UW Bothell Course Descriptions
UW Tacoma Course Descriptions
Glossary
Detailed course offerings (Time Schedule) are available for
MELC 101 Gateway to the Middle East (5) A&H/SSc
Provides general introduction to the peoples, cultures, and languages of the Middle East, both past and present. No previous knowledge of the Middle East required.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 101
MELC 196 Introductory Studies in Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures (1-5, max. 15) SSc
Offered occasionally by visitors or resident faculty. Content varies.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 196
MELC 199 Study Abroad (1-15, max. 15)
Credit for lower division MELC courses in an approved Study Abroad program. Requires credit evaluation by department or faculty. Does not automatically apply to major or minor requirements. Offered: AWSpS.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 199
MELC 201 Introduction to the Ancient Near East (5) SSc/A&H
Surveys the peoples, places, and events of the ancient Near East. Examines the cultures of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Canaan, and Israel with an eye to each culture's cultural contributions. Pays special attention to shared cultural elements as well as distinguishing characteristics of the peoples of these regions.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 201
MELC 202 Introduction to the Hebrew Bible: Old Testament (5) SSc/A&H
Examines the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) in translation and its relationship with literatures of ancient Near East. Comparisons drawn between Biblical text and literary works of Canaan, Egypt, Greece, Mesopotamia. Emphasis on the sophisticated literary techniques employed by Biblical writers. Offered: jointly with RELIG 240.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 202
MELC 203 Introduction to the Archaeology of Western Anatolia: Crossroads of the Ancient World (5) SSc
Archaeology of the western coast of Anatolia and its often-neglected place in the ancient Near Eastern and Classical worlds. Covers the cities of Troy and Ephesus, and the civilizations of the Phrygians, Lydians, Carians, Lycians and the Ionians in Anatolia. Offered: AWSpS.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 203
MELC 207 Introduction to the Archaeology of Ancient Iran (5) SSc
Introduction to the archaeology of ancient Iran (Persia) from the earliest inhabitants to the end of Sasanian period (circa10,000 BDE-651 CE). Covers the archaeology from various time periods in chronological order, with an emphasis on the archaeology and culture of the Achaemendid (Persian) period.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 207
MELC 208 Introduction To Ancient Near Eastern Archeology (5) SSc/A&H
Archaeological cultures of the ancient Near East, from 10,000 BCE to 332 BCE, including the civilizations of Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq), Egypt, the Levant (modern day Israel, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon), Anatolia (modern day Turkey) and Persia (modern day Iran).
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 208
MELC 209 Introduction To Ancient Egyptian Archaeology (5) A&H/SSc
Survey of the archaeology, art, and architecture of ancient Egypt from the prehistoric cultures of the Nile Valley ( c. 10,000 BCE) until the end of the New Kingdom ( c.1000 BCE), exploring Egyptian gods, divine kings, pyramids, temples, mummification, society, government, religion, medicine, magic, sex, childbirth, and death. Offered: jointly with ARCHY 212.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 209
MELC 211 Introduction to Myths of the Ancient Middle East (5) SSc/A&H
Draws on mythic sources from ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt, Syria, Anatolia, and Israel. Addresses questions such as: For these ancient people, where did people come from? How did the world come to be as it was? How did these myths shape their views of themselves? Highlights how different myths reflected different views of human life and how myths were reframed over time to serve new purposes.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 211
MELC 229 Introduction to Islamic Cultures and Thought (5) A&H/SSc
Covers major developments in the formative, classical, and modern periods of Islamic cultures and thought from seventh century Arabia to the contemporary Muslim world. Looks at the development of Islamic religious thought and legal practice as well as the Muslim polities, cultures, and intellectual traditions of Asia, Africa, Europe, and America. Offered: jointly with JSIS A 210.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 229
MELC 230 Introduction to Muslim Beliefs and Practices (5) SSc/A&H
Examines the origins and development of central beliefs in various Muslim traditions; such as monotheism, prophecy, divine judgment, and predestination. Looks at ritual and socio-cultural practices in Muslim societies in Asia, Africa, and Europe. Offered: jointly with RELIG 211.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 230
MELC 231 Introduction to the Quran (5) A&H/SSc
A literary, historical, and theological introduction to the Quran. Looks at the historical circumstances of the text's compilation; its collection and redaction; its narrative structure; its rhetorical strategies; its major themes; it connections to and departures from the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament; commentary and exegesis; translation; and its impact on political and religious thought. Offered: jointly with RELIG 212.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 231
MELC 232 Introduction to the Modern Middle East (5) SSc
Major social and political trends in the Middle East during the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries. Basic principles of Islam and its diversity, changing balance of power during the early modern period; European colonialism and withdrawal; pan-Arabism, nationalism, feminism and religious resurgence. Offered: jointly with JSIS A 215.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 232
MELC 233 Israeli Culture and Society (3, max. 15) SSc/A&H
Explores aspects of Israeli culture and society. Topics vary. Offered: jointly with JEW ST 233.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 233
MELC 234 Introduction to Shi'i Islam (5) SSc
