Readings in Modern Chinese: Literature I

Catalog description

This course develops students’ advanced Mandarin Chinese proficiency through the critical reading, discussion, and writing of literary texts. Emphasis is placed on close reading and analytical interpretation of unabridged works by major Chinese writers representing a range of genres and styles in modern Chinese literary history. Through these texts, students explore significant themes in Chinese culture and history while refining their ability to express complex ideas in formal written and spoken Chinese. Students strengthen discourse competence by practicing narration, summarization, argumentation, explanation, and hypothesis-building, and by supporting ideas with textual evidence. Class instruction and discussion are conducted entirely in Chinese and are complemented by selected Chinese films related to the literary themes under study. By the end of the course, students will have enhanced their analytical and critical thinking skills, gained greater linguistic precision and fluency, and developed a deeper understanding of Chinese society and culture, enabling them to engage thoughtfully and in detail with a wide range of literary and cultural topics in Chinese.