2013-2014 Academic Catalog

Nov 23, 2024

2013-2014 Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Foreign Languages and Literatures Minor

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Foreign Languages and Literatures Overview

Undergraduate Program

The mission of the Foreign Languages & Literatures Department is to advance the linguistic and cultural competencies of students in one or more foreign languages. Mastering a foreign language includes speaking and writing proficiency, but also increases one’s appreciation and critical analysis of the cultures that share that language. The Foreign Languages & Literatures Department is part of the Alice Coonley Higgins School of Humanities.

The major is offered in Spanish and French. It is also possible, at the department’s discretion, to major in more than one language, the Combined Foreign Languages major, with a focus on two of the languages we teach at Clark.

There are majors available in Comparative Literature and Ancient Civilization as well. Though based in foreign languages and literatures, these two programs-together with the minor offered by ancient civilization—are described elsewhere in the catalog under their own headings.

For more information, please visit the Foreign Languages and Literatures Department’s website.

The Adviser System

When the student intends to declare a major or minor in a program they should meet with a tenured or tenure-track faculty member in that program to decide on an adviser. Advisers suggest a course of study, discuss and approve related courses and, for majors, identify areas of special interest that could lead to an honors project.

Language Placement

Please use the chart on the department’s main web page to determine what course level to take, depending on how many previous years of the language you’ve had. Consult
http://www.clarku.edu/departments/foreign/Undergraduate/placement.cfm
Our rule is that regular beginning courses (101-102) are closed to anyone who has had two years or more of that language. The University reviews high school transcripts to make sure you’re not over-qualified for a course. However, in Spanish, we do offer an intensive, one-semester beginning course that builds on the experience you’ve had in high school.
Students with native or near-native fluency in a language cannot take a lower-level course in that language. Native speakers should consult with the coordinator in that language.

Study Abroad

Information on study-abroad programs in most of the languages we teach is available at Clark’s Office of Study Abroad Programs.

Minor Requirements

A minor program in foreign languages and literatures is offered in French, and Spanish.
To qualify, a student must complete six courses in the chosen discipline at a level of difficulty that would count toward a major in that field. Some courses may be replaced by courses outside the field of study but related to it (a course in Latin-American history or art, for example, might be counted as a related course toward a minor in Spanish). Three of the six courses must be taken in residence at Clark. Advanced Topics courses required of majors (FREN 297, GERM 297 and SPAN 296) are not required for the minor, but they may be taken for minor credit with permission of the instructor. Students must declare their intention of fulfilling a minor by the end of the junior year. Only course grades of C or better may be counted toward the minor.

Foreign Languages and Literatures Faculty

Program

María Acosta Cruz, Ph.D.
Belén Atienza, Ph.D.
Paul Burke, Ph.D.
Marvin D’Lugo, Ph.D.
Odile Ferly, Ph.D.
Everett Fox, Ph.D.
Beth Gale, Ph.D.
Constance Montross, Ph.D.
Juan Pablo Rivera, Ph.D.
Robert D. Tobin, Ph.D.
Alice Valentine, M.A.

Adjunct

Emeriti

Carol D’Lugo, Ph.D.
Kenneth Hughes, Ph.D.
Hartmut Kaiser, Ph.D.
Dorothy Kaufmann, Ph.D.
Walter Schatzberg, Ph.D.
Michael Spingler, Ph.D.

Foreign Languages and Literatures Courses

Listing by Fields of Specialization

Chinese

CHIN 101 - Elementary Chinese I
CHIN 102 - Elementary Chinese

Classics

CMLT 120 - The Epic Journey
GRK 101 - Introductory Greek I
GRK 102 - Introductory Greek
LAT 101 - Introductory Latin I
LAT 102 - Introductory Latin

French

German

GERM 101 - Introductory German I
GERM 102 - Introductory German
GERM 103 - Intermediate German I
GERM 104 - Intermediate German II
CMLT 130 - The National Imagination
GERM 131 - German Culture and Conversation

German Literature Courses conducted in English

GERM 188 - The Culture of the Weimer Republic in Literature, Film and the Arts

Hebrew

HEBR 101 - Elementary Hebrew I
HEBR 102 - Elementary Hebrew II
HEBR 103 - Intermediate Hebrew I
HEBR 104 - Intermediate-Advanced Hebrew
HEBR 105 - Advanced Hebrew
HEBR 297 - Sec. 6 Special Topics in Hebrew
HEBR 299 - Supervised Readings

Japanese

Spanish

The Spanish program is based on a three-year rotation. Advanced courses listed as offered periodically are generally available at least once every three years.