Basic beliefs of Shi'ism today, how they developed over time, the role of intellectuals in the development of Shi'i thought, and how major law schools of Shi'ism give expression to those beliefs.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 234
MELC 243 Iran and Persianate Worlds (5) SSc/A&H
Explores culture of this Middle Eastern region through a multi-disciplinary approach that includes such manifestations as architecture, carpet-weaving, story-telling, and the composition of poetry.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 243
MELC 244 Voices of the Iranian Revolution (5) A&H/SSc
Includes critical readings of the 1979 Iranian Revolution as represented in essays, fiction, poetry, memoir, speeches, film, and other arts. Examines the ways that writers, artists, politicians, and intellectuals have depicted the origins and development of the Islamic Republic and the legacy of the revolution in Iranian society and culture today.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 244
MELC 257 Introduction to Central Asian Turkic Literature in Translation (5) A&H
Provides an overview of the major periods of Central Asian Turkic literature including: the Pre-Islamic Period (eighth-tenth centuries), the Islamic Period (tenth-twentieth centuries), the Modern Period (1905-1991), and the Post-Colonial period (1991-present). Centers on the Turkic peoples who lived under Russia and Soviet colonial rule.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 257
MELC 258 Introduction to Kyrgyz Writer Chingiz Aitmatov (5) SSc/A&H
Introduces the form and content of the work of the Kyrgyz writer, Chingiz Aitmatov, while also examining his life and influence on the people of Central Asia.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 258
MELC 259 Introduction to the Writers and Intellectuals of Central Asia under Soviet Colonialism (5) A&H/SSc, DIV
Discusses the lives and works of Kazakh, Kyrgyz Turkmen, and Uzbek poets and writers and intellectuals who lived during the Soviet period from 1917-1991.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 259
MELC 261 Turkic Peoples of Central Asia (3) SSc
History of the Turkic peoples, AD 552 to present. Emphasis on current status of Turkic peoples in Central Asia. Geographical distribution, demographic data, reactions and adaptations to changes resulting from the 1917 revolution. Turkic viewpoint on past and present developments. Offered: jointly with JSIS A 261.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 261
MELC 262 Central Asian Country Profiles: Introduction to Kazakhstan (5) A&H/SSc
Examines developments in Kazakhstan after the country gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. Part of a series on Central Asia.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 262
MELC 264 Central Asian Country Profiles: Introduction to Uzbekistan (5) A&H/SSc
Survey of the Uzbek people and their history. Examines developments in Uzbekistan after the country gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. Part of a series on Central Asia.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 264
MELC 265 Introduction to Central Asian Turkic Literature in Translation (3) A&H
Introduces the foundations of modern Uzbek literature; the common Turkic literature of the eighth-century and the more recent Chagatay-Uzbek literature. Focuses on post-Soviet literature since 1991. After independence Uzbek writers were able to express themselves without censorship and prosecution.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 265
MELC 266 The Modern Middle East and Central Asia (5) SSc
Ethnographic overview of Muslim societies in the middle east and central Asia from various anthropological perspectives. Examines the unity and diversity of Muslim communities and acquaints students with the significant linguistic, cultural, and political diversity of Muslim societies. Helps students develop an understanding of Islam as a lived experience.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 266
MELC 267 Folktales Along the Silk Road (3) A&H/SSc
Introduces student to the Silk Road connecting China and Europe through the cities of Samarkand, Bukhara, and Constantinople, now Istanbul. Applies comparative-historical and sociological method in folktale research, i.e. compares Western European stories and motifs with tales from the Silk Road while paying attention to the environment of storytelling.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 267
MELC 268 Silk Road and Globalization (5) SSc, DIV
Introduces the Silk Road as a site of cultural exchange between peoples, and of political, economic, and intellectual exchange between regions and continents. Topics include empires, migration, language, and religion. Considers the Silk Road as a symbol of globalization in the exploration of an underrepresented and culturally dynamic region, encouraging reflection on historic inequities as well as present-day inequalities and marginalities. Offered: jointly with JSIS A 268.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 268
MELC 269 Music Cultures of the Silk Road (5) A&H/SSc, DIV
Explores music cultures of the Silk Road lands of Central Eurasia, China, and the Middle East from anthropological perspectives. Examines the interconnections between music and culture, and the political ramifications and the sociohistorical contexts of colonization, imperialism, and sovereignty on the production of musical expressions. Topics include culture, ethnicity, diversity of musical expression, literature, religion, and colonialism. Offered: jointly with MUSIC 269.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 269
MELC 270 Diversity and Global Turks (5) SSc, DIV
Explores the history of the Turks as a distinctive cultural and linguistic community set against a global backdrop, diversity of Turkic societies, and their interactions with peoples and cultures across Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. Examines constructions of Turkicness through relationships of power, and inequalities of the marginalized groups in colonial and postcolonial contexts, from historical and contemporary perspectives.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 270
MELC 271 Cultural History of Turkey: From Empire to Nation (5) A&H/SSc
Topics include: social, economic, and political structures of Ottoman and Turkish Anatolia; language, literature, and artistic tradition; social status of women, literacy and illiteracy, the secular enterprise of Kemal Ataturk; Islamic fundamentalism, educational institutions, Kurdish nationalism.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 271
