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Asian Studies

Associate Professors Faries (Chinese, chair), Fatone (Music), and Nguyen (Art and Visual Culture); Assistant Professors Chaney (History), Garrison (Psychology), He (Economics), Ko (Politics), Lu (Chinese), Melnick Dyer (Religious Studies), and Wiesinger (Asian Studies); Visiting Assistant Professors Shreya (Earth and Climate Sciences) and Zhang (Japanese); Senior Lecturer George (Hispanic Studies); Lecturers Konoeda (Japanese) and Miao (Chinese)

In a globalized society, it is essential to find alternatives to U.S.-centric world views and create opportunities to center and learn from equally important voices and perspectives from around the world. We have much to learn from Asia’s complex experiences with local, regional, and global flows of privilege, power, colonialism, and ethnic conflict.

Asian popular musics, cinema, and literature and film–including manga, anime, Bollywood, and martial arts films–have become mainstays in the world’s media sphere, while innovative new media cultures invite the world to encounter the new Asia. Despite an increasingly interconnected world, we encounter troubling stereotypes, prejudice, and racism within and toward Asia in today’s fast-paced global media, and politics, as well as in everyday encounters.

By learning about the languages, histories, philosophies, politics, economies, literatures, arts, religions, and cultures of the many peoples of Asia and its diasporas, students gain the knowledge, contexts, and intercultural competency necessary to engage with a large part of the world that is largely under-acknowledged in academic institutions outside Asia.

Asian studies is an interdisciplinary program designed to encourage students to deepen their study of Asian cultures through courses and the senior thesis, along with rigorous training and expertise in Chinese or Japanese language. The program features three majors: Chinese, Japanese, and East Asian studies. In addition to the majors, the Program in Asian Studies offers minors in Chinese, Japanese, and Asian studies. Students are strongly encouraged to study abroad for a semester (or a full year) in China or Japan, as an integral part of the curriculum, for linguistic and cultural immersion, and for exploration on the ground. Faculty and students in the program also have fun together, participating in regular language tables and in events to celebrate cultural traditions of Asia.

Planning for the Major or Minor

The program offers three majors, Chinese, East Asian studies and Japanese. The major requirements and courses are listed below. Each of these majors gives students an opportunity to develop an understanding of East Asia by intensive study of Chinese or Japanese and to pursue topical courses introducing some of the most accomplished civilizations and dynamic societies in today's world. In addition to the majors, the Program in Asian Studies offers minors in Chinese, Asian studies and Japanese. More information on the Program in Asian Studies is available on the website (bates.edu/asian/).

The Chinese major is built around a structured sequence of instruction in language skills leading to competency in spoken and written Mandarin, with classical Chinese taught at the advanced level. Emphasis is placed on familiarizing students with the rich cultural heritage of China's 4,000-year history, which is transmitted and embodied by the native language of more than one billion people. The program strongly recommends that majors spend their junior year on a departmentally recognized study-abroad program in mainland China or Taiwan.

Major Requirements

The major consists of a minimum of twelve courses that must include:

1) Language:
a) CHI 101–102. Beginning Chinese I and II.
CHI 201–202. Intermediate Chinese I and II.
CHI 301–302. Upper-Level Modern Chinese I and II.

b) One course at the 400-level from among the following:
CHI 401. Advanced Chinese I.
CHI 402. Advanced Chinese II.
CHI 415. Readings in Classical Chinese.
CHI 401 and/or 402 may be used in fulfillment of either this requirement or (a) above but not both.

Students with previous experience in Chinese who begin their study of Chinese at Bates at the 201 level or above may fulfill the seven-language-course requirement by taking all available Chinese language courses offered through the Bates program, transferring in one or two Advanced Placement credits (with a score of four or five), and by taking additional language courses from a college-approved Chinese language program (normally during the fall, winter, or summer of their junior year). Students enrolled in college-approved study-abroad programs may earn up to two Bates language credits per semester of study.

