Spring 2021

Bengali 101B: Intermediate Bengali

This course introduces students to both the formal and colloquial forms of Bengali, through a combination of reading, writing, speaking, and grammar exercises. Students will also become better acquainted with Bengali culture, as they begin to read Bengali literature and view short films.

Burmese 100B: Intermediate Burmese

Intermediate Burmese 100A and 100B introduce students to progressively difficult authentic text and multimedia, comprising excerpts from contemporary short stories and poetry, news reports, song lyrics, and TV adverts.

Filipino 100B: Intermediate Filipino

This is an intermediate class with emphasis on the four basic skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. The course uses the functional-situational approach in learning a language.The students will learn four necessary skills in the effective use of Filipino: paglalahad (defining and explaining); paglalarawan (describing…

Filipino 101B: Advanced Filipino

Have you successfully completed Intermediate Filipino)? Are you a heritage learner who may have left the Philippines during middle school or high school? Are you looking to be able to enhance reading and writing skills in Filipino? The class focuses on developing the following: reading…

Filipino 1B: Introductory Filipino

Filipino 1A is the first semester in the Introductory Filipino two-semester series (Filipino 1A and 1B). This is a beginners’ class with emphasis on the four basic skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. The course uses the functional approach in learning a language. At the…

Filipino W1Y: Introductory Filipino for Heritage Learners online

Do you know the words nanay (mother), tatay (father), sinigang (sour soup), masarap (delicious), and kawawa (poor you)? Would you like to better communicate with your grandparents who speak Filipino and only have a limited knowledge of English? You may be a heritage learner, or…

Hindi 100B: Intermediate Hindi

In Hindi 100A, you will learn to understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters regularly encountered in work, school, leisure, etc. You will learn to deal with most situations likely to arise whilst travelling in an area where Hindi is spoken….

Hindi 1B: Introductory Hindi

In Introductory Hindi, you will learn to understand sentences and frequently used expressions related to areas of most immediate relevance (e.g. very basic personal and family information, shopping, local geography, employment). You will learn to communicate simply and discuss routine tasks requiring  simple and direct…

India in the Writer’s Eye R5B

This “Reading and Composition” course is taught in connection with the study of representations of India in great works of modern literature from around the world. Satisfies the second half of the reading and composition requirement.

Indonesian (Intermediate) 100A-B

Readings in Indonesian texts, including newspapers, journals, and literature exploring a variety of styles. Systematic study of grammatical and lexical problems arising from these readings. Advanced exercises in composition, oral and written communicative skills, and cultural competence.

Indonesian (Introductory) 1A-B

Survey of grammar, graded exercises, and readings drawn from Indonesian texts, leading to a mastery of basic language patterns, essential vocabulary, and to achievement of basic reading, writing, and conversational competence. Emphasis on developing communicative skills.

Indonesian 210A-B: Seminar in Malay Letters and Oral Traditions

This seminar focuses on reading Indonesian texts from a variety of perspectives.  We will develop a set of methods and tools to help us read, analyze and interpret a variety of texts in Indonesian and/or Malay.  We will approach the text as a link between…

Indonesian 232: Readings in Modern Indonesian and Malaysian Literature

Khmer (Intermediate) 100 A-B

Non-native speakers who have completed Beginning Khmer will build spoken proficiency with emphasis on everyday “storytelling” and the expression of emotions, feelings, and opinions. Students will gain experience reading progressively difficult authentic Khmer texts, including folk tales and newspaper articles. Heritage speakers with family exposure…

Khmer (Introductory) 1A-B

Provides a command of the basic structures of standard spoken Cambodian and tools for reading and writing elementary texts. Through use of computer-based materials, a textbook, and communicative practice, students gain a foundation in “survival” spoken Khmer. This involves memorization of question and answer exchanges…

Punjabi (Intermediate) 100A-B

These two semesters focus on reading, writing and speaking Punjabi more fluently in formal and informal contexts. Selected readings vary every semester. These form the starting point to stimulate students’ own writings which include a long interview with a Punjabi elder from the wider community….

Punjabi (Introductory) 1A-B

In this introductory year, students will be introduced to Gurmukhi script, and a survey of Punjabi grammar. Graded exercises are designed to lead to a mastery of basic language patterns, essential vocabulary, and the achievement of basic reading and writing skills.