MELC 285 Religion, Violence, and Peace: Patterns Across Time and Tradition (5) SSc
Investigates the complex relationship between violence and peace in a variety of religious traditions. Examines case studies from the ancient Near East, medieval East Asia, and the contemporary West from the standpoint of lived experiences and contemporary theories derived from several academic disciplines. Offered: jointly with HUM 205/RELIG 205; W.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 285
MELC 286 Themes in Middle Eastern Literature (5) SSc/A&H
Significant and interesting aspects of Middle Eastern culture and society as represented by literary themes. Aspects of Middle Eastern life and art such as women, minority groups, mysticism, and modern literature. Content varies. Cannot be taken if credit received for MELC 330.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 286
MELC 287 The Middle East in Song (2, max. 8) A&H
Surveys popular song as it has shaped modern culture and identity in the Middle East. Topics vary. All texts in English; no previous knowledge of other languages required. Credit/no-credit only.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 287
MELC 288 Introduction to the Horn of Africa (5) SSc, DIV
Explores history, culture, and peoples of the Horn of the Africa. By placing Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Somalia at the center of inquiry, invites reconsideration of standard narratives of world history that all too often ignore or marginalize the region. Includes a broad range of assignments examining art, literature, and societies of the Horn, including vibrant Diaspora communities in America. Offered: jointly with HSTAFM 288; A.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 288
MELC 296 Special Studies in Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures (1-5, max. 15) SSc
Offered occasionally by visitors or resident faculty.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 296
MELC 301 Art of the Ancient Near East (3) A&H
Examines the artistic remains of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia (3000 BCE-550 BCE), with some attention to architecture. Topics examined include: art as ritual power, the relationship between text and image, art and cosmology, visual propaganda, and the legacy of ancient Near Eastern art.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 301
MELC 302 Religions of the Ancient World (3) SSc
A comparative exploration into ancient religious customs, rituals, and beliefs (ca. 3000-500 BCE). Focus on peoples of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Syria, and Israel. Topics include conceptions of worship and divinity, sacred space and time, and types and roles of priesthoods, divination, prayers, and afterlife beliefs. Recommended: NEAR E 201. Offered: A.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 302
MELC 305 The Biblical Prophets (3) A&H/SSc
Explores the Biblical prophets (in translation) within their Near Eastern contexts. Historicity, literary and rhetorical sophistication, and ideological agendas. Seeks to uncover the meaning and distinctiveness of Israelite prophecy within the context of the larger Near East. No knowledge of the Bible required. Offered: jointly with RELIG 315.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 305
MELC 306 The History of Biblical Interpretation (3) SSc/A&H
Traces Biblical interpretation and translation technique from the earliest translations of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) to the various historical literary, deconstructionist, and holistic strategies of more recent times. Adopts a "hands-on" approach to the material and explores various hermeneutics by applying them in class. Offered: jointly with RELIG 306.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 306
MELC 307 From Israelites to Jews: the First Six Centuries BCE (3) A&H/SSc
Traces the Israelites, from the Babylonian destruction of the Jerusalemite Temple (586 BCE) to events following the destruction of the second Temple (first century CE). Focuses on primary historical and literary sources as well as archaeological and artistic evidence. No knowledge of Hebrew or the Bible required. Offered: jointly with JEW ST 317.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 307
MELC 308 Gender and Sexuality in the Ancient Near East (3) A&H/SSc, DIV
Investigates and critically assesses trends and topics in recent studies of gender and sexuality in the ancient Near East, pertaining especially to texts, artifacts, art and images from ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt and the Levant. Explores ancient Near Eastern taxonomies and functions of gender and sexuality, and examines social, political and religious forces that inform and construct gendered categories of gods, humans, and their worlds. Recommended: MELC 201. Offered: AWSp.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 308
MELC 309 Death and Afterlife in the Ancient World (3) A&H/SSc
Explores human yearnings, obsessions, fears, and aspirations associated with death and afterlife by examining major political, military, social, economic, religious, literary, artistic, and architectural phenomena directly connected to the way ancient cultures, such as Egypt, Mesopotamia, Israel, and the Levant, have conceptualized death.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 309
MELC 310 Jewish Literature: Foundations and Re-imaginings (5) A&H, DIV
Overview of 3000 years of literary creativity. Considers multiple genres, including Bible, Midrash, medieval poetry, Hasidic tale, modern fiction, TV satire, and popular music lyrics, with emphasis on how later literature reinterprets and re-imagines earlier texts. Explores diversity in Jewish writing, focusing on Jews as minority and diaspora communities as well as on centers and margins within Jewish cultures. Course overlaps with: ENGL 312/JEW ST 312. Offered: WSp.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 310
MELC 311 The Archaeology of Biblical Israel (5) SSc
Archaeology of ancient Israel (southern Levant). Covers the known archaeological material and Biblical and other contemporaneous textual sources to explore this topic, covering the archaeological cultures from the Middle Bronze Age to the end of the Babylonian Exile (2000-300 BCE).
