The material on this page is from the 2000-01 catalog and may be out of date. Please check the current year's catalog for current information.

Professors Kemper: (Anthropology), Hirai (History), Strong (Religion) (on leave, winter semester and Short Term), and Grafflin (History), Chair; Associate Professors: Strong (Japanese) (on leave, fall semester and Short Term) and Yang (Chinese); Assistant Professors: Maurer-Fazio (Economics), Shankar (English), Wender (Japanese), and Nguyen (Art); Ms. Miao (Chinese), Ms. Ofuji (Japanese), and Ms. Tsui (Chinese) Asian Studies is an interdisciplinary program designed to acquaint students with the cultures, economies, histories, languages, literatures, and religions of Asian societies. The program offers a major in East Asian studies and a secondary concentration in South Asian studies (see below). Students majoring in East Asian studies may also pursue a secondary concentration in Chinese or Japanese. Students interested in majoring exclusively in Chinese or Japanese should consult the descriptions of those majors in this catalog under the Department of German, Russian, and East Asian Languages and Literatures. Major Requirements. The East Asian Studies major has the following requirements: At least two years (four courses) of Chinese or Japanese language. Two courses of this four-course requirement may be waived for students who prove proficiency in the language in tests approved by the program. Students who obtain such a waiver must fulfill their major requirement by taking two non-language courses to substitute for the waived language courses. History 171 or 172. Two courses from two of the following three groups: a) Chinese 207 or Japanese 240; b) Economics 229; c) Religion 208 or 209. Three more courses (or two courses and one unit) from the list of courses in East Asian studies. At most one of these courses may be a language course. A senior thesis normally written under the direction of a faculty advisor in East Asian studies with one course of appropriate preparatory work to be determined in consultation with the advisor. Honors candidates must complete Asian Studies 457 and 458 and sustain an oral defense of their thesis. Distribution requirements: In fulfilling their major requirements, students must make sure that they take at least one course dealing primarily with China and one dealing primarily with Japan. Students are urged to take at least one course dealing with pre-modern culture (China or Japan) and one course dealing with the modern period (China or Japan). It is recommended that East Asian studies majors spend their junior year or at least one semester at a College-approved program in Taiwan, mainland China, or Japan. Majors interested in Japan are advised, though not required, to spend their junior year at the Associated Kyoto Program (AKP). Students may petition the program to have courses taken during their study abroad program applied toward the fulfillment of major requirements 1–4. The program normally approves a maximum of two language courses and two non-language courses toward this end. Pass/Fail Grading Option. Pass/fail grading may not be elected for courses applied toward the major in East Asian studies. Secondary Concentration in South Asian Studies. Students may complete a secondary concentration in South Asian Studies by taking six of the following courses: Anthropology 240, 244; English 395G; Religion 249, 250, 307, 308; South Asian Studies 360. In addition, the program recommends that secondary concentrators spend a semester abroad on the ISLE program in Sri Lanka, the SITA program in South India, or at some other College-approved study abroad program in South Asia. Students may petition the program to have courses taken in their study abroad program applied toward the fulfillment of secondary concentration requirements. Pass/Fail Grading Option. Pass/fail grading may not be elected for courses applied toward the secondary concentration in South Asian studies. The following courses may be taken to fulfill the East Asian studies major requirements: Art/Asian Studies 243. Buddhist Visual Worlds. Asian Studies/History 173. Korea and Its Culture. Asian Studies 280. Ethnicity and Gender: United States, Japan, and Korea. Chinese 101–102. Beginning Chinese I and II. Chinese 201–202. Intermediate Chinese. Chinese 207. Masterworks of Chinese Literature in Translation. Chinese 209. Modern China through Film and Fiction. Chinese 261. Self and Society in Chinese Culture: Classics and Folk Tales. Chinese 301–302. Upper-Level Modern Chinese. Chinese 401. Advanced Chinese. Chinese 415. Readings in Classical Chinese. Chinese s24. Chinese Language and Culture in Beijing, China. Chinese s30. Chinese Calligraphy and Etymology. Economics 229. Economics of Greater China. Economics s25. Women and Work in Taiwan. English/Women's Studies 121G. Asian American Women Writers. History 171. China and Its Culture. History 172. East Asian Civilizations: Japan. History 274. China in Revolution. History 275. Japan in the Age of Imperialism. History 276. Japan since 1945 through Film and Literature. History 374. Readings on China: Intellectual History. History 390A. World War II in the Pacific. History 390L. Shanghai, 1927–1937. History s25. A Brief History of Korea. History s25A. Japanese American "Relocation" Camps. Japanese 101–102. Beginning Japanese I and II. Japanese 201–202. Intermediate Japanese I and II. Japanese 240. Japanese Literature: A Survey. Japanese 250. Modern Japanese Women's Literature. Japanese 301–302. Intermediate Japanese III and IV. Japanese 401, 402. Advanced Japanese I and II. Japanese s25. Haiku Poetry. Japanese s32. Appreciation of Japanese People and Society through Films. Religion 208. Religions of East Asia: China. Religion 209. Religions of East Asia: Japan. Religion 308. Buddhist Texts in Translation. Religion 309. Buddhism in East Asia. The following courses may be taken to fulfill the South Asian studies secondary concentration requirements: Anthropology 240. Peoples and Societies of South Asia. Anthropology 244/Religion 263. Buddhism and the Social Order. Asian Studies/Art 245. Monuments of Southeast Asia. Asian Studies 360. Independent Study. English 395G. Postcolonial Literatures and Theory. Religion 249. Religions of India: The Hindu Tradition. Religion 250. The Buddhist Tradition. Religion 308. Buddhist Texts in Translation. Courses 173. Korea and Its Culture. The course examines the distinctive evolution of Korean civilization within the East Asian cultural sphere, from its myths of origin through its struggles to survive amidst powerful neighbors, to the twentieth-century challenges of colonial domination and its poisonous legacies of civil war and division, and the puzzles of redefining a hierarchical Neo-Confucian state in the context of global capitalism. This course is the same as History 173. M. Wender, D. Grafflin. 