Undergraduate Courses
Current Semester's Non-Language Courses
HIS 208/EAS 208East Asia since 1800(HA)This course is an introduction to the history of modern East Asia. We will examine the inter-related histories of Korea, Japan, and China since 1800 and their relationships with the wider world. Major topics include: trade and cultural exchanges, reform and revolutions, war, colonialism, imperialism, Cold War geopolitics, and socialism.
HUM 234/COM 234/EAS 234East Asian Humanities II(EM)This is the second half of a sequence introducing the humanities in East Asia. The course takes up in the fourteenth century, but includes significant material from more modern periods as well, including the 20th century. Lectures are given by specialists in the departments of East Asian Studies, Comparative Literature, Art and Archaeology and Religious Studies. Lectures and classes are complemented by museum visits, performances and films. The course is organized thematically rather than chronologically, and topics range from the medieval to the post-modern in the disciplines of literature, visual arts, music, philosophy and religion.
MUS 254/EAS 254Popular Music in Japan, 1877-2010(LA)This course examines the aesthetics and reception of popular music genres in Japan, including children's songs, war songs, enka, jazz, rock, hip-hop, reggae, Okinawan pop, J-Pop, and music for anime and video games. Through listening exercises, analyses of translated lyrics, and readings, we will consider the ways in which music has reflected Japanese identity in changing international contexts and the reception of Japanese artists overseas. Issues examined include nationalism, the music industry, language, cultural hegemony, subcultures, and technology.
HIS 282/EAS 282A Documents-based Approach Asian History(HA)An intensive introduction to the methods and practices of history, designed to prepare students for future independent work. The focus is on interpreting primary sources on three topics: 1) Did Marco Polo go to China? 2) Did the Jesuits in China go beyond early European knowledge of Asia? 3) Why did China lose and Japan win the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-95?
SOC 303/EAS 303Strategic Asia(SA)Analysis of the recent evolution of strategic thinking in Northeast Asia with coverage linked to Southeast Asia, Central Asia, and South Asia. Comparative responses to common challenges: division on the Korean peninsula, the rise of China, the post-Soviet space, competition over new inter-regional ties, and a search for regionalism. Scrutiny of views over the past five years. Interdisciplinary approaches: historical roots of ideas about security, cultural assumptions behind strategic views, social networks and interests, clashing perspectives in political divisions, evolving international relations.
TRA 304/EAS 446Translating East Asia(LA)Translation is at the core of our engagement with China, Japan, and Korea, influencing our reading choices and shaping our understanding of East Asia. From translations of the classics to the grass-root subtitling of contemporary Anime movies, from the formation of the modern East Asian cultural discourse to cross-cultural references in theater and film, the seminar poses fundamental questions to our encounters with East Asian cultural artifacts, reflecting on what "translation" of "original works" means in a global world where the "original" is often already located in its projected "translation."
EAS 311Japanese Pop Culture/Globalization(LA)This course will examine elements of Japanese popular and visual culture both within Japan and in a global setting, especially its impact on America and the rest of Asia. With a focus on the effects of media representations on subjectivity in a late-capitalist world, we will devote particular attention to visual aspects such as manga, television, anime, and live-action cinema, but will include popular music and fiction as well.
EAS 320/HIS 320Early Japanese History(HA)The World of the Tale of Heike. Using the translation of the Heike Monogatari (Tales of the Heike) as a central text, will explore the transition from court to warrior dominated society in Japan between the 12th and 15th centuries. Themes of war, love, heroism, betrayal, religion and values, politics, society and economy. Immersion in early Japanese culture.
EAS 321/HIS 321Early Modern Japan(HA)This course provides an introduction to the history and culture of Japan in the seventeenth through nineteenth centuries. This was the age of samurai rule, in which many elements of modern Japanese culture took familiar form. It was also the time when the roots of Japan's emergence as a modern state were laid.
EAS 332/ANT 333Contemporary Chinese Society and Culture(SA)This course offers an overview of contemporary China, focusing on its transformation from Maoist socialism to the current Chinese society. It outlines Maoist socialism, and explores the changes since the late 1970s, giving special attention to tensions in this transformation: the tension between decentralized social life and the sovereignty of the post--Mao state; between the memories of Maoist socialism and current cultural politics; between the loss and reinvention of traditions; between the increasing mobility and social re-stratification; and between China's change and the existing theories about the way a society changes.
EAS 336/HIS 319Medieval China 300-1200(HA)This course provides a survey of the history of China from the dissolution of the first unified empire to the eve of the Mongol invasion. Key issues include the Tang-Song transformation, influence of Buddhism and Neo-Confucianism, the rise of literati culture, "education and the examination system, the development of civil service careers, bureaucracy and rulership, and commercialism".
EAS 344/COM 344Postwar Japanese Lit: Modern-Postmodern(LA)This course examines postwar Japanese experience through major literary, cinematic, and intellectual achievements. The objective is first to analyze a multitude of struggles in the aftermath of the Asia-Pacific War, and then to inquire into the nature of post-industrial prosperity in capitalist consumerism and the emergence of postmodernism. The course will cover representative postwar figures such as, Oe Kenzaburo, Dazai Osamu, Mishima Yukio, as well as contemporary writers such as Murakami Haruki. Topics include the rise of democratic ideas, unsolved issues of war memories, and the tension between serious and "popular" fiction writing.
EAS 366Understanding North Korea(HA)This course seeks to facilitate a better understanding of contemporary North Korea by examining the history of Korea's colonial legacies and national division, and investigating the ways in which knowledge about North Korea is collected, produced, and consumed in the West. Students will learn to analyze current perceptions and debates by applying an understanding of how historical processes have informed multiple representations and narratives--ranging from "propaganda" to documentary films--of North Korea. This course is intended primarily for undergraduates who wish to deepen their historical and historiographical understanding.
EAS 416/HIS 416Intellectual History of China 9-19th C(HA)The course centers on the changing role of the intellectual elite -- how they were recruited, their relationship to holders of powers, their attitudes toward the past and their cultural heritage. The aim of the course is to provide a clearer understanding of the burdens and privileges of intellectuals in Chinese society.
EAS 437/ANT 437What is a Good Society?(SA)Japan, along with other East and Southeast Asian nations, has reined in market forces and produced wealth by relying on the care of families, communities, and an emphasis on shared morality and values--while de-emphasizing individual rights and the tolerance of difference. The outcome is a cohesive and caring society, but one that has come with social costs. The course discusses these trade-offs in the context of contemporary social issues: the family and private life, efforts to improve society through education, socialization, prenatal care, and eugenics, and Japanese approaches to medicine and bio-ethical issues.
EAS 447Introduction to Japanese Linguistics(SA)This course teaches interconnections between Japanese language and culture. The course involves structural analysis of the key grammatical concepts and their relevance to cultural notions of uchi (inside) and soto (outside).
WWS 484/EAS 484/POL 438Special Topics in Public Affairs(SA)China today is confronting new forces of change while grappling with political, economic, social, ideological, and international resistance to change. How has this influenced its internal political workings and how is it likely to affect the way it address critical policy challenges? This seminar will explore current political processes in China with reference to recent events and examine the changing roles of key political actors, ranging from the Communist Party to the new media. It will consider key policy issues such as democratic reform, environmental protection, and the resolution of ethnic tensions.