,’ immediately above).

Auditing: Auditors are admitted to this course only on the condition that they agree to be active participants and not passive observers. As such, auditors are expected to complete all the assignments and participate in all class activities. Auditors who do not complete assignments or participate appropriately hinder the learning of other students and will be asked to drop the course.

Disabilities: If you have any kind of disability that might affect your performance in this class, please notify me immediately so that we can accommodate your needs. If you wait, I may not be able to accommodate you.

Harassment: No harassment of any kind will be tolerated. If you feel you are being harassed or if you think one of your classmates is being harassed in any way, please inform either me or our Russian section coordinator, Professor Joe Peschio ([email protected]), immediately so that we can resolve the problem.

Plagiarism: Any cases of suspected plagiarism will be referred immediately to the Dean of Students for investigation and disciplinary action (which might include expulsion from the university). Generally speaking, plagiarism is the act of presenting other people’s ideas or language as your own (e.g. quoting a website without citation). If at any point you are at all unsure as to whether you might be committing plagiarism, please just ask! The consequences of plagiarism are extremely unpleasant for everyone, so let’s avoid it at all costs. For policies on academic misconduct, complaint procedures, and grade appeal procedures, see http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/SecU/SyllabusLinks.pdf

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)

Sept. 18 Russian Pre-Christian/ Pagan Wedding Ritual “Witchcraft Beliefs and practices in Pre-revolutionary Russian and Ukrainian Villages” (Worobec)

Sept.25 Russian Christian Wedding Rituals “Peasant Marriage Custom According to the Birth Registers of Riazan’ and Viatka” (Marke)

Oct. 2 Soviet Wedding Rituals in Russia “Soviet Wedding Rituals” (Rouhier-Willoughby) Chapter Four. “Wedding Day” (Matthews)

Oct. 9 Contemporary / Post-Soviet Wedding Rituals in Russia “Life-Cycle Rituals during Late Perestroika and in the Post-Soviet World” (Rouhier-Willoughby)