Students who enter at the 401 level and have difficulty completing seven Chinese language courses during their time at Bates should consider electing the Chinese track of the East Asian studies major. Students who enter at the 401 level and specifically want to major in Chinese, but find that they are one or two language credits short of the seven-language course requirement may in rare circumstances (for example, if they have taken all available Chinese courses in our program, and if personal circumstances prevent them from taking additional language courses elsewhere) petition the program chair to allow one or two elective Chinese courses to substitute for the remaining language course(s).

2) Literature and Culture:
a) AS/CI 207. Traditional Chinese Literature in Translation.

b) Two courses from among the following:
AS/CI 223. Communism, Capitalism, and Cannibalism: New and Emerging Voices in Chinese Literature.
AS/CI 225. Art and Politics in China.
CHI 415. Readings in Classical Chinese, also may be used to fulfill part of this requirement if not being used toward fulfillment of requirement (1b) above.
CHI s21. Chinese Language, Culture, Health, and Chinese Traditional Medicine.
CHI s23. Science Fiction from China: From the Rabbit in the Moon to the Three-Body Problem and Beyond.
Any first-year seminar on China.

Students may also apply, at most, one of the following courses toward the fulfillment of this requirement:


AS/HI 110. East Asia between Tradition and Modernity.
AS/HI 171. China and Its Cultures.
AV/AS 234. Chinese Arts and Visual Culture.
AV/AS 246. Visual Narratives: Storytelling in East Asian Art.
INDS 266. Environmental History of China.
AS/HI 274. China in Revolution.
AS/HI 301S. Environmental History of China.
AS/RE 348. Epics of Asia: Myth and Religion.
AS/HI s15. Sport, Gender, and the Body in Modern China.

3) Thesis Sequence:
a) ASIA 320. Individual and Society in East Asia.

b) CHI 457 or CHI 458. Senior Thesis. Students are expected to utilize some source materials in Chinese in conducting research for the thesis. Qualified students may elect to write the thesis in Chinese.

Courses Taken Abroad

Students may petition the program to have courses taken in their study-abroad program applied toward the fulfillment of requirements (1a) (up to two credits per semester of study) and (2b) above.

Pass/Fail Grading Option

Pass/fail grading may not be elected for courses applied toward the Chinese major.

Advanced Placement

Students who receive a score of four on the Chinese Advanced Placement examination may receive credit for CHI 102. Those who have received a score of five may receive credit for CHI 201 and an unspecified credit that counts toward the Chinese major.

Minor

A minor requires seven courses, six of which must be Chinese language courses. At least one of the seven courses must involve the study of literature or culture. A student may petition to have up to three comparable courses, completed at other institutions in the United States or abroad, apply toward the minor.

Pass/Fail Grading Option

Pass/fail grading may not be elected for courses applied toward the minor in Chinese.

Courses
Short Term Courses

The major in Japanese presents an opportunity for an in-depth and focused study of Japanese language and culture. The major places emphasis on the student's acquisition of oral and written language proficiency as well as on the development of cultural awareness and competency. The program strongly recommends that majors spend their junior year at the Associated Kyoto Program or another approved year-long study-abroad program in Japan.

Major Requirements for the Class of 2025 and beyond.

The major consists of a minimum of twelve courses that must include:

1) Language:
a) JPN 101–102. Beginning Japanese I and II.
JPN 201–202. Intermediate Japanese I and II.
JPN 305. Upper Intermediate Japanese.

Students with previous experience in Japanese who begin their study of Japanese at the second-year level may elect to fulfill this requirement with JPN 201-202, 305, two semesters of topics courses (350), or the equivalent.

b). Two semesters of JPN 350. Topics in Advanced Japanese.
JPN 350 may be used to fulfill either a) or b) but the same semester may not count for both.


JPN 350 may be used to fulfill either a) or b) but not within the same semester.

