Course Description
A continuation of Advanced Chinese III and building on the foundations of conversational and colloquial Chinese, this course introduces uses of literary Chinese in traditional and contemporary writings, enhances linguistic and reasoning abilities through the analysis of grammar, and advances skills in speaking, reading, and writing advanced modern Chinese.
Additional Requirements for Graduate Students:
In addition to undergraduate course assignments, graduate
students will be assigned an oral presentation and a substantive
final research paper. The oral presentation will provide an
integrated, synthetic, and critical review of secondary
materials bearing on topics or texts covered in the course. The
final research paper will use primary documents in classical
Chinese and will demonstrate mastery of the course materials as
well as a critical and synthetic grasp of issues and fields in
traditional Chinese writings.
Athena Title
Readings in Literary Chinese
Undergraduate Prerequisite
Experience and ability to speak, read, and write Chinese at the intermediate or advanced level.
Graduate Prerequisite
Experience and ability to speak, read, and write Chinese at the intermediate or advanced level.
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Student Learning Outcomes
- Through reading, translation, and discussion of Chinese literary texts in both Chinese and English, students will develop and effectively express ideas in written and oral form using language with clarity and precision.
- With weekly translation, writing, and oral presentation assignments analyzing and critiquing Chinese literary works in both colloquial Chinese and English, students will be able to tailor language register and communication strategy, style appropriately for different audiences and contexts.
- In discussion and analysis of language structure, semantic range, and historical and cultural contexts, students will analyze opposing arguments and support their own interpretive conclusions with credible information and sound reasoning.
- Through focused reading, writing, and oral presentation of ideas and insights, students will be able to interpret, evaluate, and critique Chinese literary works within their historical and cultural contexts, and to debate the role and impact of literary productions on period and local understandings of the human condition.
Topical Outline
- The use of formal language elements in contemporary language: poetry, policy debate, and new writing.
- Formal and colloquial forms for topic comment sentences and narrative sentences.
- Word forms in literary and colloquial expression.
- Origins of four-character phrases (chengyu) in historical, philosophical, and anecdotal writings.
- Focused reading and analysis genres in pre-modern poetry such as regulated verse and song lyric.
- Traditions of biography and social philosophy in pre-modern writings.
- Grammatical particles and their uses in pre-modern and contemporary expression.
General Education Core
CORE IV: World Languages and Global Culture
