Upcoming Courses
Spring 2007
EASN 101 Introduction to East Asia
Taught by Prof. Bender/ Prof. Yang
An interdisciplinary study of East Asian civilizations. The course provides a framwork for understanding by introducing students to traditional social and cutural patterns in East Asia and to the variety of transformations that have taken place there.
EASN 205R Advertising Culture in the East and West
Taught by Prof. Fu
This course is a comparative study of the East-West advertising in relation to its political, social, cultural, and economic roles. Focusing on the advertising in cinema, TV, and other media from 20th Century to the present, the course analyzes both printing and visual materials under the theme, and examines how advertising has, openly and hiddenly, practically and metaphorically, governed and regulated out thoughts and deeds to achieve a dominant position in our contemporary life and society. Students will study advertising content and its stylistic/artistic forms and learn to apply the acquired knowledge in their course assignments on advertising production.
EAS 205Q Asian Cinema
Taught by Prof. Fu
This course introduces students to award winning and highly acclaimed films in Asian cinema, including films made in China (Mainland, Hong Kong, Taiwan), Japan, Korea, Vietnam, India, and Iran. By studying the work of well-known asian film directors, students will become familiar with shared and different approaches to issues of national identity, nationalism, tradition, modernism, postmodernism, commercialism, globalization, sexuality, love, family, and the rural-urban dichotomy, and acquire a better understanding of the history of national cinema and the Asian societies and cultures the films reflect and shape. The course also analyzes artistic styles and aesthetic values found in these films and examines how the art of Asian cinema influences filmaking around the world.
EAS 205P Youth, Love & Revolution in Modern Japan
Taught by Prof. Bates
The time between starting high school and finishing college is possibly the most volitle in our lives. It is a time in which we struggle over who we are and interact with others and society in increasingly complex relationships. This class deals with these struggles and the transitions involved in what could loosely be termed "growing up." We will address such themes as love, sexuality, delinquency, and revolution through an examination of modern Japanese fiction, film and manga (Japanese comics). These works ( in translation) will help us explore cultural and social issues surrounding growing up both in others and in our own experiences. The seminar will emphasize how to write analytically about these topics and the various media we encounter for an academic audience. You will work closely with your peers and with me as the instructor to develop your written prose.
EASN 206K Linguistic Anthropology
Taught by Prof. Zhou
In this class we will focus on political, economic and cultural developments in Japan. We will examine issues reanging from political and exonomic development to law, bureaucracy, political parties, international relations, social protest, crime, gender relations and popular culture. We will attempt to answer the question: Is there a distinctly Asian model of development, one that stands in contrast to Western patterns? To answer this, we will take on an in-depth look at the three major periods of Japanese history (the Tokgawa, Meiji, and Showa) and examine how Japan confronted the challenges and opportunities produced by its entry into global politics and the capitalist economy.
EAS 206R Japanese Society and Culture
Taught by Prof. Bender
This course is an introduction to the society and culture of modern Japan. We will examine such major social institutions in Japan as families, communities, workplaces, and belief systems. The impact of modernity on these institutions, the evolving relationship between roles, and popular culture will also be covered.
EAS 300 Religions in China
Taught by Prof. Hill
What are China's religious traditions and what is their role in China today? These are the main questions we address in the course, begining with a brief overview of the history of religions in China. We look specifically at Daoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism, but also at how all these traditions intermingle in the practice of popular religion at the local level. As anthropologists, we examine how people in China think about and socially engage religion.
EAS 306F Pop goes East Asia
Taught by Prof. Bender
Over the past thirty years, material products exported from the countries of East Asia have become everyday products for Americans and Europeans. the influence of Asian popular culture in the West has been accompanied by a similar circulation of cultural products within the East, which has given rise to new patterns of desire and consumption and heightened feelings of connection and affiliation.
This course examines what this increased "traffic in culture" within and beyond East Asia means. We will analyze how popular culture and its consumption express the experience of modernity in consciousness, national identity, and gender roles, while keeping a close eye on how these local flows interact with global cultural currents. course materials will include field accounts by anthropologists and historians, films, and other media.