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 311
MELC 312 Looting and Loss: Middle Eastern Archaeology (5) SSc
Explores the history and context of recent politicization, looting, and destruction of archaeological and cultural sites in the Middle East, as well as the associated human toll, with primary focus on the current state of modern Syria and Iraq. Covers the politics of archaeology in the Middle East from the First Gulf War to more recent times. Offered: jointly with ARCHY 312.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 312
MELC 313 Ancient Technologies of the Near East (5) SSc
Introduction to ancient pyrotechnic technologies. Covers the laboratory methods used by modern archaeologists to study ancient ceramics, glass and metals, the methodologies behind the creation of these materials, and the invention of these technologies in the Near East, with brief comparisons with China and the New World. Offered: jointly with ARCHY 313.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 313
MELC 314 The Archeology of Early Islam (5) SSc
Introduction to the archaeology of early Islam, from 632 to 1000 CE with the study of the rise (and occasional fall) of Islam in Arabia, Egypt, and Spain/Portugal through a survey of the local architecture and material culture. Students study key archaeological sites and histories of these regions.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 314
MELC 316 Israeli Identities (5) A&H, DIV
Examines fiction and film, as well as selected poetry, popular songs, and essays, to explore diverse groups within contemporary Israeli society. Topics include the sabra ideal, holocaust survivors, Sephardic/Mizrahi communities, religious and secular Jews, Israel's Arab minority, and questions of gender.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 316
MELC 317 Jewish Life in Literature and Film (5) A&H/SSc
Major themes of Jewish life treated in modern narrative and cinema. Topics include religious tradition and modernity. Jewish immigration to America, responses to the Holocaust and Zionism. Offered: jointly with JEW ST 318.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 317
MELC 318 Literature and the Holocaust (5) A&H, DIV
Examines fiction, poetry, memoir, diaries, monuments, film, and pop culture from several languages and cultural milieus, with emphases on English and Hebrew. Topics include survivor testimony, shaping of collective memory, the second generation, Holocaust education and children's literature, gender and the Holocaust, and fantasy and humor as responses to catastrophe. Offered: jointly with C LIT 318.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 318
MELC 320 Jewish Poetry (5) A&H
Examines elements of traditional Jewish prayers and worship with modern poems that draw on those classical sources. Examines poets from Europe, the Americas, the Near East and North Africa. Taught in English.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 320
MELC 321 Israel in Film (2) SSc/A&H
Presents films that introduce students to important aspects of Israeli culture. Topics include: Zionism, the Holocaust, immigration, religious and secular communities, mizrachim, Russians, army service, war and trauma, LGBT themes, and Israel's Arab minority.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 321
MELC 325 Modern Hebrew Literature in Translation (3) A&H
Major developments in Hebrew literature from the Enlightenment to the current Israeli literature.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 325
MELC 328 Bioethics: Secular and Jewish Perspectives (3) SSc, DIV
Legal, ethical, scientific, and Jewish religious perspectives on contemporary medical and biomedical research practices. Legal and civil rights of women, people with disabilities, minors and minority or marginalized groups. Key differences between secular and Biblical/Rabbinic approaches in interpretation, analysis and application of bioethics, doctor-patient relationships; reproductive methods; abortion; euthanasia; and stem cell research. Offered: jointly with B H 339/JEW ST 339.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 328
MELC 329 Classical Arabic Literature in Translation (5) A&H
Examines development of Arabic literature from its beginnings through the fall of the Abbasid dynasty and the Mongols. Coincided with period when Arabic language and literature were dominate forces in Islamic civilization. Topics include: Pre-Islamic poetry, impact of Islam on the literature, court poetry, and the rise of Arabic prose.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 329
MELC 330 Colonialism, Nationalism, and the Modern Arabic Novel (5) SSc/A&H
Examines how representative novels from the modern canon in Arabic have both endorsed and critiqued aspects of nationalism and colonialist ideology.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 330
MELC 331 Thousand and One Nights (5) A&H
Examines the major story cycles of the Thousand-and-One-Nights collection in their social and historical contexts.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 331
MELC 332 Arab American Writers (5) SSc/A&H
Explores the influences of Arab American writing both in the United States and the Arab world during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Discusses issues of emigration to the United States from the Arab world and its impact on the formation of a distinctive Arab American identity.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 332
MELC 333 Prophecy in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam (3) SSc
Looks at the phenomenon of prophecy in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim thought and writing from antiquity to modernity. Traces the development of prophetic expression in the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament, and the Quran. Surveys major themes and covers various eras, including prophecy in the American context.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 333
MELC 334 Culture of the Arab World (5) A&H/SSc, DIV
Surveys the linguistic, geographical, historical, social, religious, and cultural aspects of the modern Arab world and its connections to the Arab-American community. Focuses on the Arabic language, the Arab family, the role of the past, and social change in marginalized communities as a lingering outcome of colonial times. Highlights racial bias and awareness of multicultural issues that reveal current power inequalities across the Arab world.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 334
MELC 335 Language Conflict and Identity in the Middle East and North Africa (5) SSc/A&H, DIV
Explores social and linguistic aspects of the languages and cultures of the Middle East and North Africa, focusing on the relationship between language and national/ethnic identity from the perspective of group conflict. Considers language policies in colonial and post-colonial states, and individual strategies of accommodation and resistance to these policies.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 335
MELC 336 Jews and Arabs (5) A&H/SSc
An introduction to the Jewish-Muslim encounter: a look at exchange, symbiosis, liminality, and confrontation between these two kindred religio-cultural systems, from the rise of Islam, to the end of its Classical Age - six centuries wherein the majority of the world's Jews lived among Muslim majorities.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 336
MELC 337 Egyptian Cinema: Glamour on the Nile (5) A&H
History and development of Egyptian cinema. Examines a range of topics, including: the transition to sound, the differentiation into film genres, the nationalization of the film industry in the 1960s, the role of the director as auteur, and the recovery of the Egyptian film industry after 2000.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 337
