Japanese 2750 / Honors 2400: Japanese Life & Culture (Fall 2008)

REQUIRED TEXTS

· Conrad TOTMAN, Japan Before Perry: A Short History, 25^th anniversary edition (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1981) [ISBN 978-0-520-25407-7].

· Elise K. TIPTON, Modern Japan: A Social and Political History, 2^nd edition (NY: Routledge, 2008) [ISBN 978-0-415-41871-3].

· Jeffrey ANGLES and J. Thomas RIMER (eds.), Japan: A Traveler’s Literary Companion (Berkeley, Whereabouts Press, 2006) [ISBN 978-1883513160].

· J. Thomas RIMER and Van C. GESSEL (eds.), The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Literature, Vol. 1: From Restoration to Occupation, 1868-1945 (NY: Columbia University Press, 2005) [ISBN 978-0-231-11861-3].

· Other shorter texts will be made available on the library e-reserve website (http://www.wmich.edu/library/reserves/). See below in the section entitled “Course Readings & Schedule.”

NOTES ABOUT REQUIRED TEXTS

· The texts above will also be on 2-hour reserve in Waldo Library.

· When reading about Japanese history, TAKE NOTES! Make a chart of personal names and key concepts.

· When reading Japanese 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.

GRADING

Grades will be calculated in the following fashion.

10% Map exam about Japanese geography
10% Class participation
10% Two quizzes over reading
10% Internet discussion
10% Take-home essay
25% Midterm exam
25% Final exam
Each unexcused absence will be -1% from the final grade. (See the section below on attendance.)

The following scale will be used for grades.

· A 93-100%

· BA 90-93%

· B 83-90%

· CB 80-83%

· C 73-80%

· DC 70-73%

· D 63%-70%

· E Below 63%

The instructor promises to have graded essays and other materials to students within two weeks after students submitted their work.

Grades will be visible at all times to students by clicking “My Grades” in WebCT Vista (http://elearn.wmich.edu).

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 all classes but say nothing during class will not receive any points for class participation (0%). The reason for this policy is to encourage you to participate in your own learning. The more you think about what is being said and react to it, the more you will get out of the entire experience!

ATTENDANCE

· You have two excused absences to use as you wish. If you’re smart, you will save these for absolute emergencies. Missing more than three classes will reduce your final grade by 1% off of the overall final course grade. Please do NOT be late. Repeated late absences will also reduce your final grade.

· If you miss more than three classes in a row without informing the professors of your status, they will assume that you have dropped the course.

ABOUT INTERNET DISCUSSION

Most weeks, students will be required to read one short story from Japan: A Traveler’s Literary Companion or The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Literature then to post their thoughts and critical reactions to it to the WebCT Vista website (http://elearn.wmich.edu). For full credit, students should post at least one paragraph. Postings are due each week on Monday at noon.

Possible subjects you might write about:

· In what ways does the story seem to reflect Japanese culture?

· In what ways does the story reflect themes or issues that we have talked about in class?

· 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?

You 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://elearn.wmich.edu and sign in with the same username & password as you do to get your e-mail. (You can also access this by going to http://gowmu.wmich.edu and signing in. Once inside, click on “e-learning.”)

· Click on the entry for our class. Usually this is labeled “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

· Please regularly consult the online version of the syllabus at http://homepages.wmich.edu/~jangles/courses/2008fall/jpns2750.htm in order to find your course readings. This is the official version of the course schedule. Any changes announced in class will be posted to the course website.

· You should complete the readings BEFORE class and come to class ready to discuss them.

Key to abbreviations in schedule

· JBP = Conrad TOTMAN, Japan Before Perry: A Short History, 25^th anniversary edition (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1981).

· MJ= Elise K. TIPTON, Modern Japan: A Social and Political History, 2^nd edition (NY: Routledge, 2008).

· JTLC = Jeffrey ANGLES and J. Thomas RIMER (eds.), Japan: A Traveler’s Literary Companion (Berkeley, Whereabouts Press, 2006).

· CAJL = J. Thomas RIMER and Van C. GESSEL (eds.), The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Literature, Vol. 1: From Restoration to Occupation, 1868-1945 (NY: Columbia University Press, 2005).

Readings in purple in the following chart are available electronically as PDFs through the electronic course reserves at the library. 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 Life & Culture” then add it to your list of classes before you can access the PDFs. When adding this class, you will need the password given by your instructor in class.

