This course introduces students to important themes in postwar Japanese culture and society through the unique medium of one of Japan’s principal, postwar cultural phenomena – anime (Japanese animation).
It is designed for first-year students with little knowledge of Japan, many of whom will already be familiar with a number of anime movies that have been exported to Western countries in recent years. The course will encourage students to reconsider anime as a social, cultural and historical product.
Through an emphasis on both primary and secondary sources, the course will help students to understand some of the ways in which various types of materials and data-sets can be used for academic inquiry in the fields of arts, humanities and social sciences. The multidisciplinary aspect of this course should complement the new structure and emphasis of the first-year ‘canon’ course.
In addition to analysing the rapid growth of the anime industry and the ways in which its cultural products now ‘represent’ Japan on the global stage, this course will consider the representation of various themes and character types in the movies themselves. These themes will be seen to have relevance and interest in the disciplines of history, politics & IR, anthropology, sociology and even philosophy, and it is hoped that students will be able to build on their interests in these fields later on in their degree. Hence, the course serves not only to introduce students to modern Japan but also to a number of disciplinary approaches to its study.
Important themes might include: pacifism and attitudes to war/violence; the apocalypse and the nuclear allergy; heroes and villains; gender roles; nature and environmentalism; tradition, capitalism and technology.
The course also has the advantage of exposing the students to colloquial Japanese, whilst not making this part of the assessment.
Rooster
2 hours per week, Tuesday 9-11am
see rooster
Onderwijsvorm
lecture and workshop
A la Carte- en Contractonderwijs
Belangstellenden die deze cursus in het kader van A la carte onderwijs willen volgen (zonder tentamen), vinden hier meer informatie over kosten, inschrijving, voorwaarden etc.
Belangstellenden die deze cursus in het kader van Contractonderwijs willen volgen (met tentamen), vinden hier meer informatie over kosten, inschrijving, voorwaarden etc.
Leerdoelen
This course aims to: introduce students to the academic study of major contemporary media forms; provide students with rudimentary disciplinary skills to help them in further study; introduce students to the skills of academic writing at university level (through dedicated ‘academic writing’ sessions).
Literatuur
There is no single textbook for this course. Interested students should consult Susan Napier, Anime from Akira to Mononoke: Experiencing Contemporary Japanese Animation. (Palgrave, 2002).
There will be a reader.
Toetsing
Participation element (attendance, preparation, film reviews): 20%
Analyical element (mid-term): 40%
Summative element (take-home exam, 1500 words, due in penultimate week of term): 40%
Informatie
prof.dr. C.S. Goto-Jones: c.goto-jones@hum.leidenuniv.nl
This course is a part of ‘keuzepakket Japanse studies’
Aanmeld- en inschrijfprocedure colleges en tentamens: www.hum.leidenuniv.nl/japans/studenten/aanmeldingsprocedure.jsp
Blackboard/webpagina
Blackboard plays an essential part in this course. All important information about the course, including the syllabus, course requirements, and other information, except for the course readings, will be available on the course website. Internet access is therefore essential in order to complete this course.