Sanskrit (Elementary) 100A-B

Sanskrit 100A, followed by 100B, introduces students to Sanskrit grammar, with the goal of developing the skills necessary to speak and read basic, simple Sanskrit texts. Sanskrit 100A covers lessons 1–12 of the Devavāṇīpraveśikā [Robert P. Goldman and Sally J. Sutherland Goldman, 2019], including, the…

Sanskrit 101A (Intermediate): Epic and Puracic Sanskrit

Introduces students to the itihasa/puraic traditions and related commentarial style of Sanskrit. An extended passage from Valmiki’s Ramayaada, Vyasa’s Mahabharata, or one of the Mahapuradas is normally read with commentary, if available. The development of strong reading skills is the focus of the class. Additionally,…

Sanskrit: Literature 200A

Advanced readings in Sanskrit literature, including Sanskrit ornate poetry with emphasis on the canons of poetic analysis of the Indian aesthetic tradition.

Sanskrit: Literature 200B

Advanced readings in Sanskrit literature, including Sanskrit ornate poetry with emphasis on the canons of poetic analysis of the Indian aesthetic tradition.

South and Southeast Asian 24: Bollywood cinema: Contexts, politics and spectatorship

This seminar will provide an introduction to the cultural, social and political significance of Hindi cinema and the development of popular Indian cinema since the 1930s. The course will examine the evolution of the Bollywood form and narrative strategy across a wide repertoire of films…

South and Southeast Asian 250 Sec 1: Burma: Contested Buddhisms, Sovereignties and Cultures, 1800-1950

This graduate seminar examines the history of Burma from the years leading up to the first Anglo Burmese war of 1824 to those following Independence in 1947. The course is structured in three modules. The first explores key movements and figures in Burmese Buddhism, broadly…

South and Southeast Asian 250 Sec 2: Debates in Medieval History

This course will interrogate some of the key historiographic debates that have shaped our understanding of Indian history between 800 and 1750. We will explore the nature of historical memory, Hindu, Muslim and Sikh religious identities, scribal cultures, popular politics, local (versus imperial) state formation,…

South and Southeast Asian 250 Sec 3: Nationalism in Southeast Asia

This graduate seminar examines the emergence and rearticulations of nationalisms in Southeast Asia. It begins with the anti-colonial nationalisms of the late nineteenth/early twentieth century and ends with the various contested nationalisms of the present. We will cover a mix of canonical and new books…

South and Southeast Asian 39 Sec 1: Freshman/Sophomore Seminar

South and Southeast Asian 39 Sec 4: Society in the Mirror of Indian Film

This seminar will focus on problems and dilemmas of contemporary society as they transpire in recent Indian films and TV shows. TV shows will be of special interest to us as a medium that often escapes scholarly attention due to its perceived low content quality…

South and Southeast Asian Studies C145: Buddhism in Contemporary Society

A study of the Buddhist tradition as it is found today in Asia. The course will focus on specific living traditions of East, South, and/or Southeast Asia. Themes to be addressed may include contemporary Buddhist ritual practices; funerary and mortuary customs; the relationship between Buddhism…

South Asian 110: Introduction to Hinduism

South Asian 118: Gender and Sexualities in South Asian Literature and Film

South Asian 124: Modern Indian Literature

This course aims to introduce the vernacular and the Anglophone literary landscapes of South Asia by providing an overview of the role and growth of modern literature in India. This course examines the different socio-cultural, political and historical contexts in the production and reception of…

South Asian 130: Film, Visual Media and Spectatorship Practices in Modern South Asia

South Asian 136: Framing Tamil Worlds: Histories, Cultures and Identities

South Asian 140: Hindu Mythology

In this course we will study literary and religious aspects of Hindu myths. Through the reading of primary sources in translation, the course covers the main divinities and many mythological themes of early Vedic as well as later Puranic literature. We will follow the development…

South Asian 142: India’s Great Epics

The course entails substantial selected readings from the great Sanskirt epic poems–the Mahabharata and the Ramayana in translation, selected readings from the corpus of secondary literature on Indian epic studies as well as lectures on salient issues in both. Discussion will focus on a variety…

South Asian 1B: Introduction to the Civilization of Medieval and Modern India

This course offers a broad historical and cultural survey of the civilizations of the Indian subcontinent from the 12th century to partition of India in 1947. Attention will be paid to the geography and ethnography of the region, its political history, and the religious, philosophical,…

South Asian C113: Buddhist Thought in India

This course is an advanced introduction to the major teachings of Indian Buddhism and their philosophical elaborations. We will cover the core tenets attributed to the Buddha, and the later doctrinal and scholastic developments that turned Buddhism into one of the principal philosophical traditions of…