EAS 490 Senior Research
Taught by Prof. Strand
The purpose of the seminar is to provide an intellectual home for each student's independent research project. We will discuss the nature of East Asian Studies (EAS) as it is practiced in the early 21st century by scholars of the subject, including advanced students in EAS like you. We will explore the field of Asian Studies, the use of different kinds of research materials (tailored to the specific topics class members have selected), and provide instructor and peer review of drafts of the paper. We will also take a day trip to the Library of Congress (LOC) in Washington, D.C. to use the LOC's Asian and general collections (at no cost to seminar members and with a nice East Asian restaurant meal thrown in).
CHIN 102-01 Elementary Chinese
Taught by Prof. Zhou
A study of the fundamentals of Mandarin Chinese, including grammar, reading, and writing using both traditional and simplified characters, pinyin romanization, pronunciation, and conversational skills. Offered every year.
CHIN 102-02 Elementary Chinese
Taught by Prof. Zhou
A study of the fundamentals of Mandarin Chinese, including grammar, reading, and writing using both traditional and simplified characters, pinyin romanization, pronunciation, and conversational skills. Offered every year.
CHIN 212-01 Intermediate Chinese
Taught by Prof. Yang
An enhancement of the oral and written skills of elementary language study. In addition, students will learn to use dictionaries to translate original literary works. Extra conversational work will be included, geared to understanding and participating in Chinese culture. Prerequisite: 102, or the equivalent. Offered every year.
CHIN 212-01 Intermediate Chinese
Taught by Prof. Yang
An enhancement of the oral and written skills of elementary language study. In addition, students will learn to use dictionaries to translate original literary works. Extra conversational work will be included, geared to understanding and participating in Chinese culture. Prerequisite: 102, or the equivalent. Offered every year.
CHIN 232 Advanced Chinese
Taught by Prof. L. Jin
Advanced reading, writing, speaking, and understanding of the Chinese language for students who have completed Chinese 212. This course aims to enhance the students' understanding of Chinese culture and introduce them to issues in contemporary China through reading and discussion. Prerequisite: 212 or the equivalent.
CHIN 362 Advanced Chinese II
Taught by Prof. L. Jin
Reading of selected literary works by modern Chinese writers and articles from Chinese newspapers and magazines. These courses involve more sophisticated conversation and composition on important social, political, and economics issues in China. Prerequisite: 232 or permission of the instructor.
JPNSE 102-01 Elementary Japanese
Taught by Prof. Bates
These courses establish the basic language skills including listening, speaking, reading and writing. These courses also provide students with a brief overview of Japanese culture.
JPNSE 102-02 Elementary Japanese
Taught by Prof. Bates
These courses establish the basic language skills including listening, speaking, reading and writing. These courses also provide students with a brief overwiew of Japanese culture.
JPNSE 212-01 Intermediate Japanese
Taught by Prof. Meguro
The aim of these courses is the mastery of the basic structure of Japanese language and communicative skills. The student will have an opportunity to get to know more of Japanese culture. Prerequisite: 102 or permission of the instructor.
JPNSE 212-02 Intermediate Japanese
Taught by Prof. Meguro
The aim of these courses is the mastery of the basic structure of Japanese language and communicative skills. The student will have an opportunity to get to know more of Japanese culture. Prerequisite: 102 or permission of the instructor.
JPNSE 232 Advanced Japanese
Taught by Prof. Hiroe
The emphasis in these courses is placed on enhancing the students' fluency and acquiring increasingly creative skills through composition, oral presentation and discussion. Prerequisite: 212 or permission of the instructor.
JPNSE 362 Advanced Japanese II
Taught by Prof. Meguro
Advanced Japanese II The emphasis in these courses is placed on polishing and refining the students' language skills. Emphasis is placed on covering more sophisticated materials such as newspapers, magazine articles, film and literature. Prerequisite: 232 or permission of the instructor.