2) Literature and Culture:
a) AS/JA 125. Japanese Literature and Society.

b) Two of the following:
AS/HI 110. East Asia between Tradition and Modernity.
AS/JA 130. Japanese Film: Exploring Japanese Horror Film from the Silent Era to the Present.
AS/JA 215. Film, Literature, and the Cultures of Postwar Japan.
ASIA 235. Supernatural in East Asia.
AS/JA 261. Cultural History of Japan: From Jōmon Pottery to Manga.
AS/JA s27. Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
JPN s29. Performing Fukushima.


Students may apply one of the following courses toward the fulfillment of this requirement:
AV/AS 236. Japanese Art and Visual Culture.
AV/AS 246. Visual Narratives: Storytelling in East Asian Art.
AV/AS 247. The Art of Zen Buddhism.
AS/RE 348. Epics of Asia: Myth and Religion.
FYS 491. Reading Japan in Multicultural Picture Books.
FYS 501. Japan on Screen.

3) Thesis Sequence:
a) ASIA 320. Individual and Society in East Asia.

b) JPN 457 or 458. Senior Thesis.
Students are expected to utilize some source materials in Japanese when conducting research for the thesis. Qualified students may elect to write the thesis in Japanese.

Major Requirements for the classes of 2022, 2023, and 2024

The major consists of a minimum of twelve courses that must include:

1) Language:
a) JPN 101–102. Beginning Japanese I and II.
JPN 201–202. Intermediate Japanese I and II.
JPN 301–302. Intermediate Japanese III and IV.

Students with previous experience in Japanese who begin their study of Japanese at the second-year level may elect to fulfill this requirement with JPN 201-202, 301-302, 401-402, or the equivalent. Students may replace JPN 301-302 with JPN 305 and the topics course (JPN 350); and JPN 401-402 with two semesters of JPN 350 (not taken during a semester in which the course replaces JPN 301-302).

b) JPN 401. Advanced Japanese I or
JPN 402. Advanced Japanese II.

Students may replace JPN 401 or JPN 402 with one semester of the Japanese topics course, JPN 350. The JPN 350 course taken to fulfills requirement a) above may not also be used to fulfill this requirement.

2) Literature and Culture:
a) AS/JA 125. Japanese Literature and Society.

b) Two of the following:
AS/HI 110. East Asia between Tradition and Modernity.
AS/JA 130. Japanese Film: Exploring Japanese Horror Film from the Silent Era to the Present.
AS/JA 215. Film, Literature, and the Cultures of Postwar Japan.
ASIA 235. Supernatural in East Asia.
AS/JA 261. Cultural History of Japan: From Jōmon Pottery to Manga.
AS/JA s27. Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
JPN s29. Performing Fukushima.

Students may apply one of the following courses toward the fulfillment of this requirement:
AV/AS 236. Japanese Art and Visual Culture.
AV/AS 246. Visual Narratives: Storytelling in East Asian Art.
AV/AS 247. The Art of Zen Buddhism.
AS/RE 348. Epics of Asia: Myth and Religion.
FYS 491. Reading Japan in Multicultural Picture Books.
FYS 501. Japan on Screen.

3) Thesis Sequence:
a) ASIA 320. Individual and Society in East Asia.

b) JPN 457 or 458. Senior Thesis.
Students are expected to utilize some source materials in Japanese when conducting research for the thesis. Qualified students may elect to write the thesis in Japanese.

Courses Taken Abroad

Students may petition the program to have courses taken in their study-abroad program (including the Bates Fall Semester Abroad) applied toward the fulfillment of requirements (1a) and (2b). Students are typically able to petition for two language credits per semester from an approved junior semester/year program in Japan to apply towards the fulfillment of requirements (1a) or (1b). Which courses these off-campus courses replace depends on the actual off-campus courses; students should discuss their plans with their major advisor before they depart.

Pass/Fail Grading Option

Pass/fail grading may not be elected for courses applied toward the Japanese major.