South Asian C215: Readings in Indian Buddhist Texts

This graduate seminar focuses on reading a wide spectrum of Indian Buddhist texts in the Sanskrit (or Pali) original introducing the students to different genres, and different aspects of Indian Buddhism. The students taking the course for two units (rather than four) will be expected…

South Asian C224: Readings in Tibetan Buddhist Texts

This seminar provides an introduction to a broad range of Tibetan Buddhist texts, including chronicles and histories, biographical literature, doctrinal treatises, canonical texts, ritual manuals, pilgrimage guides, and liturgical texts. It is intended for graduate students interested in premodern Tibet from any perspective. This course…

Southeast Asian 10B: Introduction to the Civilization of Southeast Asia

Readings, lectures, and discussion of the culture and civilization of Southeast Asia. Insular Southeast Asia: Covers the modern-day nations of Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Special emphasis on the arts and their social and political context, with discussions on the impact of the colonial experience…

Southeast Asian 148: Philippines: History, Literature, and Performance

This course is a cultural history of modern Philippines, from the birth of the nation in the nineteenth century to the present. It outlines the major events in Philippine history through cultural texts that reflect the salient attitudes and ideas of key periods. Not only…

Southeast Asian 188: Cinema of Southeast Asia

This Upper Division, seminar-style class introduces students to the modern history and politics of Southeast Asia, from the 1940s to the 2010s, through the lens of cinema and the frame of memory. From American B-Movies to Japanese anti-war features, media monarchs to Indie film-makers, spectral…

Southeast Asian R5B: Under Western Eyes

In this course, the student will read selections from the large body of scholarly texts that have been written about Southeast Asia. Expository and argumentative essays by premier scholars such as Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, Margaret Mead, Clifford Geertz, and Benedict Anderson will be examined….

Tamil (Introductory) 1A-B

This introductory level course focuses on progressive acquisition of language skills to communicate effectively in both written and spoken Tamil. It facilitates development of listening, speaking, reading and writing competence along with basic grammar.

Telugu (Elementary) 1A-B

This elementary level course focuses on progressive acquisition of language skills to communicate effectively in Telugu. It facilitates development of Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing competence along with basic grammar.

Thai (Advanced) 101A-B

Thai 101A is a fifth-semester Thai course, taught through teleconferencing  from University of Wisconsin, Madison. The course is designed to enhance the students’ competence in reading and writing Thai.  The students will be reading texts from The Thai Cultural Reader, newspapers, news from internet, selected…

Thai (Introductory) 1A-B

This course is designed for students who have little or no knowledge of the Thai language. The focus of Thai 1A is to build vocabulary and develop the ability to speak with correct pronunciation through basic conversation in day-to-day settings. Students will be introduced to…

Tibetan Buddhism

This course is a broad introduction to the history, doctrine, and culture of the Buddhism of Tibet. We will begin with the introduction of Buddhism to Tibet in the eighth century and move on to the evolution of the major schools of Tibetan Buddhism, Tibetan…

Urdu (Intermediate) 100A-B

Introduces various types of written and spoken Urdu; vocabulary building, idioms, and problems of syntax; and conversation. Reading of selected fiction and nonfiction in modern Urdu, including fables, short stories, and poetry. Exercises in grammar, conversation, and composition.

Urdu (Introductory) 1A-B

The course concentrates on developing skills in reading, writing, speaking, and aural comprehension. Evaluation is based on attendance, written homework assignments, quizzes, dictations, and examinations. Conventional teaching materials may be supplemented by popular songs and clips from contemporary Indian cinema.

Vietnamese (Advanced) 101A-B

This course is designed for students who have already achieved an intermediate degree of proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing modern Vietnamese. Objective: to move students toward a greater level of fluency in each of these key areas and provide an introduction to the literature…

Vietnamese (Intermediate) 100A-B

A second-year course in Vietnamese vocabulary and syntax with intensive drills on short colloquial expressions and auditory recognition of speech patterns. First semester course stresses phraseology, sentence building, rules of composition and development of students’ communicative skills. By the end of the second semester students…

Vietnamese (Introductory) 1A-B

An introduction to modern spoken and written Vietnamese, including intensive drill on basic phonology and grammar. The first semester emphasizes phonetic concepts, syllable formations and tonal distinctions along with simple sentence structures in everyday topics. By the end of the second semester, students should be…