Bachelor
2025/2026
Contemporary Iranian Culture: Art, Society, Traditions (Part Two)
Type:
Compulsory course (The Arab World: Language, Literature, Culture)
Delivered by:
Institute for Oriental and Classical Studies
When:
5 year, 2, 3 module
Open to:
students of all HSE University campuses
Instructors:
Mozhgan Samadi
Language:
English
Contact hours:
36
Course Syllabus
Abstract
This course aims to introduce students of Iranian studies (second year) to different aspects of Modern Iran at a groundwork level. The research context of this course includes history, politics, social classes, different aspects of culture and various every-day aspects of modern Iranian society. By using a collection of primary sources in Persian, including literary and printed mass media texts, short videos and songs, and brief parts of fictions, this course follows two main objectives: a) to familiarize second-year students of Iranian studies with contemporary Iran, b) to improve their four Persian language skills. This course is designed for one academic year (2 semesters), two sessions (2 пары) per week (lecture sessions in English-Persian language and seminar sessions in Persian only).
Learning Objectives
- The primary aim of this course is to develop students' four Persian language skills (i.e. reading, writing, listening, and speaking) in the context of contemporary Iranian culture. The second goal of this course is to introduce students to different aspects of contemporary Iranian culture as a platform for a better understanding of the Contemporary Middle East. In other words, this course is recommended for all students of Middle Eastern studies who are acquainted with the Persian language. The third goal of this course is to introduce students with a range of up-to-date academic sources in English about the subjects discussed during this course. This will greatly help them to strengthen their academic skills.
Expected Learning Outcomes
- General understanding of key historical, political, and social aspects in Iran since 1921;
- General understanding of key works in contemporary Iranian literature and Iranian cinema related to the above goal;
- Familiarity with a range of English academic sources related to the course topics;
- The ability to transfer and analyse the received knowledge using the four Persian language skills at an upper-intermediate level.
Interim Assessment
- 2025/2026 3rd module20% of the total grade for four 25-min. oral presentations in Persian (one oral presentation per module); 20% of the total grade for four 1000-word essays in Persian (one essay per module); 40% of the final grade for activities during weekly lectures and seminars; 10% of the final grade for an oral exam at the end of the academic year; 10% of the final grade for a written exam at the end of the academic year.
Bibliography
Recommended Core Bibliography
- Abrahamian, E. (2008). A History of Modern Iran. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=234374
Recommended Additional Bibliography
- Hamid Naficy. (2012). A Social History of Iranian Cinema, Volume 3 : The Islamicate Period, 1978–1984. Duke University Press Books.
- Hamid Naficy. (2012). A Social History of Iranian Cinema, Volume 4 : The Globalizing Era, 1984–2010. Duke University Press Books.