MELC 340 Translation Studies: Gulliver's Travels Among Muslims and Jews (5) A&H
Approaches the nineteenth-century endeavor of translating European classics into non-European languages through prisms of translation studies and cultural history by focusing on the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East. Through a close reading of Gulliver's Travels, the original text and translations, focuses on themes of adaptation and rewriting while investigating how the original text was reinvented in local languages. Recommended: courses in translation theory or history of the modern Middle East, or language courses in Arabic, Ottoman Turkish, Hebrew, or Ladino. Offered: Sp.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 340
MELC 343 Classical Persian Literature in Translation (5) SSc/A&H
Introduces themes, forms, and historical development of Persian literature from the tenth to nineteenth centuries CE. Topics include lyric and epic forms, Sufism, premodern poetics, and reception history of English translations. Reading include Rumi, Hafez, Khayyam, Ferdowsi, Sa'di among others. No prior knowledge of Persian language or literature required.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 343
MELC 344 Modern Persian Literature in Translation (5) SSc/A&H
Introduces Persian literature from early modernizing projects in the nineteenth century up to today. Includes poetry, fiction, essays, and film. Examines various ways that Persian writers define modernity in their own works and respond to writers in other languages and traditions. No prior knowledge of Persian language or literature required.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 344
MELC 345 Persian Literature in Translation (5) A&H
Designed to familiarize students with an expanding collection of works translated from Persian literature, both classical and modern, into English. Focuses on a few representative texts and offers interpretations of the culture through close readings. Prior acquaintance with Persian culture not required.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 345
MELC 350 Archaeology of Ancient Near Eastern Warfare and Empire (5) SSc
Surveys the archaeological remnants of war, warfare, and empire in the ancient Near East, from the rise of earliest cities to the Roman period (circa 3000 BCE-30 CE), with a focus on the cultural consequences of violence and warfare on various ancient Near Eastern cultures.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 350
MELC 351 Royal Literature in the Bible and the Ancient Near East: Rebels, Kings, and Wanderers (3) A&H
Kingship in the Bible and ancient Near East. Draws on sources from Sumer, Egypt, Babylon, Syria, Haiti, and Israel. Highlights how ideas of kingship changed over time and differed between cultures. Recommended: MELC 101 or MELC 201.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 351
MELC 352 Wisdom Literature in the Bible and the Ancient Near East (5) A&H
Draws on sources from Sumer, Egypt, Babylon, Syria, Hatti, and Israel. Highlights how conception of wisdom and wisdom literature genres varied and developed across the ancient Near East. Answers questions such as: What does it mean to be wise? How do people convey what they think wisdom is in stories, proverbs, and instructions?
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 352
MELC 357 Cultures of Central Eurasia (5) SSc, DIV
Introduces Central Eurasia with a focus on the cultural diversity and societies of the Central Asian republics and Inner Asia (Mongolia, Xinjiang, and Tibet) as well as the adjacent areas of Afghanistan and Iran. Addresses intercultural dynamics, historic inequities, centers of power vs. margins, impact of colonialism on traditional cultures, contemporary inequalities, marginalities and their sociological and political ramifications. Offered: jointly with ANTH 357/JSIS A 357.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 357
MELC 358 Islam and Muslims in China (5) SSc, DIV
Examines the lived experiences of Muslims in China from the perspective of how Islam informs culture and creates social and spiritual meaning; the relationship of Islam to the political, economic and social lives of individual Muslims; interconnections between religion and culture; settler colonialism, control over expressions of Muslim identity and culture, discrimination in interethnic relations.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 358
MELC 359 Language and Ethnicity (5) SSc/A&H, DIV
Explores the political, social, and linguistic contexts of language diversity in Inner Asia, China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, and the ongoing process of nation-state building efforts from sociolinguistic and ethnographic perspectives. Examines the power relationship between language and ethnicity, the role played by language in power inequalities, and inequality in the distribution of resources. Offered: jointly with LING 359.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 359
MELC 360 Oral Literature of the Turkic Peoples of Central Asia: The Heroic Epos (3) A&H/SSc
Representative heroic poems of Central Asian Turkic peoples now living in the Central Asian Republics and China. Origin of the heroic epos, its relation to the romantic epos and other oral literary genres. Art of the singer and his role in nomadic Turkic society. Emphasis on Manas, the monumental epos of Kirghiz.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 360
MELC 371 Love and Empire: Cultural History of the Ottoman Empire through Literature (3-5) SSc/A&H
Approaches Ottoman literature through translations and scholarly articles in English. Evaluates this particular literary tradition as an imperial production, through an analysis and critical reading of course materials.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 371
MELC 372 Modern Turkish Literature in Translation (3) A&H
Covers major theoretical issues concerning Ottoman court literature and Turkish epic and troubadour poetry. Major writers and works of modern Turkish literature read and analyzed in their social, political, and theoretical contexts. Previous study of Turkish literature not required.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 372
MELC 385 Modern Middle Eastern Literature in Translation (3) A&H
Contemporary cultures of the Middle East studied through exposure to a representative sample of their literary work. Texts selected address major issues in Middle Eastern societies, e.g., tradition versus modernity, national identity and the challenge of the West, Arab-Israeli conflict.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 385
MELC 386 Middle East through Cinema (5, max. 12) A&H
Analyzes the function of cinema in shaping communal and individual identities in Middle Eastern cultures. Examines topics including religious transformation, violence, identity, gender, immigration, and exile through film screenings, discussions, and supplementary readings.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 386
MELC 392 Politics and Poetics of Translation (5) A&H, DIV
Study of translation through close examination of medieval and modern Middle Eastern literary texts. Explores how translation is shaped by profoundly unequal power dynamics and effects of imperial domination of English in translation practices. Includes translations from Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, and Turkish into English and translations among these languages. Knowledge of a second language not assumed.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 392
MELC 396 Intermediate Studies in Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures (1-5, max. 15)
Offered occasionally by visitors or resident faculty.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 396
MELC 399 Study Abroad (1-15, max. 15)
