MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR

Susan Rubin Suleiman
Chair, Department of Romance Languages and Literatures

The Department of Romance  Languages and Literatures at Harvard offers undergraduate and graduate courses in the French and Francophone, Italian, Portuguese and Luso- Brazilian, Spanish and Latin American literary traditions.

We offer language courses in French, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish at the elementary, intermediate, and advanced levels, as well as beginning Catalan. In the four major areas, our courses explore all aspects of culture, including literature, providing students with an intellectual experience while they are learning the language. Recognizing that people study the Romance languages for a variety of reasons, our program allows students to take courses which correspond to their particular interests. You can learn more about language study in the "Language Programs" section of our web site.

Our faculty is committed to interdisciplinary studies and encourages students to situate literature in the broad context of cultural productions, ranging from the canonical to alternative modes. The literature programs enable students to examine a wide range of periods,genres, and approaches, and to tailor their plans of study according to their specific interest.

I encourage you to navigate our website for a more detailed picture of the vibrant intellectual life of the Department. You will find an introduction to each of the four sections, information about our programs, along with a schedule of events sponsored by the Department and links to resources for study. We are particularly excited about our new study abroad programs in countries including Brazil, Italy, France & Spain that are offered through Harvard Summer School.

For detailed information on our undergraduate concentrations, click here Undergraduate Handbook.  Queries should be addressed to Walter Hryshko, Undergraduate Program Coordinator. For detailed information on our graduate program, click here Graduate Studies Brochure. Queries should be addressed to Frannie Lindsay, Graduate Coordinator.

HISTORY OF RLL

Programs in French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese language and literature date back many years at Harvard.  In 1816, the Smith Chair was created. Over the years, its incumbents have included George Ticknor, Henry Longfellow, James Russell Lowell, Jeremiah Ford, Jean-Joseph Seznec, Amado Alonso, Herbert Dieckmann, and Raimundo Lida.  The current home of the Department of Romance Languages, Boylston Hall, was originally built in 1857 with a bequest from Ward Nicholson Boylston. The building's interior was completely renovated in 1998 resulting in an elegant & comfortable 21st-century space.

Journeying back to the middle of the 19th century to take a look at some of the earlier leaders in the field of romance languages, we find as department chair James Russell Lowell whose full title was the Smith Professor of French & Spanish and the Professer of Belles-Lettres. Student guidelines under Lowell's leadership required sophomore concentrators to study French literature, culminating in Molière. Junior & senior concentrators studied Spanish literature among which included the writers Cervantes, Lope de Vega, Calderon & Moratin. Seniors were entitled to a dose of Italian with Luigi Monti or Sicilian with Henry Longfellow who was then in his last year at Harvard University. At the time, Francis James Child, held the affiliated position of the Boylston Professor of Rhetoric and Oratory.

Ferdinand Bocher, an adroit practical linguist and master of several languages, became Instructor of French in 1861. In his time at Harvard, Bocher published the College Series of French Plays, a Reader, & a novel or two. Bocher's influence showed itself promptly in the course offerings. Works of 16th, 17th and 19th-century French literature were taught by Bocher. Although he left Harvard in 1865, Bocher returned five years later as a Professor of Modern Languages. When Bocher died in 1902, his devotee James Hazen Hyde purchased his enormous collection of books and gave a large part, rich in Molière & Montaigne, to the College.

A contemporary of Bocher, Bennett Nash joined the faculty in 1866 as Instructor of Italian & Spanish and taught at Harvard for 30 years. In 1868, French became obligatory in the first year and was an elective in the last three years, along with German, Spanish and Italian.

Between 1869 and 1929, the Department was formally known as The Modern Languages Department. These years, according to Morison, constituted an era of expansion for the Department, which then included English, German, French, Italian, & Spanish. Adrien Jacquinot was appointed as Instructor of French in 1872 and taught 17th, 18th, and 19th century literature serving Harvard until his death in 1884. In 1879, Professor Charles Eliot Norton announced a graduate level course on The Interpretation of the Divine Comedy. After 1878, an Honors Program in Romance Languages was established at Harvard requiring 8 courses in the Department & a thesis. Soon after Professor Child became Chairman of the new Division of Modern Languages, Professor Bocher was Chairman of Department of French, & Professor Norton was Chairman of Italian & Spanish. Professor Sheldon was Chairman of German and Romance Philology. In 1876, Lucius Henry Buckingham completed the first graduate degree in Romance Languages.

