Slava Paperno (director)
Krystyna Golovakova
Raissa Krivitsky
Viktoria Tsimberov
Richard L. Leed (1929-2011)
Lora Paperno (retired)

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Russian 3305: Syllabus
  • Rooms and times (navigation bar on the left): when, where, and who
  • Course Description: materials, homework guide, tests, grading
  • Course evaluation form: online, any time, anonymous
  • Fonts: if Russian accented vowels are not displayed correctly, see note at the bottom of the window.
  • Homework: each row in this table shows the assignment for the day.
  • Printable view of this syllabus

Early in the semester, you should learn basic Russian grammatical terms.

Throughout the semester use these Quick Links for review.

This summary of deverbal forms may be useful towards the end of the semester.

Each table row shows the work you should do in preparation for that class.

Week 1: Sunday 08/18/24 - Saturday 08/24/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
No homework. Come to the organizational meeting.
Wednesday
No homework
Thursday
Print this six-page handout in Acrobat (PDF) format: Page 4; Page 5; Page 6; Page 7; Page 8; Page 9. These pages describe the Russian alphabet and show samples of cursive writing. Learn the alphabet and copy the writing on these pages. This video is a good way to learn how to connect the letters. This link may help you learn the alphabet.

In class: letters and sounds.

Week 2: Sunday 08/25/24 - Saturday 08/31/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Consult Letters and Sounds. Part 1. Write 30 Russian words that illustrate various points of this section. Indicate what your words/letters are examples of. You may pick those words from a book, newspaper, or Web site, or just look around and write what you see.
Wednesday
Read Course Description (the link at the top of the Syllabus page) to find out how to get access to the Advanced Russian website and how to do each type of homework. On the Advanced Russian website, read Chapter 2. Stories. Story 2-1 (A or B). Pages 1-20. (Михаил Мишин «История»).
Thursday
Read Один за трех; Три за одного from «Слово о словах» Льва Успенского. Find and copy (in longhand) 30 words from this story that illustrate some of the points made in Letters and Sounds. Part 2.
Week 3: Sunday 09/01/24 - Saturday 09/07/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Read Самая удивительная буква русской азбуки from «Слово о словах» Льва Успенского. Find and copy (in longhand) 30 words from this story that illustrate some of the points made in Letters and Sounds. Part 2.
Wednesday
Advanced Russian:Chapter 1. Stories. Story 1-1 (A or B). Pages 1-24. (Михаил Мишин «Счастливый»)
Thursday
Go one more time over Letters and Sounds. Part 2 and write 30 words that illustrate the points that you have not illustrated (or thought about) as yet.
Week 4: Sunday 09/08/24 - Saturday 09/14/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Make up and write 10 short Russian sentences to illustrate some of the points made in Letters and Sounds. Part 3
Wednesday
Advanced Russian: Chapter 4. Stories. Story 4-1. Pages 1-12. (Андрей Геласимов «Нежный возраст»). Remember to bring to class your four questions (in writing).
Thursday
Read Еще одна «редкостная» буква from «Слово о словах» Льва Успенского. Find and copy (in longhand) 30 words from this story that illustrate some of the points made in Letters and Sounds. Part 3.
Week 5: Sunday 09/15/24 - Saturday 09/21/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Read Било и крыло; За что бьют рынду? from «Слово о словах» Льва Успенского. Write 10 short Russian sentences with words from this story that illustrate some of the points made in Letters and Sounds. Part 4.
Wednesday
Advanced Russian: Chapter 4. Stories. Story 4-1. Pages 13-26. (Андрей Геласимов «Нежный возраст»). Remember to bring your four questions (in writing). (These reminders will not be repeated in the subsequent syllabus pages.)
Thursday
Consult again Letters and Sounds. Part 4. Write 10 short Russian sentences with words that illustrate various points of this section.
Week 6: Sunday 09/22/24 - Saturday 09/28/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Consult Letters and Sounds. Part 5. Write 10 short Russian sentences with words that illustrate various points of this section.
Wednesday
Advanced Russian: Chapter 3. Stories. Story 3-2 (A, or B), Story 3-3 (A or B). (Сергей Довлатов «Предисловие», aka «Холодильник» и «Остров»)
Thursday
