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JPNS 2750: Japanese Life & Culture |
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Dr. Jeffrey Angles Fall 2007 / MW 4:00-5:15 pm Sangren Hall 2212 / CRN 41208 Cross listed as HNRS 2400 (Call No. 44798) Office Hours: W 1:00-3:00 pm or by appt. Office: 518 Sprau Tower Tel. No.: 269-387-3044 Image: KANOKOGI Takeshiro, |
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GOALS OF THE CLASS: · To provide a survey of Japanese culture and history over the last thousand years through some of its cultural production (essays, writing, literature, art, film). · To provide students with a survey of the various periods of Japanese history. · To show Japan's many cultural transformations in the modern period. · To introduce students to some of the major genres of Japanese literature and to introduce several major genres and themes in Japanese art history. · To reflect on the ways that Japanese have reflected their personal, religious, and national experience through material culture. · To encourage students to develop close reading and empathetic skills. REQUIRED TEXTS: · Wm. Theodore de Bary, Donald Keene, George Tanabe, and Paul Varley (eds.), Sources of Japanese Tradition: Volume 1, From Earliest Times to 1600, 2nd edition (NY: Columbia University Press, 2001). [ISBN 978-0231121392] · Wm. Theodore de Bary, Carol Gluck, and Arthur E. Tiedemann (eds.), Sourceso f Japanese Tradition: Volume 2, Part 2, 1868-2000 (NY: Columbia University Press, 2006). [ISBN 978-0231139199] · Jeffrey ANGLES and J. Thomas RIMER (eds.), Japan: A Traveler’s Literary Companion (Berkeley, Whereabouts Press, 2006). [ISBN 978-1883513160] · MIYABE Miyuki, All She Was Worth, trans. Alfred Birnbaum (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1999). [ISBN 978-0395966587] RECOMMENDED TEXTS: · NATSUME Sōseki, Kokoro, trans. Edwin McClellan (Washington: Regency, 1999). The full text of the novel is also available on the web at http://www.eldritchpress.org/ns/soseki.html. You can choose whether you would prefer to read the book online or in book form. · The required and recommended texts above will also be on 2-hour reserve in Waldo Library. · When reading essays about Japanese history, TAKE NOTES! It is a good idea to make a chart of personal names and key concepts. · When reading literature, TAKE NOTES on the roles of characters, setting, and so on. Be sure to read for for detail. Characterization is often found in detail, setting, and social role. · The instructor has designed this course on the assumption that students do not read Japanese. |
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GRADING: · 5% Map Exam about Japanese Geography · 25% Midterm Exam · 30% Final Exam · 20% Two Short Take-Home Essay Questions · 10% Internet Discussion · 10% Class Participation The instructor promises to have graded essays and other materials to students within two weeks after students submitted their work. |
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The following scale will be used for grades. · A: 93-100% · AB: 90-93% · B: 83-90% · BC: 80-83% · C: 73-80% · CD: 70-73% · D: 63%-70% · E: Below 63% Grades will be visible at all times to students by clicking “My Grades” in WebCT Vista. |
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ABOUT CLASS PARTICIPATION: The instructor encourages students to ask questions in class, make comments, and respond to instructor’s questions in class. At the end of the semester, students that have participated in class by coming regularly, raising their hands, asking questions, and providing reflections on the material will get full credit for the class participation portion of their grade (10%). Students who come to almost all classes but are quiet will usually get 8% toward their final grade. Students who come only sporadically and/or do not participate in the lecture/discussion times will receive a lower number than that. The reason for this policy is to encourage you to participate in your own learning. The more you think critically about what is being said and react to it, the more you will get out of the entire experience! ABOUT INTERNET DISCUSSION: Most weeks, students will be required to read one short story from the book Japan: A Traveler’s Literary Companion then to post their thoughts and critical reactions to it to the WebCT Vista website. For full credit, students should post at least one paragraph. Postings are due each week on Friday at 5 pm. The professor will add comments after that so check back later! Possible subjects you might write about: · In what ways does the story seem to reflect Japanese culture? · What images does the story present of the particular place in Japan where the story is set? · What might be the historical background of this story? · What do you think that the author was trying to say in this story? In other words, what themes (big messages) do you see in the story? Students are encouraged to include personal thoughts, but not just simple reactions like “I liked it” or “I disliked it.” (Such simple reactions will not earn any credit.) Make sure that your posting shows that you read the story and thought about it! Students are encouraged to read other people’s postings and react to them. How to post your reaction on WebCT Vista: · Go to http://gowmu.wmich.edu and sign in with the same username & password as you do to get your e-mail. · Click “e-learning” at the top of the page. Another browser page should pop-up. · Click on “Japanese Life and Culture: JPNS 2750.” · Click on “Discussions.” · Click on the week that you want to post in. · Click “Create message.” · Write your posting for the week then click “Post.” COURSE READINGS & SCHEDULE: Any changes announced in class will also be made to this webpage. Click “refresh” on your computer to get the newest version. Readings in white font are available at the WMU bookstore. Readings in blue are available on electronic reserve from the WMU libraries. To access them, go to http://www.wmich.edu/library/reserves/ and create an account (if you don’t have one already). You will then need to search for our class “Japanese 2750” and add it to your list of classes before you can access the PDFs. Key to abbreviations Week 1: Introduction to the Course 9/5 (Weds) · Brief introduction to Japanese geography (Click here for the map the quiz will be over next week.) | ||