Credit for MELC 200-400-level courses in an approved Study Abroad program. Requires credit evaluation by department or faculty. Does not automatically apply to major or minor requirements. Offered: AWSpS.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 399
MELC 429 Islamic Mystical Literature in Translation (5) A&H
Readings from the works of principal Sufi writers and poets.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 429
MELC 430 Muslim Scripture, Historiography, and Exegesis (3) SSc/A&H
Examines the origins and development of early and classical Muslim thought. Provides an in-depth survey of the three key genres of early and classical Muslim writing: scripture (Quran), historiography (Maghazi, Sira, and Tabaqat), and exegesis (Tafsir and Ta'wil). Offered: jointly with RELIG 430.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 430
MELC 431 Arabic Linguistics (5) A&H/SSc
Studies Arabic through modern linguistic analysis. Covers Arabic's phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics, and discusses the history of Arabic as well as the frequently debated issue of diglossia in Arabic-speaking countries. Equal attention given to the linguistic features of both FuS'Ha Arabic and modern Arabic dialects.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 431
MELC 432 Arabic Sociolinguistics (5) A&H/SSc
Focuses on how Arabic is used by native speakers in various social contexts. Examines diglossia (co-existence of Modern Standard Arabic with the Arabic vernacular), linguistic variation in the Arab world, and the effect of variables such as education, social status, politics, and gender.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 432
MELC 457 Turkic Linguistics (5) A&H
Survey of the nature and structure of the Turkic languages, focusing on phonology, morphology, syntax, lexicon, writing systems, history and cultural context, subgrouping and diversification, and linguistic theoretical principles for their description and analysis. Offered: jointly with LING 457.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 457
MELC 485 Digital Media: The Middle East and Central Asia (5) A&H
Hands-on, project-based approach to imaging, new media, electronic text, databases, metadata and accessibility, rights management, and other issues central to contemporary humanities research on the Middle East and Central Asia.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 485
MELC 486 Methodologies in Middle Eastern Studies (5)
Investigates prevalent approaches through a survey of scholarship on Near and Middle Eastern cultures and thought across time periods, cultures, and communities. Examines discourses developed on polytheistic and monotheistic religions, imperial and nationalist social systems, and ideological frameworks, such as Orientalism. Offered: jointly with JSIS A 491.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 486
MELC 490 Supervised Study (1-6, max. 18)
Special work in Middle Eastern studies.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 490
MELC 491 Seminar in Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures (2)
Covers issues of methodology as well as linguistic, philosophical, literary critical, and rhetorical topics. Focuses on developing academic presentation and communication skills. Includes supervised readings and group discussion. Credit/no-credit only.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 491
MELC 496 Advanced Studies in Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures (3-5, max. 15) SSc
Offered occasionally by visitors or resident faculty. Content varies.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 496
MELC 497 Honors Thesis (5)
Participants identify a specific thesis topic and conduct individual research under the direction of a thesis adviser, culminating in an Honors thesis. Open only to juniors and seniors in the Departmental Honors Program.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 497
MELC 498 Capstone Essay (5) A&H/SSc
Supervised individual research and writing of a capstone essay. Offered: AWSp.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 498
MELC 499 Undergraduate Research (1-6, max. 18)
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 499
MELC 501 Art of the Ancient Near East (3)
Examines the artistic remains of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia (3000 BCE-550 BCE), with some attention to architecture. Topics examined include: art as ritual power, the relationship between text and image, art and cosmology, visual propaganda, and the legacy of ancient Near Eastern art.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 501
MELC 502 Religions of the Ancient World (3)
A comparative exploration into ancient religious customs, rituals, and beliefs (ca. 3000-500 BCE). Focus on peoples of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Syria, and Israel. Topics include conceptions of worship and divinity, sacred space and time, and types and roles of priesthoods, divination, prayers, and afterlife beliefs. Recommended: NEAR E 201. Offered: A.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 502
MELC 505 The Biblical Prophets (3)
Explores the Biblical prophets (in translation) within their Near Eastern contexts. Historicity, literary and rhetorical sophistication, and ideological agendas. Seeks to uncover the meaning and distinctiveness of Israelite prophecy within the context of the larger Near East. No knowledge of the Bible required.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 505
MELC 506 The History of Biblical Interpretation (3)
Traces Biblical interpretation and translation technique from the earliest translations of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) to the various historical literary, deconstructionist, and holistic strategies of more recent times. Adopts a 'hands-on' approach to the material and explores various hermeneutics by applying them in class.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 506
MELC 507 From Israelites to Jews: the First Six Centuries BCE (3)
Traces the Israelites, from the Babylonian destruction of the Jerusalemite Temple (586 BCE) to events following the destruction of the second Temple (first century CE). Focuses on primary historical and literary sources as well as archaeological and artistic evidence. No knowledge of Hebrew or the Bible required.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 507
MELC 508 Gender and Sexuality in the Ancient Near East (3) A&H/SSc, DIV
Investigates and critically assesses trends and topics in recent studies of gender and sexuality in the ancient Near East, pertaining especially to texts, artifacts, art and images from ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt and the Levant. Explores ancient Near Eastern taxonomies and functions of gender and sexuality, and examines social, political and religious forces that inform and construct gendered categories of gods, humans, and their worlds. Recommended: MELC 201. Offered: AWSp.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 508
MELC 509 Death and Afterlife in the Ancient World (3)
Explores human yearnings, obsessions, fears, and aspirations associated with death and afterlife by examining major political, military, social, economic, religious, literary, artistic, and architectural phenomena directly connected to the way ancient cultures, such as Egypt, Mesopotamia, Israel, and the Levant, have conceptualized death.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 509
MELC 511 The Archaeology of Biblical Israel (5)
Archaeology of ancient Israel (southern Levant). Covers the known archaeological material and Biblical and other contemporaneous textual sources to explore this topic, covering the archaeological cultures from the Middle Bronze Age to the end of the Babylonian Exile (2000-300 BCE).
