N A S S A U   N O T E S Learn about Russian literature via audiotape, e-mail and live lectures      Caryl Emerson   Faculty and staff members can join alumni and parents this spring in exploring two giants of 19th century Russian literature. The Princeton Alumni Council is offering an Alumni Studies course titled "Tolstoy, Dostoevsky and the Tasks of the Russian Novel." Each household that enrolls receives a copy of "Anna Karenina," a reading packet, seven lectures on audiotape and access to an e-mail discussion group. Those who wish to pursue their studies further can attend optional lectures and precepts on campus on March 9-10 and May 4-5. Leading this spring's course is Caryl Emerson, the A. Watson Armour III University Professor of Slavic Languages and Literatures. She will focus on two of the best-loved novels in Russian and world literature: Dostoevsky's "Crime and Punishment" and Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina." Emerson explains that Tolstoy and Dostoevsky imagined their novels as whole philosophies of life and prided themselves on being thinkers and moralists, in addition to writers of fiction. "This has meant that their novels, while easy and exciting to read, are difficult to forget or 'stay outside of'; indeed, the best readers of Tolstoy and Dostoevsky have routinely been people who want to change their own lives, not just to escape temporarily into other people's fictional ones," she says. "These are great terms for taking a course." Participants can enroll in the course at any time, but the e-mail discussion group is scheduled to begin Feb. 12. The cost of basic registration is $95 per household. On-campus sessions are an additional fee. For more information, see the course Web site at alumni.princeton.edu/ Education/Spring2001.asp. Or, contact Christine Hollendonner at the Alumni Council, chollen@princeton.edu, 258-5854. top		January 8, 2001 Vol. 90, No. 13 previous   archives   next Contents Page 1 • Contest prompts 'thinking about thinking' • Morrison wins humanities medal Page 2 • People / Briefs • Obituaries: Three faculty remembered / Staff • By the numbers: The Graduate School Page 3 • Writing program revamped • Graduate School's 100th anniversary gala dinner dance Page 4-5 • Calendar of events Page 7 • Two named Rhodes, Marshall scholars • Caution urged in new roundabout Page 8 • Nassau notes •   Clothing drive nets 2,000 items for Hire Attire •   King observance scheduled •   Science on Saturday talks set •   Learn about Russian literature via audiotape, e-mail and live lectures The Bulletin is published weekly during the academic year, except during University breaks and exam weeks, by the Office of Communications, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544. Permission is given to adapt, reprint or excerpt material from the Bulletin for use in other media. Deadline. In general, the copy deadline for each issue is the Friday 10 days in advance of the Monday cover date. The deadline for the Bulletin that covers Jan. 29-Feb. 4 is Friday, Jan. 19. A complete publication schedule is available at deadlines or by calling (609) 258-3601. Subscriptions. The Bulletin is distributed free to faculty, staff and students. Others may subscribe to the Bulletin for $24 for the academic year (half price for current Princeton parents and people over 65). Send a check to Office of Communications, Stanhope Hall, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544. Editor: Ruth Stevens Staff writer: Yvonne Chiu Hays Calendar editor: Carolyn Geller Contributing writers: Marilyn Marks, Steven Schultz Photographer: Denise Applewhite Design: Mahlon Lovett, Laurel Masten Cantor Web edition: Mahlon Lovett