Russian Culture and Civilization I This course offers a bilingual approach to the study of Russian culture. Works of literature, art, film, and music will be examined in their historical and political context. Particular emphasis will be devoted to the improvement of oral and written skills. As the course topics and emphasis change, depending on the levels of students enrolled, RUSS0311 may be taken a second time with instructor/chair approval.

Senior Seminar (in Russian) This seminar topic changes every year.  Recent seminar titles have included Research, Recast, Relay, The History of Russian Poetry, and Russian Drama. This course will provide students with the skills to identify and utilize Russian sources, provide professional quality written summaries and analyses, make oral presentations in Russian, and produce a substantial written assignment and project.

Russian Culture and Civilization II This course is a continuation of RUSS 0311 but may be taken independently with the approval of the instructor. It offers a bilingual approach to the study of Russian culture.  Works of literature, art, film, and music will be examined in their historical and political context. Particular attention will be devoted to the improvement of oral and written skills. As the course topics and emphasis change, depending on the levels of students enrolled, RUSS0312 may be taken a second time with instructor/chair approval.

Advanced Russian (in Russian) Most of the course will focus on current events and developments in social, political, and cultural life in contemporary Russia.  Readings will include a variety of authentic materials to further develop students’ ability to read, analyze and discuss complex issues and advance proficiency in reading, writing and oral comprehension. It is designed for students who have already spent a semester or more studying and living in Russia, or who have attained a high level of Russian language proficiency.

Intermediate Russian Continuation of the approach used in RUSS 0201. Reading of contemporary Russian texts, conversation, and written assignments in Russian based on reading assignments.

Intermediate Russian Systematic review of grammar and development of the spoken and written skills attained in Beginning Russian.

Advanced Reading and Discussion (in Russian) This advanced course is for those students who could not study in Russia but have attained a high level of Russian language proficiency. The goal of this course is to help students improve their ability to read, write, and talk about politics, culture and literature in Russia. We will focus on recent events in Russia over domestic political situations, and international relations, read articles, literary works, and follow social media.

Tatiana Smorodinska

Reviews and ratings for Tatiana Smorodinska at Middlebury College.Tatiana Smorodinska teaches Russian Cult and Civ I, Senior Seminar, Russ Cult and Civ II and more.  Explore top rated instructors and find the best for you.Is Tatiana Smorodinska good ? Find out on MiddCourses.

Tatiana Edwardovna is a fun and engaging professor; she does her best to put our lessons in context. She is lenient, understanding, and has a lot of patience. Coursework mostly entails reading short stories and the news and talking about them as a class. 

This class was very informative, not only in terms of Russian history but also in the contemporary state of the country. We had visitors come in that were very relevant to our topics, and though the content of the class was difficult, the professor did really well at gauging and considering each student's language proficiency when grading our work.

This class was nothing special, nothing especially bad. I just had no business taking it since I don't really enjoy Russian classes but I wanted a way to keep up with my conversational skills. Tatiana may seem tough but she's nice and cares about her classes.