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 511
MELC 513 Ancient Technologies of the Near East (5)
Introduction to ancient pyrotechnic technologies. Covers the laboratory methods used by modern archaeologists to study ancient ceramics, glass and metals, the methodologies behind the creation of these materials, and the invention of these technologies in the Near East, with brief comparisons with China and the New World. Offered: jointly with ARCHY 513.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 513
MELC 520 Jewish Poetry (5)
Examines elements of traditional Jewish prayers and worship with modern poems that draw on those classical sources. Examines poets from Europe, the Americas, the Near East and North Africa. Taught in English.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 520
MELC 529 Classical Arabic Literature in Translation (5)
Examines development of Arabic literature from its beginnings through the fall of the Abbasid dynasty and the Mongols. Coincided with period when Arabic language and literature were dominate forces in Islamic civilization. Topics include: Pre-Islamic poetry, impact of Islam on the literature, court poetry, and the rise of Arabic prose.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 529
MELC 530 Colonialism, Nationalism, and the Modern Arabic Novel (5)
Examines how representative novels from the modern canon in Arabic have both endorsed and critiqued aspects of nationalism and colonialist ideology.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 530
MELC 531 Thousand and One Nights (5)
Examines the major story cycles of the Thousand-and-One-Nights collection in their social and historical contexts.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 531
MELC 532 Arab American Writers (5)
Explores the influences of Arab American writing both in the United States and the Arab world during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Discusses issues of emigration to the United States from the Arab world and its impact on the formation of a distinctive Arab American identity.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 532
MELC 533 Prophecy in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam (5)
Looks at the phenomenon of prophecy in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim thought and writing from antiquity to modernity. Traces the development of prophetic expression in the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament, and the Quran. Surveys major themes and covers various eras, including prophecy in the American context.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 533
MELC 534 Culture of the Arab World (5)
General survey of the linguistic, geographical, historical, social, religious, and cultural aspects of the modern Arab world, including the Arabic language, family, and the Arab experience in the United States. Examines Arab American relations, the role of the past and of social change, and Arab art and music.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 534
MELC 535 Language Conflict and Identity in the Middle East and North Africa (5)
Explores social and linguistic aspects of the languages and cultures of the Middle East and North Africa, focusing on the relationship between language and national/ethnic identity from the perspective of group conflict. Considers language policies in colonial and post-colonial states, and individual strategies of accommodation and resistance to these policies.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 535
MELC 536 Islamic Law (2-5, max. 5)
Selected topics in Islamic law that highlight major aspects of Islamic civilization. May only be taken for credit once. Offered: jointly with LAW B 556.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 536
MELC 537 Muslim Scripture, Historiography, and Exegesis (5)
Examines the origins and development of early and classical Muslim thought. Provides an in-depth survey of the three key genres of early and classical Muslim writing: scripture (Quran), historiography (Maghazi, Sira, and Tabaqat), and exegesis (Tafsir and Ta'wil).
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 537
MELC 538 Arabic Linguistics (5)
Studies Arabic through modern linguistic analysis. Covers Arabic's phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics, and discusses the history of Arabic as well as the frequently debated issue of diglossia in Arabic-speaking countries. Equal attention given to the linguistic features of both FuS'Ha Arabic and modern Arabic dialects.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 538
MELC 539 Arabic Sociolinguistics (5)
Focuses on how Arabic is used by native speakers in various social contexts. Examines diglossia (co-existence of Modern Standard Arabic with the Arabic vernacular), linguistic variation in the Arab world, and the effect of variables such as education, social status, politics, and gender.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 539
MELC 541 Islam in Jewish Contexts, Judaism in Muslim Contexts (3)
An introduction to the Jewish-Muslim encounter: a look at exchange, symbiosis, liminality, and confrontation between these two kindred religio-cultural systems, from the rise of Islam, to the end of its Classical Age - six centuries wherein the majority of the world's Jews lived among Muslim majorities.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 541
MELC 543 Classical Persian Literature in Translations (5)
Introduces themes, forms, and historical development of Persian literature from the tenth to nineteenth centuries CE. Topics include lyric and epic forms, Sufism, premodern poetics, and reception history of English translations. Reading include Rumi, Hafez, Khayyam, Ferdowsi, Sa'di among others. No prior knowledge of Persian language or literature required.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 543
MELC 544 Modern Persian Literature in Translation (5)
Introduces Persian literature from early modernizing projects in the nineteenth century up to today. Includes poetry, fiction, essays, and film. Examines various ways that Persian writers define modernity in their own works and respond to writers in other languages and traditions. No prior knowledge of Persian language or literature required.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 544
MELC 545 Persian Literature in Translation (5)
Designed to familiarize students with an expanding collection of works translated from Persian literature, both classical and modern, into English. Focuses on a few representative texts and offers interpretations of the culture through close readings. Prior acquaintance with Persian culture not required.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 545
MELC 551 Royal Literature in the Bible and the Ancient Near East: Rebels, Kings, and Wanderers (3)
Kingship in the Bible and ancient Near East. Draws on sources from Sumer, Egypt, Babylon, Syria, Haiti, and Israel. Highlights how ideas of kingship changed over time and differed between cultures. Recommended: MELC 201 or equivalent.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 551
MELC 552 Wisdom Literature in the Bible and the Ancient Near East (5)
Draws on sources from Sumer, Egypt, Babylon, Syria, Hatti, and Israel. Highlights how conception of wisdom and wisdom literature genres varied and developed across the ancient Near East. Answers questions such as: What does it mean to be wise? How do people convey what they think wisdom is in stories, proverbs, and instructions?