210. Heterogeneous Japan. Scholars of Japan have long portrayed Japan as culturally homogenous. In recent years, however, people in and outside the academy have begun to challenge this assumption. In this course, students examine autobiography, fiction, and films that foreground Japan's ethnic, regional, and socioeconomic diversity. Readings also may include historical and analytical essays and theoretical works on the relationship of modernity, national identity, and narrative. Conducted in English. Open to first-year students. This course is the same as Japanese 210. M. Wender. New course for 2001-2002. 243. Buddhist Visual Worlds. The course examines the history and basic teachings of Buddhism from the perspectives of visual culture. It provides an introduction to a broad spectrum of Buddhist art, beginning with the emergence of early Buddhist sculpture in India and ending with Buddhist centers in the United States. Topics covered include the iconography of principal members of the Buddhist pantheon, the effect of social and political conditions on patronage, and two important schools of Buddhism: Ch'an/Zen and Pure Land. This course is the same as Art 243. Open to first-year students. T. Nguyen. 245. Monuments of Southeast Asia. This course examines the arts of Southeast Asia by focusing on significant monuments of the countries in the region. It examines the architecture, sculpture, and relief carvings on the monuments and their relations to religious, cultural, political, and social contexts. Sites covered include Borobudur Angkor, Pagan, and the Hue Citadel. This course is the same as Art 245. Open to first-year students. T. Nguyen. 246. Visual Narratives: Storytelling in East Asian Art. This course examines narrative art of East Asian traditions and reviews the important artistic tradition of the narrative paintings in China and Japan. Through selected studies of visually narrative presentations of religions, historical, and popular stories, the course explores different contexts in which the artworks-tomb, wall, and scroll paintings-were produced. Emphasis is also given to the biographical and social contexts of the Japanese narrative scrolls. The course introduces various modes of visual analysis and art historical settings both in lectures and through reading assignments. Topics include: narrative theory, text-image relationships, elite patronage, and gender representation. Recommended background: History 171, 172, and Japanese 240. Open to first-year students. This course is the same as Art 246. T. Nguyen. 247. The Art of Zen Buddhism. The art of Zen (Ch'an) as the unique and unbounded expression of the liberated mind has attracted the Westerners since mid-twentieth century. But what is Zen, its art and its culture? This course takes a broad view of Zen art, its historical development, and considers its use in several genres within monastic and lay settings. It also examines the important Buddhist concepts underlined by the production of Zen art. The course aims to help students understand the basic teachings and historical development of Zen with a strong emphasis on the appreciation of the Zen art expressed through architecture, gardens, sculpture, painting, poetry, and calligraphy. Readings focus on a number of different perspectives, including important Buddhist sutras, Zen literature, and art history. Recommended background: Art 243, Religion 208, 209, 250, or 309. This course is the same as Art 247. Open to first-year students. Enrollment is limited to 30. T. Nguyen. 280. Ethnicity and Gender: United States, Japan, and Korea. Ethnic and gender identities are formed not only by family relations and local customs but by individuals' sense of their nation and its place in diplomatic, military, and economic relations. This course explores the United States and two of its most important economic and military allies, Japan and Korea. In connecting international relations with gender and ethnicity, students see how defining others' identities is essential in the process of self-definition. How does prostitution around military bases affect the U.S. view of Korean women? How do Japanese and Koreans evaluate African American culture and how does this influence their own identity? Why is violent Japanese popular culture popular in America? Texts include fiction, ethnography, history, and films. No knowledge of Korea or Japan is assumed. Open to first-year students. Not open to students who have received credit for Japanese 280. M. Wender. 360. Independent Study. Independent research by an individual student under the direction of a faculty member. Students must submit a research proposal to both the faculty sponsor and the program chair prior to registration. Periodic conferences and paper(s) are required. Students are limited to one independent study per semester. Staff. 457, 458. Senior Thesis. Students register for Asian Studies 457 in the fall semester and for Asian Studies 458 in the winter semester. Majors writing an honors thesis register for both Asian Studies 457 and 458. Prerequisite: one course of appropriate preparatory work to be determined in consultation with the advisor.