Minor in Turkish Cultural Studies

The minor in Turkish Cultural Studies is for students who seek to acquire a strong understanding of Turkish culture including the importance of the historical, political, literary, and artistic importance of the Ottoman Empire in the world. Students of Turkish at Boston University have gone on to careers in government, nonprofits, international business, and to graduate programs in literary studies, religion, art history and Near Eastern Studies.

Learning Outcomes

• Knowledge of major themes and genres in Turkish literature and culture in their historical contexts, including links to other Middle Eastern and world literary traditions.
• Critical thinking, communication, and writing skills within areas of content and cultural knowledge.
• Proficiency in speaking, reading, writing, and listening comprehension in Turkish at or above a level (ACTFL intermediate-low) where these skills can be used for communication in everyday and academic situations.

Requirements

All BU undergraduate students, including both entering first-year and transfer students, will pursue coursework in the BU Hub, the University’s general education program that is integrated into the entire undergraduate experience. BU Hub requirements can be satisfied in a number of ways, including coursework in and beyond the major as well as through cocurricular activities. Students minoring in Turkish Cultural Studies will ordinarily, through their required coursework, satisfy the following BU Hub requirements: Philosophical, Aesthetic and Historical Interpretations; Diversity, Civic Engagement and Global Citizenship; and Communication as well as requirements in the Toolkit.

Prerequisites

CAS LT 211 (or equivalent proficiency) is the prerequisite for the minor.

Minor Requirements

Students will complete the minor by taking two Turkish Language or Cultural Studies courses and four electives with substantial content involving Turkey or the broader Turkic world, for a total of 24 units.

Two CAS LT Language or Cultural Studies courses

Students may choose from the following:

• CAS LT 212 Fourth-Term Turkish (4 units)
• CAS LT 303 Understanding Modern Turkey through Film and Literature (Advanced Turkish) (4 units)
• CAS LT 304 Turkey in the Middle East: A Content Based Language Course (4 units)
• CAS LT 388 World Cities: Istanbul (4 units)
• CAS LT 389 The Interplay of Literature and History on the Turkic Silk Road (4 units)
• CAS LT 491/2 Directed Study (4 units)

Four elective courses

Students may select these, in consultation with their advisor, from the following courses with substantial content related to Turkey or the Turkic world across CAS, CFA, and COM:

• CAS AN 307 Turkey and Middle East in Comparative Perspective (4 units)
• CAS AN 319 Anthropology of Muslim Cultures and Politics (4 units)
• CAS AN 320 Women in the Muslim World (4 units)
• CAS HI 389 Americans and the Middle East (4 units)
• CAS HI 390 Mecca to Dubai: Cities in the Middle East (4 units)
• CAS IR 312 Comparative Development in the Middle East (4 units)
• CAS IR 382 Understanding the Modern Middle East (4 units)
• CAS PO 368 Introduction to Middle East Politics (4 units)
• CAS XL 223 Introduction to Comparative Literature: Middle East (4 units)
• CAS XL 315 Tradition and Modernity in Iranian Film and Literature (4 units)
• CAS XL 342 Travel Writing and the Muslim World (4 units)
• CAS XL 343 Alexander the Great in the East (4 units)
• CAS XL 380 Gender and Identity in Contemporary Middle Eastern Film (4 units)
• CAS XL 381 Women’s Voices in Dark Times (4 units)
• CAS XL 441 1001 Nights in the World Literary Imagination (4 units)