Advanced Placement

Students may receive credit for JPN 102 with a score of four on the Japanese Advanced Placement examination and JPN 201 with a score of five.

Minor

A minor requires seven courses, six of which must be in Japanese. At least one of the seven courses must involve a study of literature or culture (FYS 491 and 501 may count toward this requirement). A student may petition to have up to three comparable courses, completed at other institutions in either the United States or abroad, applied toward the minor. Students are typically able to petition for two language credits per semester from an approved junior semester/year program in Japan. Which courses these off-campus courses replace depends on the actual off-campus courses; students should discuss their plans with their major advisor before they depart. Advanced Placement courses may not be applied toward the minor. Minors in Japanese may count no more than one course toward both the East Asian Studies major and their Japanese minor.

Pass/Fail Grading Option

Pass/fail grading may not be elected for courses toward the minor in Japanese.

Courses
Short Term Courses

The East Asian studies major provides students with a broad introduction to the cultures and societies of East Asia and their interrelationships. The major includes, first, a core curriculum that consists of two years of Chinese or Japanese language study as well as one course introducing East Asian cultural history, and, second, a major concentration that focuses either on premodern or modern society and culture. East Asian studies majors are also encouraged to spend at least one semester at an approved program in mainland China, Taiwan, or Japan,and may potentially pursue Korean language through approved off-campus programs. Majors in Chinese or Japanese may count no more than two courses toward both their major in East Asian Studies and their major in Chinese or Japanese. Minors in Chinese or Japanese may court no more than one course toward both their major in East Asian studies and their minor in Chinese or Japanese.

Major Requirements

Students majoring in East Asian studies must complete the core requirement, a major concentration, and the thesis sequence. Students must take at least two courses dealing primarily with China and two dealing primarily with Japan. Students may count AS/HI 110 as one of the two courses primarily about China or Japan.


The following core courses are required of all majors:
1) Either
Four courses of Chinese language and
AS/HI 171. Imperial China.
or
Four courses of Japanese language and
AS/JA 261. Cultural History of Japan: From Jōmon Pottery to Manga.
2) Each major elects a major concentration, either East Asian Cultural Traditions or Modern East Asian Society and Culture.

a) East Asian Cultural Traditions: Three courses on traditional East Asian culture from at least two of the following four groups:
I) Literature:
AS/JA 125. Japanese Literature and Society.
ASIA 205. Chinese Poetry and Poetics: From the Beginning to Today.
AS/CI 207. Traditional Chinese Literature in Translation.
ASIA 235. Supernatural in East Asia.
CHI 321. Chinese Landscape Painting and Poetry.
CHI 415. Readings in Classical Chinese.

II) Visual and performing art:
AS/JA 130. Japanese Film: Exploring Japanese Horror Films from the Silent Era to the Present.
AS/CI 225. Art and Politics in China.
AV/AS 234. Chinese Arts and Visual Culture.
AV/AS 236. Japanese Arts and Visual Culture.
AV/AS 243. Buddhist Arts and Visual Cultures.
AV/AS 246. Visual Narratives: Storytelling in East Asian Art.
AV/AS 247. The Art of Zen Buddhism.
FYS 501. Japan on Screen.

III) Religion:
INDS 221. Venice to Tokyo: Religion and Trade along the Spice and Silk Routes.
AS/RE 251. Religions of Tibet.
AS/RE 308. Buddhist Texts in Translation.
AS/RE 348. Epics of Asia: Myth and Religion.
REL 110. Death and Afterlife: Bodies and Souls in Comparative Perspective.