Week 1	9/3 (W)	· Brief introduction to Japanese geography (Click here for the map the quiz will be over next week.)
Week 2	9/8 (M)	· Internet discussion due at noon over JTLC, Inoue Yasushi, “Under the Shadow of Mt. Bandai,” pp. 44-74. [See instructions in section above about internet discussion]. · JBP, Chapter 1: “The Beginnings,” pp. 1-17.
Week 2	9/10 (W)	· Quiz in class over Japanese geography (Click here for map for quiz.) · Thomas P. KASULIS, "Chapter 1: Entering through the Torii," from Shinto: The Way Home (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2004) pp. 8-37 [Available on library e-reserve webpage. See information above at the top of the chart about how to access this and other readings listed in purple.]
Week 3	9/15 (M)	· Internet discussion due at noon over JLTC, Hino Keizō, “Jacob’s Tokyo Ladder,” pp. 1-15. · “The Earliest Japanese Chronicles,” in William Theodore DeBARY, et al., Sources of Japanese Tradition, vol. 1: From Earliest Times to 1600 (NY: Columbia University Press, 2001), pp. 13-16 [Available on library e-reserve webpage]. · “The Seventeen-Article Consitution of Prince Shōtoku,” in William Theodore DeBARY, et al., Sources of Japanese Tradition, vol. 1: From Earliest Times to 1600 (NY: Columbia University Press, 2001), pp. 50-55. · “Nara Buddhism,” in William Theodore DeBARY, et al., Sources of Japanese Tradition, vol. 1: From Earliest Times to 1600 (NY: Columbia University Press, 2001), pp. 100-106.
	9/17 (W)	· JBP, Chapter 2: “Classical Japan,” pp. 18-70.
	9/21 (Su)	· Turn in quiz about The Tale of Genji via WebCT by 11:59 pm. Before taking the quiz, go the library e-reserve webpage and read MURASAKI Shikibu, “Kiritsubo: The Paulownia Pavilion” from The Tale of Genji, vol. 1, trans. Royall Tyler (NY: Viking, 2001) pp. 1-18.
Week 4	9/22 (M)	· Internet discussion due at noon over JTLC, Atōda Takashi, “The Destiny of Shoes,” pp. 126-143. · SEI Shōnagon, Selections from The Pillow Book of Sei Shōnagon, trans. Ivan Morris (NY: Columbia University Press, 1991). [Available on library e-reserve webpage]. · “Chapter 9: The Vocabulary of Japanese Aesthetics I,” in William Theodore DeBARY, et al., Sources of Japanese Tradition, vol. 1: From Earliest Times to 1600 (NY: Columbia University Press, 2001), pp. 196-204 [Available on library e-reserve webpage].
Week 4	9/24 (W)	· “The Tale of the Heike,” in William Theodore DeBARY, et al., Sources of Japanese Tradition, vol. 1: From Earliest Times to 1600 (NY: Columbia University Press, 2001), pp. 276-280 [Available on library e-reserve webpage]. · JBP, Chapter 3: “Medieval Japan,” 71-132.
Week 5	9/29 (M)	· Internet discussion due at noon over JTLC, Miyamoto Teru, “The Swallow’s Nest,” pp. 95-116. · “Chapter 14: Zen Buddhism,” in William Theodore DeBARY, et al., Sources of Japanese Tradition, vol. 1: From Earliest Times to 1600 (NY: Columbia University Press, 2001), pp. 306-335 [Available on library e-reserve webpage].
Week 5	10/1 (W)	· JBP, Chapter 4: “Early Modern Japan,” 133-176 and 188-205.
Week 6	10/6 (M)	· Internet discussion due at noon over JTLC, Maruya Saiichi, “The Obtuse Young Man,” pp. 16-43. · MJ, Chapter 1 “Tokugawa Background,” pp. 1-20.
	10/8 (W)	· Film in class about Japanese theatrical forms · SANTŌ Kyōden, “Grilled and Basted Edo-Born Playboy,” trans. Chris Drake, Early Modern Japanese Literature: An Anthology 1600-1900, ed. Haruo Shirane (NY: Columbia Univ. Press, 2002) pp. 687-710 [Available on library e-reserve webpage].
	10/10 (F)	· Turn in Essay No. 1 (For instructions, click on “assignments” in WebCT) by 11:59 pm.
Week 7	10/13 (M)	· MJ, Chapter 2 “The Mid-Century Crisis,” pp. 21-38.
Week 7	10/15 (W)	· Midterm exam in Brown Hall 1003 (Language Lab) at 4:00-5:50. Telephone number of Language Lab: 269-387-2488.
Week 8	10/20 (M)	· Internet discussion due at noon over CAJL, Mori Ōgai, “The Dancing Girl,” pp. 10-26. · MJ, Chapter 3 “The Early Meiji Revolution, pp. 39-58.
Week 8	10/22 (W)	· MJ, Chapter 4 “The 1880s and 1890s,” pp. 59-76.
Week 9	10/27 (M)	· Internet discussion due at noon over CAJL, Kunikida Doppo, “Meat and Potatoes,” pp. 153-167. · CAJL, Natsume Sōseki, “The Civilization of Modern-Day Japan” & “My Individualism,” pp. 315-334.
Week 9	10/29 (W)	· MJ, Chapter 6 “An Emerging Mass Society” pp. 93-113.
Week 10	11/3 (M)