This course begins with Japan's unification as a nation in 1600 and ends with contemporary times. A general historical survey will complement the detailed examination of selected topics which best illustrate Japan's modern development. Political, social, cultural, and economic trends will receive roughly equal treatment. The student should gain a broad yet multifaceted understanding of […]
Examines characteristics of Japanese corporate culture and aspects of management styles as well as patterns of Japanese communication styles, drawing on concepts from linguistics, communication, and cultural studies.Pre/Corequisite: AP/JP 2700 6.00. Course credit exclusions: None.
This course studies the fiction of major Chinese women writers from the literary revolution of the early 1910s to the present time. Early Chinese fiction by women tends to address issues of gender in society with political messages. Yet the last forty years have seen a real renaissance in which new generations of women writers […]
This course aims to enhance students' understanding of Korea through an overview of modern Korean literature from the twentieth century to the present. Students will examine a wide range of literary texts (translated in English) in their relationship with socio-historical contexts of Korea as well as global literary trends. Through the examination, students will understand […]
A study of the journey theme in ancient and modern literary texts, both Western and Eastern, and in cinematic works. The theme of journey will be analyzed through its representations in different artistic media (literature and cinema), in genetically unrelated cultural contexts, (West and East), and in different epochs. The notion of journey will be […]
Through an analysis of some of the major works by Cao Yu, the most important playwright of his generation, as well as by other artists such as Guo Moruo, Tian Han and Xia Yan, this course offers a picture of the history as well as of the main thematic and formal patterns of modern Chinese […]
This course aims to enhance students' understanding of a variety of historical, social, cultural issues of Korean society by analyzing relevant Korean films. It examines close relationships between cinematic representations and modern Korean history and society. Following the historical trajectory of Korean cinema from 1990's to the present, the course provides opportunities to engage a […]
This course examines not only how Japanese religious/philosophical traditions were utilized for practical concerns by Japanese immigrants, but also how they came to inform the identity of Japanese Canadians in the context of a broader understanding of the role religion has played in the East. Although religious identity did not loom strongly in the minds […]
The course introduces contemporary Korean popular culture by exploring the hybridized transnational nature of their production, distribution, and consumption. This course examines the recent phenomenal success of Korean popular cultures (also called Korean Wave) in terms of the impact of emerging Korean pop cultures, global consumers, and their transnational practices. It also examines the impact […]
This course examines contemporary Japanese popular culture and its influence not only on its Asian neighbours, especially China and Korea, but also on the West. Not only are genres such as film, television, and popular literature examined, but also particularly Japanese phenomenon such as otaku, moe, shoshoku danshi ("herbivore men") and the Japanese penchant for […]