Continuation of EALC293/693, which is the only prerequisite for this course. Upon completion of the basic introduction to grammar, spelling rules, and diachronic levels (pre-classical, classical, post-classical), readings in a wide selection of texts with Mongolian commentaries may be taken up. These readings are in part chosen to reflect student interest. This is the second half of a year-long course. Those who enroll should take both semesters.

This course will provide an overview of the major tropes, themes, and interpretations of contemporary Japanese science fiction and fantasy. As we establish a foundational knowledge of the history and structural formulations of genre fiction in Japan, we will cover topics such as folklore, high fantasy, apocalypse, dystopia, magical realism, posthumanism, video games, and transnational media franchises and cross-cultural marketing. By the end of the semester, students will possess a deeper understanding and appreciation of the role that science fiction and fantasy play in shaping contemporary media cultures in Japan and around the world.

This seminar covers the span of Chinese history from the Bronze Age to the end of the Han dynasty in A.D. 220. No knowledge of Chinese is presumed, but EALC 001 (Introduction to Chinese Civilization) is a prerequisite. Graduate students who wish to enroll should meet with the instructor to discuss additional requirements for graduate credit.

This seminar investigates classical Chinese conceptions of art and beauty as exemplified in philosophy, literature, music, painting, calligraphy, and architecture. All readings will be in English, and no knowledge of Chinese is presumed. Graduate students should see the instructor to discuss requirements for graduate credit.

Continuation of CHIN491 EALC221/621, which is the only prerequisite for this course. Upon completion of Shadick, readings in a wide selection of texts with Chinese commentaries may be taken up. These readings are in part chosen to reflect student interest. This is the second half of a year-long course. Those who enroll must take both semesters.

The Yuan Dynasty (1257-1368), the period of Mongolilan rule, was the only time in Chinese history when China was part of a larger empire that spanned the Asian continent. Using architecture, sculpture, painting, and excavated evidence, this course examines the unique results of an international Asian world centered in China.

Over the last few decades, a substantial volume of the ethnographic studies of the ethnographic studies of South Korea has produced. Providing critical insight into South Korea's quite particular and transforming history and cultures of modernization, industrialization, and globalization, these ethnographic works help us understand many of the historical, political, and economic issues that have both defined and complicated modern Korean society and nationhood. In this course, we will explore the contemporary social and cultural life in South Korea through ethnographies. Major themes include modernization, capitalism, class, gender, family, religion, globalization, and popular culture.

Who (or what) where the samurai? What does it mean to say that Japan had an "Age of the Samurai"? In popular imagination, pre-modern Japan has long been associated with its hereditary warrior class. Countless movies have explored the character and martial prowess of these men. Yet warriors constituted but a tiny portion of the societies they inhabited and ruled, and historians researching medieval Japan have turned their attentions to a great range of subjects and to other classes (elite and commoner alike). This class is designed to acquaint students with the complex and diverse centuries that have been called the "Age of the Samurai"-roughly, the years between ca. 1110 and 1850. In the course of the semester, we will explore the central themes in the historiography of warrior society, while introducing some of the defining texts that have shaped our imagination of this age (from laws to epic poems, from codes of conduct to autobiographies).

This course will explore fiction and film in contemporary Japan, from 1945 to the present. Topics will include literary and cinematic representation of Japan s war experience and post-war reconstruction, negotiation with Japanese classics, confrontation with the state, and changing ideas of gender and sexuality. We will explore these and other questions by analyzing texts of various genres, including film and film scripts, novels, short stories, manga, and academic essays. Class sessions will combine lectures, discussion, audio-visual materials, and creative as well as analytical writing exercises. The course is taught in English, although Japanese materials will be made available upon request. No prior coursework in Japanese literature, culture, or film is required or expected; additional secondary materials will be available for students taking the course at the 600 level. Writers and film directors examined may include: Kawabata Yasunari, Hayashi Fumiko, Abe Kobo, Mishima Yukio, Oe Kenzaburo, Yoshimoto Banana, Ozu Yasujiro, Naruse Mikio, Kurosawa Akira, Imamura Shohei, Koreeda Hirokazu, and Beat Takeshi.

Topics Vary