Jeremy Robinson
robinjer@gvsu.edu
Office: D-2-136 Mackinac Hall
Office Hours: W•F 11am - 1pm

Japan in the modern era has undergone repeated radical transformations.  Rejoining the world in the late 19th century after two and a half centuries of isolation, it modernized rapidly and reinvented itself as a world military power.  Recovering from defeat in World War II in the mid-twentieth century, it reinvented itself as a global economic power.  And recovering from prolonged recession in the late twentieth century, it reinvented itself as a major player in international entertainment.  Throughout, Japan has faced an internal conflict between modernity and tradition and between a view of itself as part of the world community and as separate and distinct from it.  This class will explore the many faces of modern Japan with an interdisciplinary approach that includes history, religion, art, literature, philosophy, theater, film, etc. Firmly rooted in the humanistic tradition, the class aims to explore both what we share and how we differ from those we study, in an effort to explore the range of human experience. The course is divided more or less in half, with the first half proceeding more or less chronologically from the 1868 Meiji Restoration to the end of World War II, exploring the rapid cultural changes of the time. The organization of the second half of the course is more thematic, looking at the development of various aspects of Japanese culture since the war.

This course is the third part of a three-course Japanese civilizations sequence which covers the entire scope of Japan’s civilization from the earliest archaeological evidence to the present.  While the first two parts (syllabi here and here) are not prerequisites and this course can stand on its own, combining this course with one or both of the other two will deepen and enrich your understanding of Japanese culture. All readings will be in English translation and no previous experience with Japanese language or culture is required. This course makes extensive use of the university’s Blackboard online learning environment, both to distribute readings and other materials and as a forum for submitting and responding to reaction papers.   If you are not comfortable with Blackboard or have limited internet access, come talk with me as soon as possible.

The most important thing, both to your grade and to the success of the class, is keeping up on the assigned readings and being ready and willing to discuss them in the classroom and online. I do take attendance, as well as take note of your participation in class, and these factors do affect your grade, but your grade depends on more than just your presence in the classroom. It means reading and giving thought to the assigned readings, and coming to class ready to actively discuss it. For each day’s readings, you should select a quote that you found interesting and post it to the Quotes Wiki section of Blackboard at least an hour before class begins. These quotes will contribute to shaping each day's discussion and regular contribution is what will determine your "Wiki Quotes" grade.

Throughout the semester you will also be required to post reaction papers and responses to the Blackboard online discussion board. A reaction paper should be at least 600 words (appr. two pages) long and should articulate your reaction to that day’s readings. It does not need to be a formal argumentative essay, but it should be more substantive than mere summary. It is intended to give your interpretation of the material in light of your own experience and the issues we raise in class, and should show an active engagement with the text. Remember: you aren’t expected to be an expert on the topic, just an engaged reader. Reaction papers must be posted online by midnight the night before the class in which the readings are to be discussed, in order to give your fellow students time to read them and respond before class. Late reaction papers are useless to fostering online discussion and thus will not be accepted. Eight of these papers are required over the course of the semseter and you may choose any of the readings to which you wish to respond, but you may not write more than one in any given week. For some weeks a film may also be assigned and you may also choose to write a reaction paper based on these films if you wish. Because these will generally be discussed on Monday of the week after which the film is assigned, you must post these reaction papers by midnight Sunday. Although there will be many days when you do not write a reaction paper yourself, you should consider other students’ reaction papers to be a part of the required reading for the class, and you should make a point of reading the other students’ reactions, and perhaps writing an online response to them, before coming to class. There is no set length for responses, but they should respond not only to the text itself, but also to the other students’ reactions and show a willingness to engage with other students’ ideas rather than relying only on one’s own interpretation. The deadline for writing a response is the beginning of each class, and a minimum of sixteen of these responses is required over the course of the semester, though you are encouraged to write more and, if you feel more comfortable contributing in written form rather than during class discussion, this may enhance your participation grade.

The research paper should be around ten pages long and can be on any topic, but it must go beyond the assigned readings of this course. You might choose to investigate a given theme further by reading non-assigned works from our textbooks or deal entirely with new readings, but the paper should apply what we have learned in class to non-class materials. A one-paragraph topic proposal should be turned in by the Wednesday before spring break, and your final paper is due on Friday of the last week of class.  If you wish to receive feedback on your paper prior to turning in the final version, you are welcome to turn in a draft any time up to one week before the deadline (as drafts submitted after that time will not allow the professor enough time to read and comment).

There will be three required texts for this course. All are available in the bookstore or, if you prefer, the links below are too Amazon:

James L. Huffman
Joy Hendry
Natsume Soseki
William M. Tsutsu

Additional readings will be made available as web links or in pdf format in the “Course Materials” section of Blackboard, and are identified on the syllabus with (BB). On any given day, there may be assigned readings, poems, audio clips, or videos marked on the schedule. When films are assigned, they can be viewed either on the computers in the LRC or online via the LRC’s eVideon video server.