Department of European Languages and Literatures
Queens College
The City University of New York
65-30 Kissena Boulevard, King Hall, Room 207
Flushing, N.Y. 11367-1597
Tel: (718) 997-5980
Fax: (718) 997-5072
E-mail: ell@qc.edu
Modern Greek Program
Curriculum
The major in Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies has a Greek language requirement. Departmental courses in Greek literature may be used as part of a specialization within that program. A separate language major is under consideration. See box below for the requirements for the minor.
Requirements for the Minor in Greek:
15 credits in literature and language courses above Modern Greek 203. Nine credits must be taken in any Greek course above level 203, including Modern Greek 41, 41W.
Literature Courses
211. Modern Greek Conversation228. Advanced Grammar and Composition 3 hr, 3 cr.
Prereq. Modern Greek 203 or permission of department. Intensive practical study of advanced problems in Modern Greek grammar, usage, style, and idiom. Workshop practice and analysis of contemporary texts.
335. I and II Modern Greek Studies 3 hr, 3 cr.
Prereq.: Sophomore standing. Cross-disciplinary study of authors and dominant themes in Greek literature and culture. The subject will be announced in Advance. May be repeated for credit provided the topic changes. Taught either in Greek or in English as announced by the Department.
Courses in Modern Greek:
Courses Taught in English
41, 41W. Modern Greek Literature in Translation. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
Surveys modern Greek literature (in translation) from the middle of the nineteenth century to the present. The authors and their works are examined not only for their individual stylistic and thematic elements but also within the context of European literary and cultural movements. (H1T2)
100, 100W. Modern Greek Culture and Civilization. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
From the fall of Constantinople (1453) to the present, a survey of the political, intellectual, and social currents of Greek life. (H3)
Language Courses:
111. Elementary Modern Greek I. 4 hr.; 4 cr.
Prereq.: Permission of department. Intended for students with no previous knowledge of Modern Greek. Designed to establish correct pronunciation, to teach the elements of grammar, to enable students to understand written and spoken Greek, to become familiar with cultural aspects of modern Greece, and especially to establish a good basic vocabulary. Class hours include use of the language laboratory.
112. Elementary Modern Greek II. 4 hr.; 4 cr.
Prereq.: Greek 101 or equivalent, or permission of department. This course is a continuation of Modern Greek 101. A graded reader is introduced to present literary and cultural aspects of Greece, and to offer topics for simple exercises in composition. Class hours include use of the language laboratory.
203. Intermediate Modern Greek I. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
Prereq.: Greek 102 or equivalent, or permission of department. Continuation of modern Greek 102 with grammar review, conversation, and readings in literary and cultural materials at an intermediate level.
204. Intermediate Modern Greek II. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
Prereq.: Greek 203 or equivalent. A continuation of Modern Greek 203, with grammar review, conversation, composition, and readings in literary and cultural materials. Selections from prose and poetry.
211. Modern Greek Conversation. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
Prereq.: Greek 102 or equivalent and permission of department. Intended for students who have an elementary knowledge of Greek and wish to improve their ability to converse. Recommended especially for students in Greek 203 or 204 who come from homes where Greek is not spoken. † †
228. Advanced Grammar and Compsition. 3hr., 3cr.
Prereq.: Greek 203 or permission of department. Intensive practical study of advanced problems in Modern Greek grammar, usage, style, and idiom. Workshop practice and analysis of contemporary texts.
231. Modern Greek Translation. 3 hr., 3 cr.
Prereq.: Modern Greek 203 and English 110, or permission of department. Intensive practice in translation from Modern Greek to English and vice-versa. Texts will be chosen from literature, journalism, advertising, business, and other specialized areas. Discussion of problems and techniques of translation.
Literature Courses
305. Modern Greek Literature I. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
Prereq.: Greek 204 or equivalent. A course designed to improve the literary vocabulary and writing skills of students by a close reading of one or more twentieth-century prose works, such as Politis, The Lemon Grove; Tachtsis, The Third Wedding; Theotokas, Leonis; Venezis, Aeolian Land; and a selection of short stories. (H1T2)
306. Modern Greek Literature II. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
Prereq.: Greek 305 or equivalent. An introduction to the principal genres of nineteenth- and twentieth-century Greek literature. Selections will be read from lyric and narrative poetry, the novel, short stories, drama, and essays. (H1T2)
315. Writing about Literature: Theory and Practice. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
Prereq.: Greek 306 or Greek high school diploma or special permission. Designed to introduce students to various critical approaches to literature, and to give them practice in writing analyses of literary works, both poetry and prose. Readings from a selection of Greek writers and literary critics. Recommended for students taking literature courses. † †
321. Survey of Modern Greek Literature I: Eighteenth Century to 1880. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
Prereq.: Greek 306 or Greek high school diploma or special permission. Prose and especially poetry from the period of the Greek Enlightenment and of Romanticism, with attention to the social, cultural, and political changes that affected that literature. Topics to be discussed will include the theories of Korais, Classic as opposed to Romantic, the influence of folk poetry, and the rise of the Greek novel. Readings from the works of Solomos and the Heptanesian poets, Vikelas's Loukis Laras, and Makriyannis's Memoirs. (H1T2) † †
322. Survey of Modern Greek Literature II: 1880 to 1930. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
Prereq.: Greek 306 or Greek high school diploma or special permission. A study of the major writers of the period, with emphasis on the poetry of Palamas, Cavafy, and Sikelianos and regionalist prose writers such as Papadiamantis and Karkavitsas. Discussion of European literary movements such as Realism, Naturalism, and Symbolism and their manifestations in Greece. (H1T2) † †
323. Survey of Modern Greek Literature III: 1930 to Present. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
Prereq.: Greek 306 or Greek high school diploma or special permission. A study of the principal modern writers with selected readings from among the following: Seferis, Elytis, Ritsos, Kazantzakis, Venezis and the "generation of the 30s" and contemporary novelists. Discussion of the European and Greek settings that gave rise to Symbolism, Modernism, Surrealism, and ideological literature. (H1T2)† †
330. Early Modern Greek Literature: Fourteenth to Seventeenth Century. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
Prereq.: Greek 321 or 322 or 323 or Greek high school diploma or special permission. A survey from the last days of Byzantium through the period of the Renaissance. Topics to be discussed will include the nature of oral poetry and folk song, the flowering of Cretan literature, the literary genre of the romance. Selections will be read from such works as Digenis Akritis, Erotokritos, Erofili, and Cypriot lyric poetry. (H1T2, PN)† †
335. Modern Greek Studies. 3 hr.; 3 cr.
Prereq.: Sophomore standing. Cross disciplinary study of authors and dominant themes in Greek literature and culture. The subject will be announced in advance. May be repeated for credit provided the topic changes. Taught in either Greek or English, as announced.
