Asian and Middle Eastern Languages and Literatures

Major options in the Department of Asian and Middle Eastern Languages and Literatures (DAMELL) are available for students who plan to pursue the study of Arabic, Chinese, Hebrew, or Japanese language and literature.

The DAMELL curriculum is also designed to accommodate those with a broad cultural interest in China, Japan, or the Middle East, and those students whose future career aspirations necessitate their learning the languages, and gaining a familiarity with the general cultural backgrounds of the people of these regions.

Majors

Major Options for Asian and Middle Eastern Languages and Literatures (Arabic, Chinese, Hebrew, Japanese)
Option 1. The major in language and literature
Prerequisite for all languages: 23 (Intermediate Modern Chinese (Second-year level), Intermediate Modern Hebrew, Intermediate Modern Japanese) or the equivalent [Note: for Arabic, 23 (Intermediate Arabic) or 25 (Moroccan Arabic)]
The major consists of eleven courses:

• 10 [Note: these introductory courses are taught in English. The Department offers ARAB 10 (Introduction to Arab Culture), CHIN 10 (Introduction to Chinese Culture), HEBR 10 (Introduction to Hebraic and Israeli Culture), and JAPN 10 (Introduction to Japanese Culture); students must take the offering that corresponds to the language they are studying for the major (e.g., students of Arabic must take ARAB 10, students of Japanese must take JAPN 10, etc.).]
• Four upper-level language courses beyond 23 [Note: for majors in Arabic, beyond ARAB 25; for majors in Chinese, one of these four courses must be CHIN 51]
• Three literature-in-translation courses at the 60 level (Modern Arabic Fiction, Palestinian Literature and Cinema, Marvels and Wonder in Medieval Arabic Culture, The Arabian Nights East and West, Islamic Spain: Literature and Society. Film, Fiction, and the Arab-Israeli Conflict, Midrash: How the Rabbis Interpreted the Bible, Jewish Humor and its Roots: Rabbis, Rogues, and Schlemiels, Songs of the Jewish People. Spectors, Rituals, and Mnemonics in Postwar Japan, The Culture of Anime and Manga, Word and Image in Modernizing Japan, Topics in Classical Japanese Literature and Culture. Love and Desire in Modern Chinese Literature, Chinese Film Since 1950: Words and Images, Traditional Performance in China: Past and Present, Women in China) [Note: 60-level courses are basic surveys taught in English; majors in Chinese may substitute either CHIN 52 (Readings in Classical Chinese: Daoist Philosophical Texts), CHIN 53 (Readings in Classical Chinese: Confucian Philosophical Texts), or CHIN 54 (Classical Chinese Poetry) for one of these three courses]
• One course in another DAMELL literature that is not in the student’s primary language area [Note: this requirement may be fulfilled by taking either one 10 or one 60-level course in any of the other language areas (e.g., students of Arabic may take HEBR 10, CHIN 10, or JAPN 10; or students of Japanese may take ARAB 10, CHIN 10, or HEBR 10)]
• One course in literary theory or linguistics chosen from an approved list of departmental and non-departmental courses [Note: AMEL 17 (Discourse, Culture, and Identity in Asia and the Middle East) fulfills this requirement; examples of non-departmental courses include COLT 10 (Male Friendship from Aristotle to Almodovar, Race in the Middle Ages, Debate and Dialog in Emerging Europe, The Literary Fairy Tale, Robbers, Pirates, Terrorists: Forms of Individual Resistance in Literature and Film), COLT 71 (History of Literary Criticism: The Western Tradition to 1900), COLT 72 (Global Literary Theory, Contemporary Literary Criticism and Theory), or COLT 73 (Violence), ENGL 15 (Shakespeare) or ENGL 17 (Milton), LING 1 (Introductory Linguistics)]
• One seminar at the 80-level [this course will serve as the culminating experience]

Students doing the Honors track for Option 1 will substitute the 80-level seminar with thesis research and writing (AMEL 85 and AMEL 87)
Note: Substitutions of courses under option 1 of the DAMELL major may be made with the approval of the major advisor and the Chair
Option 2. The major in two languages and literatures
Prerequisite: 23 [Note: 23 or 25 for Arabic] or the equivalent for both languages
The major consists of eleven courses:

• 10 in both languages (10 in each of the two major languages)
• Four upper level language courses beyond 23 [or 25 for Arabic. These courses may be all in one language or split equally between the two languages]
• Three courses at the 60 level [these must be split between the two languages, two in one literary tradition and one in the second]
• One course in literary theory or linguistics chosen from an approved list of departmental and non-departmental courses [Note: AMEL 17 fulfills this requirement; examples of non-departmental courses include COLT 10, COLT 71, COLT 72, or COLT 73, ENGL 15 or ENGL 17, LING 1]
• One seminar at the 80-level that will serve as the culminating experience

Students doing the Honors track for Option 2 will substitute the 80-level seminar with thesis research and writing (AMEL 85 and AMEL 87)
Option 3. The modified major
AMELL allows students to modify the major in language and literature with offerings from other departments or programs. Students will design this major in consultation with a department adviser. All six AMELL courses must be in the student’s primary area of study within AMELL. Possible partnering departments and programs include Anthropology, Art History, Comparative Literature, Economics, Environmental Studies, Film Studies, Geography, Government, History, Linguistics, Music, Philosophy, and Religion. Students will be required to take a combination of courses that provide training in basic theory and background on subjects related to the study of Arabic, Chinese, Hebrew, and Japanese.
Prerequisite for all majors: 23 or the equivalent
The major consists of eleven courses:

• Six courses from AMELL: 10; no more than three language courses beyond 23; two courses at the 60 level. [For Chinese, CHIN 52 or above may count as non-language]
• Four advanced courses, all four from among those offerings in another single department or program that deal with the culture of the student’s chosen language and literature in AMELL [Note: students will not be permitted to count introductory-level courses that are used as prerequisites for the major in another department or program]
• One advanced seminar either in AMELL or in the partnering department or program

Students doing the Honors track for Option 3 will substitute the 80-level seminar with thesis research and writing (AMEL 85 and AMEL 87).

Minor

Six AMELL courses approved by the Chair. All six language and literature courses must be in the student’s primary area of study (i.e., students of Arabic language must take courses in Arabic literature). ARAB 10, CHIN 10, HEBR 10, or JAPN 10 is a required course for the minor. Only language courses beyond the first year count towards the minor; a minimum of two but no more than three of the six courses for a minor should be language courses. In the case of students who want to minor in Chinese language and literature, CHIN 52, CHIN 53 or CHIN 54 and above may be counted as a literature course. AMEL 17 (Discourse, Culture, and Identity in Asia and the Middle East) or AMEL 18 (Language and Society in Asia and the Middle East) cannot count towards the minor.

1.       SAT Reasoning or ACT (with Writing);

2.       2 SAT Subject Test Scores;

3.       The common application essay;

4.       Within the Common Application, Dartmouth’s writing supplement requires that applicants write a brief response to one of the following supplemental essay prompts. Candidates choose one topic and respond;

5.       A counselor recommendation and two teacher recommendations. In addition, a peer recommendation is strongly encouraged;

6.       Resume;

7.       Brief abstract of an independent research project;

8.       IELTS or TOEFL (no minimum scores).

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