NELC 2161 Modern Levantine and Arabic Literature (in translation)

This course explores the multicultural nature of the Levantine region of the Middle East by surveying the twentieth century literary and intellectual production of Arabic-speaking lands of the Eastern Mediterranean and Israel. Representative texts, authors, and mediums will be explored spanning poetry, short stories, novellas, and memoirs, examining questions of identity, culture, religion, nationalism, conflict, war, and minority narratives. Taught in English, the works that will be surveyed are culled from authors whose languages of intellectual production ranged from Arabic to French, Hebrew, Syriac, Turkish, English, and dialectal languages. Some of the authors we will explore, like Adonis or Mario Levi may be internationally renowned; others that we will discover are usually kept out of the traditional corpus of Arabic and Levantine literature.

Course overview

Department
Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations
School
MCAS
Credits
3
Level
Undergraduate
Offered
Periodically

Catalog details

Satisfies core
Cultural Diversity

Catalog text is imported from the reviewed Boston College course snapshot. Confirm eligibility in EagleApps.

Requirements fulfilled

  • Islamic Civilization and Societies: Departmental Foundation Courses: Two Courses — Near Eastern Languages and Literatures (any two of the following) (Current University Catalog; students should confirm their catalog year)
  • Arabic Studies: Two courses (6 credits) in Middle Eastern Languages, Cultures, Literatures, and Civilizations (Current University Catalog; students should confirm their catalog year)
  • University Core: Cultural Diversity (All undergraduates)

Requirement eligibility can vary by school, cohort, and section. Confirm the selected section in EagleApps or with an advisor.

Official evaluation summary

4.29 / 5

Based on 34 aggregate responses from BC Avalanche/Blue evaluations.

Data freshness

Course and evaluation data last updated 2026-08-02. Source details and limitations are documented in Data Sources and Methodology.

Instructors

  • Franck Salameh
    Fall 2026, Spring 2025, Spring 2023, Fall 2021 · Official rating 4.58/5
  • Abdelkrim Mouhib
    Spring 2024 · Official rating 4.29/5

Sections

  • Section 01
    Fall 2026 · Franck Salameh · Gasson Hall 307 TuTh 12:00 Noon-01:15PM · Offered