IV) History:
AS/HI 110. East Asia between Tradition and Modernity.
AS/HI 171. Imperial China. (if not taken as a core course).
INDS 221. Venice to Tokyo: Religion and Trade Along the Spice and Silk Routes.
AS/JA 261. Cultural History of Japan: From Jōmon Pottery to Manga (if not taken as a core course).
INDS 266. Environmental History of China.
AS/HI 301B. From Tibet to Taiwan: Frontiers in Chinese History, 1700 to the Present.
INDS 301S. Environmental History of China.

b) Modern East Asian Society and Culture: Three courses from the following list:
AS/JA 130. Japanese Film: Exploring Japanese Horror Films from the Silent Era to the Present.
INDS 200. Women's Movements and Religion across East Asia.
ASIA 205. Chinese Poetry and Poetics: From the Beginning to Today.
AS/JA 215. Film, Literature, and the Cultures of Postwar Japan.
AS/CI 223. Communism, Capitalism, and Cannibalism: New and Emerging Voices in Chinese Literature.
AS/CI 225. Art and Politics in China.
AS/PY 257. Asian American Psychology
AS/PY 260. Cultural Psychology.
AS/HI 274. China in Revolution.
AS/PT 283. International Politics of East Asia.
AS/PT 324. Nationalism, Conflict, and Peace in East Asia.
AS/HI s15. Sport, Gender, and the Body in Modern China.
CHI s23. Science Fiction from China: From the Rabbit in the Moon to The Three-Body Problem, and Beyond.

Any first-year seminar on China.
FYS 501. Japan on Screen.

3) Two additional courses from the general lists of courses in Asian studies, Chinese, or Japanese (i.e., any course with the designation ASIA, AS, CHI, CI, JA, JPN) and first-year seminars focusing on China or Japan, with the exception of those courses that focus on South or Southeast Asia (AV/AS 245, AS/RE 249, 250).

4) Thesis Sequence:
a) ASIA 320. Individual and Society in East Asia.
b) Senior Thesis (ASIA 457 or 458).

Pass/Fail Grading Option

Pass/fail grading may not be elected for courses applied toward the major in East Asian studies.

Courses Taken Abroad

Students may petition the Asian studies program to have relevant courses taken in their study-abroad program (including the Bates Fall Semester Abroad) applied toward the fulfillment of the major requirements except for the thesis sequence.

Advanced Placement

Students may receive credit for CHI 102 or JPN 102 with a score of four on the corresponding language's AP examination, or credit for CHI 201 or JPN 201 with a score of five.

Minor in Asian Studies

Students may fulfill a minor in Asian studies by completing six courses from the list of courses in Asian studies, Chinese, and Japanese. In consultation with an Asian studies faculty member (chosen or appointed by the Asian studies chair) and in accordance with program guidelines, students may design their own course of study. Among the six courses, at least four should be related as a coherent group. Examples include a group of courses related to Buddhist studies, South Asia, gender issues, environmental concerns, a specific historical period, or the socioeconomic or political situation of a particular region.

The minor may include one Short Term course and a maximum of four language courses. No more than two of those language courses may be counted toward the coherent group. With the approval of the minor advisor, students may apply up to two courses taken on study-abroad programs toward the minor, as well as courses taken on Bates Fall Semester Abroad programs in Asia. Majors in Chinese, Japanese, or East Asian studies and minors in Chinese or Japanese may count no more than one course toward both the Asian studies minor and their major or minor.

Additional Courses for the Minor

All courses designated ASIA, AS, CI, CHI, JA, or JPN may be taken to fulfill the minor in Asian studies. In addition, the following courses may be taken to fulfill the minor in Asian studies:

AVC 248. The Art of Rock-Cut Architecture in Asia.

EN/GS 121G. Asian American Women Writers.

FYS 439. Defining Difference: How China and the United States Think about Racial Diversity.
FYS 491. Reading Japan Multicultural Picture Books.
FYS 501. Japan on Screen.

MUS 290C. Gamelan Ensemble (1 credit maximum counted toward Asian studies minor).
MUS s25. Performing Musical Art of Indonesia.

Pass/Fail Grading Option

Pall/fail grading may not be elected for courses applied toward the minor in Asian Studies.

Courses
Short Term Courses