Russ 1905 Freshman Seminar: Leo Tolstoy and Radical Christianity
Fall Semester, 2002
Credits: 3
Hours: twice per week, 9:45—11:00, T and Th in 229 Nolte Center
Office: 210 Nolte Center, 612-625-6557, 11:15—12:15 T and Th or by Appointment
Grades will be computed on the following scale:
Class Participation |
20% |
Six-weeks Exam |
10% |
Twelve-weeks Exam |
10% |
Paper |
25% |
Final Exam |
35% |
Class activities:
CLASS SCHEDULE
Week |
Class |
Reading Assignment |
1 (9/3) |
[L] Greeting and definition
of terms: who is Tolstoy and what is meant by radical Xtianity |
Reading from Handbook
(http://lol-russ.umn.edu/PopLit, 5 pp); Reading on early Tolstoy
(Bayley, chaps. 1-3, 37pp) |
(9/5) |
[L] Leo Tolstoy—biography –
1877 |
Reading on late Tolstoy
(Bayley, chaps. 4-6, 21 pp) |
2 (9/10) |
[L] Leo Tolstoy—biography –
1910 |
|
(9/12) |
[L] Leo Tolstoy—biography –
1910 |
Confession (61
pp) [student 1] |
3 (9/17) |
[SRQ] Tolstoy’s crisis and
conversion |
Preface and chapter one of Kingdom of God Is Within You
(30 pp) [for historical background of radical Xtianity] [student 2] |
(9/19) |
[SRQ; L] The historical
Church and the development of the Bible; Tolstoy’s trilogy--Critique of
Dogmatic Theology, Unification and Translation of the Four Gospels, What I Believe |
Tolstoy’s Introduction to The Gospel in Brief (20
pp) [all students to read this]; Each student will read one chapter of Gospel
in Brief and the corresponding passages in the received version of the Gospel
and draw comparisons for oral presentation [approx. 15 pp]. |
4 (9/24) |
[SRQ] Tolstoy’s Gospel and
the received version [each student will present briefly on the contrast
between Tolstoy’s text and the traditional Gospel text] |
Religion and Morality (22
pp) [student 3] |
(9/26) |
[SRQ] Later works: Other
works on Religion; the three questions; On Life |
Chapters 1-6 of What Then
Must We Do? (Xerox, 37pp) [student 4]; Patriotism and Government (Xerox, 22
pp) [student 5] |
5 (10/1) |
[SRQ] Socio-Economic works;
works on government—What
Then Must We Do?; Patriotism and Government |
First Step (Xerox, 37 pp)
[student 6]; Why Do Men Stupefy themselves (Xerox, 19 pp) [student 7]; I
Cannot Be Silent (Xerox, 14 pp) [student 8] |
(10/3) |
[SRQ] vegetarianism;
alcohol and tobacco; death penalty |
Study for Exam; choose
paper/presentation topic. |
6 (10/8) |
Exam |
Kingdom of God is Within
You (Chap. 2, 19 pp [student 9]; Chap. 5, 24 pp. [student 10]; Chap. 10, 29
pp. [student 11]) |
(10/10) |
[SRQ] Pacifism |
Passages from What Is Art (Xerox, 6
pp) |
7 (10/15) |
Aesthetics |
Walk in the Light While There Is Light (65 pp.) |
(10/17) |
Tolstoy’s view of the Xtian
Life |
|
8 (10/22) |
Later works: Fiction—Short
Stories |
Selected Stories from Twenty-Three Tales, as shown (40 pp.) |
(10/24) |
God Sees the Truth, But
Waits; What Men Live By; The Three Hermits |
Selected Stories from
Twenty-Three Tales, as shown (65 pp.) |
9 (10/29) |
Where Love Is, God Is; Tale
of Ivan the Fool; How Much Land Does a Man Need? |
|
(10/31) |
Drama/Short Novels/Novels |
Kreutzer Sonata
(60 pp.) |
10 (11/5) |
Kreutzer Sonata |
|
(11/7) |
Kreutzer Sonata |
Master and Man
(38 pp.) |
11 (11/12) |
Master and Man |
|
(11/14) |
Master and Man |
Study for Exam |
12 (11/19) |
Exam |
Death of Ivan Ilich
(43 pp.) |
(11/21) |
Death of Ivan Ilich |
|
13 (11/26) |
Death of Ivan Ilich |
|
(11/28) |
Thanksgiving Holiday, class
excused. |
|
14 (12/3) |
Death of Ivan Ilich |
Hand in papers for
presentation |
(12/5) |
General summation |
Read papers for
presentation |
15 (12/10) |
Student presentations
(approx. 10 minutes each) |
|
(12/12) |
Student presentations
(approx. 10 minutes each) |
Review for Final |
Final Exam |
December 17, 2002,
1:30-3:30 |
|
Required Readings (about 700 pages in all, roughly 45 pages per week):
By Tolstoy:
Walk in the Light, While There Is Light
Twenty-three Tales (six stories)
Tolstoy’s Short Fiction (NCE), Kreutzer Sonata, Master and Man, Death of Ivan Ilych
Confession and Other Religious Writings (Penguin version: Confession, Religion and Morality)
Kingdom of God is Within You (selections)
The Gospel in Brief
Xerox copies: Selections from What Then Must We Do?;
Patriotism and Government; First Step; Why Do Men Stupefy Themselves; I Cannot
Be Silent; selections from What Is Art?
By Others:
John Bayley, Leo Tolstoy
The entry on “L. N. Tolstoi” in A Handbook of Russian Literature, ed. Victor Terras