Read section Suffixes in Letters and Sounds. Part 5, then take as much of this online Self-Test 1 as you have time for. If your computer doesn't play the sound correctly, use any PC in the language lab. Compare your results to the provided answers and analyze your errors, if any (click the links in the answer page). Take the test again if you feel you can do better the second time. Bring your first version to class. We will use this dictation to review everything that has been covered this semester so far. Nothing to submit for this day.
Week 7: Sunday 09/29/24 - Saturday 10/05/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Take the rest of the online Self-Test 1. Compare your results to the provided answers and analyze your errors, if any, using the answer page with its links in every answer. Consult also Quick Links to review everything that has been covered this semester so far. In class, you will write a dictation that is similar to Self-Test 1. Nothing to submit for this day.
Wednesday
Chapter 3. Interviews. Interview 3-8. S. Dovlatov’s interview 3-8 “Злоключения искусствоведа”. 3:42min.
Thursday
Read Анатомия слова from «Слово о словах» Льва Успенского. Summarize it in 10 short Russian sentences. Bring 5000 Russian Words to class.
Week 8: Sunday 10/06/24 - Saturday 10/12/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Осенние каникулы
Wednesday
Advanced Russian: Chapter 3. Stories. Story 3-1 (A or B). Pages 1-31. («Сергей Довлатов о времени и о себе»)
Thursday
Read Глокая куздра from «Слово о словах» Льва Успенского. Summarize it in 10 short Russian sentences. As you read, note the case forms of nouns. Bring 5000 Russian Words to class.
Week 9: Sunday 10/13/24 - Saturday 10/19/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Read Два слова о суффиксах from «Слово о словах» Льва Успенского. Summarize it in 10 short Russian sentences. In each sentence, mark the case, number, and declension class of every noun. Use the terms in grammatical terms and on pp. 310, 311, 312, and 317 of 5000 Russian Words. You should read the above pages carefully and also consult these Web pages: The four declension classes of nouns, Gender classes, Case of nouns: form and function. Bring 5000 Russian Words to every class.
Wednesday
Advanced Russian: Chapter 2. Stories. Story 2-2 (A or B). Pages 1-25. (Михаил Веллер «Тест»)
Thursday
Write 10 Russian sentences to show the use of various case, gender, and number forms of nouns. In each sentence, mark the case, number, and declension class of every noun. Use the terms in grammatical terms and on pp. 310, 311, 312, and 317 of 5000 Russian Words. You should read the above pages carefully and also consult these Web pages (some of them are a review from the previous class): The four declension classes of nouns, Gender classes, Case of nouns: form and function. The chart from p. 317 of the dictionary is also shown at this Web page, where you may find the format easier to use. Don't miss the variants for the Genitive plural endings, the special spelling of -ия and -ие nouns in the Dative and Prepositional cases, and the animacy rule. Bring 5000 Russian Words to every class.
Week 10: Sunday 10/20/24 - Saturday 10/26/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Read Слова и словари from «Слово о словах» Льва Успенского. Summarize it in 10 short Russian sentences. In all sentences, mark the case, number, and gender of all pronouns and adjectives. For reference, use pp. 313, 314, and 315 in the dictionary. If you want an introduction to these classes of words, read these Web pages: Adjective-noun agreement, Ordinary and Special adjectives. If you need a reminder of the effect of spelling rules (p. 309 in the dictionary) on endings, read The effect of spelling rules and The effect of stress in Nom. Sg.: adjectives in -ой, -ий, and -ый. Read also about comparisons so you know that a comparative form never ends in -и even though many sound as if they do. Bring 5000 Russian Words to every class.
Wednesday
Advanced Russian: Chapter 2. Stories. Story 2-2 (A or B). Pages 26-51. (Михаил Веллер «Тест»).
Thursday
Read Словaрь Пушкина from «Слово о словах» Льва Успенского. Summarize it in 10 short Russian sentences. In all sentences, mark the tense and conjugation type of all verbs. For reference, use pp. 318 in the dictionary. You'll also find these Web pages useful: The two verb stems (including the links to irregular verbs and consonant alternation), Past tense endings, Non-past tense endings and The two conjugations. If you need a reminder of the effect of spelling rules (p. 309 in the dictionary) on verb endings, read Spelling rules for verbs.
