Content of the course is determined in consulation with the sponsoring faculty member. An examination of modern Japanese society through literature, with particularly emphasis on the development of the novel and short story. From the time of Japan's opening to the West in the latter half of the ninteenthcentury to the present, Japanese society has undergone great transformations that are manifested in literature. From early experimentation with forms borrowed from Western literature through the struggle of writers working under the threat of censorship during military buildup preceding the Pacific War to the diverse, often ambivalent reactions of writers to Japan's rapid post-War economic development, the short stories and novels of the twentieth century, in both their content and their narrative structure, offer a window on the range of voices in Japanese society. No knowledge of Japanese is required.
All readings are in English.
Topics in East Asian Studies Taoism and Zen Oriental Philosophy Fiction in Modern Chinese Society Fiction in Traditional Chinese Society Huron College also offers a full series of Chinese language courses.