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 552
MELC 557 Turkic Linguistics (5)
Survey of the nature and structure of the Turkic languages, focusing on phonology, morphology, syntax, lexicon, writing systems, history and cultural context, subgrouping and diversification, and linguistic theoretical principles for their description and analysis. Offered: jointly with LING 557.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 557
MELC 558 Cultures of Central Eurasia (5)
Introduces Central Eurasia with a focus on the cultural diversity and societies of the Central Asian republics and Inner Asia (Mongolia, Xinjiang, and Tibet) as well as the adjacent areas of Afghanistan and Iran. Addresses intercultural dynamics, historic inequities, centers of power vs. margins, impact of colonialism on traditional cultures, contemporary inequalities, marginalities and their sociological and political ramifications. Offered: jointly with ANTH 522/JSIS D 572.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 558
MELC 559 Islam and Muslims in China (5)
Examines the lived experiences of Muslims in China from the perspective of how Islam informs culture and creates social and spiritual meaning; the relationship of Islam to the political, economic and social lives of individual Muslims; interconnections between religion and culture; settler colonialism, control over expressions of Muslim identity and culture, discrimination in interethnic relations.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 559
MELC 560 Language and Ethnicity (5)
Explores the political, social, and linguistic contexts of language diversity in Inner Asia, China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, and the ongoing process of nation-state building efforts from sociolinguistic and ethnographic perspectives. Examines the power relationship between language and ethnicity, the role played by language in power inequalities, and inequality in the distribution of resources. Offered: jointly with LING 560.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 560
MELC 571 Love and Empire: Cultural History of the Ottoman Empire through Literature (3-5)
Approaches Ottoman literature through translations and scholarly articles in English. Evaluates this particular literary tradition as an imperial production, through an analysis and critical reading of course materials.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 571
MELC 572 Modern Turkish Literature in Translation (3)
Covers major theoretical issues concerning Ottoman court literature and Turkish epic and troubadour poetry. Major writers and works of modern Turkish literature read and analyzed in their social, political, and theoretical contexts. Previous study of Turkish literature not required.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 572
MELC 584 Egyptian Cinema: Glamour on the Nile (5)
History and development of Egyptian cinema. Examines a range of topics, including: the transition to sound, the differentiation into film genres, the nationalization of the film industry in the 1960s, the role of the director as auteur, and the recovery of the Egyptian film industry after 2000.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 584
MELC 585 Digital Media: The Middle East and Central Asia (5)
Hands-on, project-based approach to imaging, new media, electronic text, databases, metadata and accessibility, rights management, and other issues central to contemporary humanities research on the Middle East and Central Asia.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 585
MELC 586 Middle East through Cinema (5, max. 12)
Analyzes the function of cinema in shaping communal and individual identities in Middle Eastern cultures. Examines topics including religious transformation, violence, identity, gender, immigration, and exile through film screenings, discussions, and supplementary readings.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 586
MELC 587 Teaching Arabic as a Foreign/Second Language (3)
Theory and practice of communicative language teaching; current developments in foreign-language teaching; evaluation of teaching materials; includes participation at the departmental and university-wide fall orientation; required for beginning teaching assistants of Middle Eastern Languages. Credit/no-credit only.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 587
MELC 588 Methodologies in Middle Eastern Studies (5)
Investigates prevalent approaches through a survey of scholarship on Near and Middle Eastern cultures and thought across time periods, cultures, and communities. Examines discourses developed on polytheistic and monotheistic religions, imperial and nationalist social systems, and ideological frameworks, such as Orientalism.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 588
MELC 589 Research Methods (3)
Introduction to research in Islamic civilization. Research methods, primary sources, evidence and documentation, reference works, transliteration systems, scholarly writing style.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 589
MELC 590 Seminar on Middle Eastern Cultures and Thought (3-5, max. 30)
Content varies.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 590
MELC 593 Politics and Poetics of Translation (5)
Study of translation through close examination of medieval and modern Middle Eastern literary texts. Explores how translation is shaped by profoundly unequal power dynamics and effects of imperial domination of English in translation practices. Includes translations from Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, and Turkish into English and translations among these languages. Knowledge of a second language not assumed.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 593
MELC 596 Special Studies in Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures (3-5, max. 15)
Offered occasionally by visitors or resident faculty. Content varies.
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 596
MELC 600 Independent Study or Research (*-)
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 600
MELC 700 Master's Thesis (*)
View course details in MyPlan: MELC 700
