Undergraduate Course: Intermediate Chinese Language Modern and Traditional (ASST08070)
Course Outline
| School | School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 8 (Year 2 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | Aimed primarily at intending Honours students and normally taken with Chinese 2A, provides further intensive language work and an introduction to Classical Chinese.
The modern Chinese language part of this course will introduce students to more challenging texts than they have so far encountered.
The course includes an introduction into Literary Chinese (wényánwén) which is intended for students who have some experience with Modern Chinese and have a knowledge of Chinese characters but have no prior background in the written language of traditional China. Modern Mandarin readings in pinyin transcription is used throughout. The aim of this part of the course is to teach basic reading abilities in Literary Chinese.
This course is not available to native or near-native speakers of Chinese. If in doubt, contact the Course Organiser.
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| Course description |
The course consists of 2 components:
1) Reading and translating modern Chinese language material
Students will be encouraged to operate outside their comfort zone, finding meaning in texts that are technically "too difficult", so that by the time they finish the course they will be able to deal independently with texts that contain new vocabulary and new structures. They will also have some contact with texts in full-form characters.
2) introduction to Classical Chinese
The course introduces the basic syntax and basic grammatical features of Classical or Literary Chinese that is, the language of the Warring States and Former Hàn eras, as well as a broad range of basic vocabulary.
The course is based on reading and translating early Chinese texts. Grammatical particles and constructions, problematic phrases, cultural context, and literary issues will be discussed and explained. The course neither focuses on translation issues nor does it aim at providing a linguistic account of the classical Chinese language. It provides the students with the ability to understand classical constructions as well as rhetorical and stylistic figures and complex compositional forms in modern Chinese texts.
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Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Consolidate and deepen the skills in Chinese language taught in Chinese 2A.
- Display familiarity with more specialist material, including full-form characters and classical Chinese, which will be necessary for Honours-level study.
- Understand certain cultural key notions and literary forms found in classical Chinese texts, which will be beneficial for more in-depth study at Honours-level.
- Understand the ways in which more sophisticated literary and journalistic texts are constructed.
- Relate their knowledge of both pre-modern and advanced modern Chinese to everyday contexts, to use their skills and deal with straightforward tasks with some non-routine elements and to prepare for familiar and routine tasks.
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Reading List
An introductory text wil be used for the study of classical Chinese.
This may be Michael Fuller, An Introduction to Literary Chinese. Harvard UP, 2004. |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Development of linguistic skills.
Critical thinking.
Knowledge application. |
| Keywords | Chinese language,classical Chinese,translation |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Ms Esther Tyldesley
Tel: (0131 6)50 4225
Email: esther.tyldesley@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Miss Hope Hamilton
Tel: (0131 6)50 4167
Email: hope.hamilton@ed.ac.uk |
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