Later in the nineteenth century, Italian 4 (a popular course on Dante) was first given by Norton in 1890, who had translated La vita Nuova and La divina commedia into English. Norton presented a large part of his Dante treasure in 1884 to the College & made the Harvard Dante collection among the best in the world. After 1886, Chair Jeremiah Ford added Portugese to the roster of languages offered in the Modern Languages Department. Academic year 1899-1900 brought the union of several Romance branches into one department, called the Department of French and other Romance Languages and Literatures. This was a "concession to those who, for sentiment, hated to see the word French disappear from the title."(Morison)

In the period from 1876-1926, 73 dissertations were written in the department--22 were linguistic/ 37 medieval/ 10 comp lit./ 4 general Romance Linguistics/ 13 in Italian/ 8 in Spanish/ 2 in Provencal/ 26 French. In 1924, Mrs. Nash bequeathed a fund of $67,000 for the purchase of books in Italian and Spanish which are now essential to the Widener collection.

Researched from The Development of Harvard University since the Inauguration of President Eliot 1869-1929, Samuel Eliot Morison (Class of 1908), editor. Harvard University Press; Cambridge, 1930. Compiled and written by Gina Miele, graduate student in Romance Languages.

BOYLSTON HALL and DIRECTIONS

Boylston Hall in the 1800s

At the southeast end of the Old Yard, on the west side of, and adjacent to Widener, stands Boylston Hall. This Italian Rennaissance-style building, with outer walls of Rockport granite, was designed by Schultze and Schoen, and its original construction cost was $50,000. In 1871, the top two floors were added.

This building originally housed the physical sciences department. Early in this century, a professor who held lectures on the top floor of Boylston was reducing iron oxide with aluminum when the molten iron escaped from the sand box beneath the iron crucible and burned through the three wooden floors below. Chemistry lectures are now held in the Science Center, in the basement, to prevent such accidents.

Boylston Hall was remodeled in 1929 to house the Yenching institute, and when the Yenching Institute moved in 1958, the University wanted to raze the structure. However, the building was maintained and the interior remodeled since a stipulation in the Boylston will stated that Harvard would continue to receive the income from its bequest only as long as the walls of Boylston Hall stood. Harvard did not desire a legal test, and, therefore, plans were drawn to remove the stones of Boylston but keep them technically standing by incorporating them into the wall around the Yard. However, it was believed that this might antagonize one of the few remaining members of the Boylston family, who was quite wealthy. Consequently, the plans were dropped and the Boylston "shell" remains.

In 1959, Boylston Hall was renovated to add 40 percent more floor space. It was, in the words of architect Rob Olson, "an academic office building inserted within a historic shell."

Boylston Hall now houses the Department of the Classics on the second floor. The Linguistics Department occupies half of the third floor. Women, Gender & Sexuality is on the Ground Floor. The administrative core of RLL is on the fourth floor, and we occupy in addition the entire fifth floor, half of the third floor and part of the ground floor. 

Boylston Hall Today

Public areas on the first floor and mezzanine include a renovated 144-seat Fong Auditorium, three classrooms, and Ticknor Lounge.

Boylston Auditorium

                                                       Ticknor Lounge

 4th Floor Seminar Room

Of special interest to anyone who has ever sat through a class or meeting in a Boylston Hall seminar room is the fact that seminar rooms are now located on the outside wall of the building, and thus have natural lighting as well as windows that open. Romance Languages has two seminar rooms of its own, with an additional seminar room shared between the various Boylston departments.

Romance Languages Lounge

The days are over when visitors to a Boylston department will need to wander the oval corridors of the building wondering where the "main office" is. Visitors to the fourth floor are drawn, by the lighting and the design of the building itself, toward the brightly lit "center," where they can find the main office, mailboxes, teaching fellow offices and the departmental lounge.

Within the Department, the overall response to the "New Boylston" has been delight.

The Department of Romance Languages and Literatures is located on the Ground, 3rd, 4th and 5th floors of Boylston Hall, in Harvard Yard. There are also offices at 1 Bow St.  Administrative offices are on the 4th floor, and visitors are invited to go to Room 404 for assistance. 

Boylston Hall is located inside Harvard Yard (see map), in Harvard Square, Cambridge.

How to get to Harvard Square

By Car: From I90-Massachusetts Turnpike: Take the Cambridge/Allston exit. Bear right, go straight, cross the River Street Bridge, and immediately make a left turn onto Memorial Drive. At the third light, turn right onto JFK Street. Drive straight into Harvard Square. (Out of Town News, on your right, marks the center of Harvard Square.)

On-street parking is scarce in Cambridge, but there are several public parking lots and garages around the square.

By Subway: Harvard Yard is steps away from the Harvard Square stop on the RED Line of the MBTA (the "T"), Boston's subway system.

By Train or Bus: Amtrak and the bus terminal are located at South Station on the RED Line. Take the RED Line outbound (toward ALEWIFE) for six stops to Harvard Square.

From Logan Airport (Boston):

By Subway (also called the "T"): Take the SILVER Line to SOUTH STATION. Switch to the RED Line outbound (toward Alewife) for six stops to HARVARD SQUARE.

By Taxi: The ride to Harvard Square takes about 20-30 minutes, depending upon traffic. Typically, the ride costs approximately $35-$40.

See Cambridge Office of Tourism for information about transportation, accommodations, and the Cambridge area.