Admission requirements
Admission to the MA Asian Studies (research) or another relevant research MA programme and succesfully having finished BA3- course “Klassiek Japans 2” or comparable course. When in doubt, please contact professor Ivo Smits.
Students from other programmes are kindly referred to the course description of the regular MA course.
Description
This course consists of intensive reading of literary and/or historical texts in classical Japanese for MA students who have successfully completed their studies of Classical Japanese at BA level. In 2021-2022, we will be reading excerpts from 'The Tale of Genji' and medieval commentaries to it, and discuss academic literature on Genji interpretations.
Course objectives
Understand vocabulary in Japanese cultural history
Expand grammatical knowledge and refine reading skills
Refine translation skills
Use dictionaries and other relevant sources
Timetable
The timetables are available through My Timetable.
Mode of instruction
- Seminar
Attendance is compulsory for all sessions. Students must prepare well and contribute to in-class discussion. If a student cannot attend because of illness or misadventure, they should promptly inform the convener. Extra assignments may be set to make up for missed class time, at the convener’s discretion. Absence without notification may result in lower grades or exclusion from assessment components and a failing grade for the course.
Assessment method
Academic Integrity
Students should familiarize themselves with the notion of academic integrity and the ways in which this plays out in their own work. A good place to start is this page. Plagiarism will not be tolerated. Students may not substantially reuse texts they have previously submitted in this or other courses. Minor overlap with previous work is allowed as long as it is duly noted in citation.
Students must submit their assignment(s) through Brightspace, so they can be checked for plagiarism. Submission via email is not accepted.
Assessment and weighing
| Partial Assessment | Weighing |
|---|---|
| participation (including presentation) | 50% |
| final written assignement, with translation/reading element (± 3,000 words) | 50% |
The final assignement is written in two stages: a first version, which will be commented on, and a final version. Students who do not meet the deadline for the first version will lose the right to get comments and will only be graded based on their final version. Students who do not meet the deadline for the final version, will get a failing grade.
The final grade for the course is established by determining the weighted average. In order to pass the course, students must obtain an overall mark of 5.50 (=6) or higher.
The course is an integrated whole. All categories must be completed in the same academic year. No partial marks can be carried over into following years.
Resit
Only if the total weighted average is 5.49 or lower and this is the result of the final assignement graded 5.49 or lower, a re-sit of that assignement is possible (50%). In that case the convener of the course may decide to assign a (new) topic. The deadline for this version will be determined by the course convener after consultation with the student.
A re-sit for other partial assessment is not possible.
Inspection and feedback
Students may request an oral elucidation of the assessment within 30 days after publication of the grade.
Reading list
Will be posted on Brightspace.
Additional readings for the ResMA students will be determined by the convener at a later stage taking into account the students’ field(s) of interest. This extra literature will be discussed during the (extra) tutorial sessions.
Registration
Enrolment through uSis is mandatory.
General information about uSis is available on the website.
Contact
For substantive questions, contact the lecturer listed in the right information bar.
For questions about enrolment, admission, etc, contact the Education Administration Office: Vrieshof.