Week 11: Sunday 10/27/24 - Saturday 11/02/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Read Лазея в прошлое from «Слово о словах» Льва Успенского. Summarize it in 10 short Russian sentences. In all sentences, mark the aspect, tense and conjugation type of all verbs. For reference on aspect, use these Web pages: Aspect: Perfective and Imperfective verbs (including the links to взять/брать and пойти/ходить), How to express past, present, and future, Prefixed and unprexifed verbs, and Aspect partners with different roots.
Wednesday
Advanced Russian: Chapter 6. Stories. Story 6-1 (A or B), Pages 1-30. (Людмила Улицкая "Явление природы")
Thursday
Read One-Way and Non-One-Way verbs of motion on the Web and write 10 short Russian sentences using various verbs of motion in various situations that illustrate the difference in their meaning: Round trip vs. one direction and other similar distinctions. You will find these Web pages useful for reference: Six sample verbs of motion, Expressing "go", Пойти vs. ходить, Prefixes, More prefixes, and More examples. Use the dictionary to verify spelling and conjugation. In class, we'll also talk about deverbal and imperative forms.
Week 12: Sunday 11/03/24 - Saturday 11/09/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
By now, you should be able to spell all forms for pronouns, nouns, adjectives, and verbs without consulting any tables. (This does not include deverbal forms--participles and deverbal adverbs in the last two columns of the dictionary entries.) Take as much of this online Self-Test 2 as you have time for. If your computer doesn't play the sound correctly, use any PC in the language lab. Compare your results to the provided answers and analyze your errors, if any. Take the test again if you feel you can do better the second time. Bring your first version to class. We will use this dictation to review everything you have learned about pronouns, nouns, adjectives, and verbs in the recent weeks as well as the earlier material.
Wednesday
Advanced Russian: Chapter 6. Stories. Story 6-1 (A or B), Pages 31-53. (Людмила Улицкая "Явление природы")
Thursday
Use your corrected homework and answers to Self-Test 2 again to review. In class, you'll write a dictation similar to the one in Self-Test 2.
Week 13: Sunday 11/10/24 - Saturday 11/16/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Read about Prepositions, Particles, and Conjunctions. Write a short letter to a friend or family member using as many of these rules as you can.
Wednesday
Advanced Russian: Chapter 6. Stories. Story 6-1 (A or B), Pages 54-77. (Людмила Улицкая "Явление природы")
Thursday
Read Место вашего рождения from «Слово о словах» Льва Успенского. Write a short essay about your family: where did you come from, what language(s) did you, your parents, and your grandparents speak before coming to the US, how did you all learn English, how English and your earlier languages co-exist in your family, and anything else that might occur to you in this respect.
Week 14: Sunday 11/17/24 - Saturday 11/23/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Use this Review Guide in Acrobat (PDF) format as you review the material of the entire semester. In class, you will write a practice exam that is similar to the final exam.
Wednesday
Каникулы -День Благодарения
Thursday
Каникулы - День Благодарения
Week 15: Sunday 11/24/24 - Saturday 11/30/24 [show/hide]
Tuesday
Review everything, come to class with questions. If you like, use this online Self-Test 3 to identify your weak spots. If your computer doesn't play the sound correctly, use any PC in the language lab. Compare your results to the provided answers and analyze your errors, if any.
Wednesday
Advanced Russian: Chapter 1. Stories. Story 1-2 (A or B). (Михаил Веллер «Мимоходом»).
Thursday
Click the link for "summary of deverbal forms" at the top of this syllabus for a complete set of participles and deverbal adverbs, with examples. We generated other examples of these on two occasions, but never really practiced using them. Write a few sentences, preferably in the form of a coherent story, using every form at least once. E.g., Люди, курящие сигареты, тратят на них много денег. Выкурив одну сигарету, человек часто хочет закурить следующую. Курильщик, выкуривший десять сигарет, чувствует себя больным, а остатки выкуренных им сигарет засоряют природу. Пожилые люди, курившие в молодости, беспокоятся о своем здоровье... и так далее.
Week 16: Sunday 12/01/24 - Saturday 12/07/24 [show/hide]
Week 17: Sunday 12/08/24 - Saturday 12/14/24 [show/hide]
 
 
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Dept. of Comparative Literature • Russian Language Program • 240 Goldwin Smith Hall • Cornell University • Ithaca, NY 14853-4701, USA
tel. 607/255-4155 • fax 607/255-8177 • email slava.paperno@cornell.edu