Anthropology
07378 Cultures of India The culture of the Indian subcontinent in terms of population, languages, social institutions, and cultural patterns; changing cultural patterns. (3 credits UD) GE3-WRLD AS-SOC
Economics
33493 Economic Development of Pacific Asia Study of the dynamics of the emerging economies of the Pacific Rim. (3 credits UD) GE3-WRLD AS-SOC
Geography
48260 Understanding China This course describes and evaluates recent social and economic patterns in China. Viewing these patterns from a geographic perspective highlights the process of socialist transformation. (3 credits) GE2-AALA GE2A-AALA AS-SOC
48308 Geography of East Asia This course examines the physical and cultural geography of China, Japan, Korea and Vietnam. Using case studies, the course focuses on rural and urban landscapes, natural resource distributions, population dynamics, economic development, and natural disasters. (3 credits UD) AS-SOC
48506 Contemporary China Examination and analysis of the recent transformation of China's landscape, emphasizing physical, economic, and social changes. (3 credits UD) For graduate students. Prerequisite: PI card OR 1 prior geography course. AS-SOC Irregularly offered
History
58216 Modern China Over the past two centuries, the peoples and leaders of China have sought to articulate and define the nation, and its position in the modern world. Participants in the "search for modern China," as Jonathan Spence calls it, included revolutionary activists and peasant rebels, Confucian officials and Manchu emperors, foreign merchants and missionaries, landowners and urban industrialists, regional warlords and party leaders, "new women" and student radicals. This survey course familiarizes students with the main patterns of change in China from late imperial times to the present. We study key principles of government in China (including Confucianism, nationalism, and socialism), and China’s fluctuating relationships with its neighbors in Asia and the West. We examine ongoing efforts to build a modern nation-state through military power and party politics. We look at the transformation of social and cultural practices through new ideologies, and China's pursuit of economic development through capitalism and socialism. Finally, we consider the significance of nation and history in the context of globalization. Throughout, we pay close attention to the geography and diversity of China, noting such variations as north-south, maritime-coastal, urban-rural, center-periphery, empire-tributary, dialect and macroregions. Students in this course develop their critical skills at interpreting historical evidence by reading and analyzing a wide variety of firsthand eyewitness accounts -- including court documents and revolutionary manifestoes, foreign observer literature, reports and photographs, essays and autobiographies, fiction and film. (4 credits) GE3-WRLD AS-SOC AS-PERSP
58315 Traditional China This upper-division survey examines the heritage of imperial China's government, economy, culture, and society from the Shang through the early Qing dynasties. Students read and analyze classic texts, visual images and recent scholarship to gain deeper understanding of the enduring legacies of the dynastic cycle, imperial bureaucracy, agriculture, and trade, as well as the ways in which Confucian, Daoist, and Buddhist thought have shaped elite and popular culture in China. Since four millennia make for a lot of history to think about in just fourteen weeks, we will delineate the most persistent challenges facing the "Central Kingdom," and the solutions successive generations have devised. During each quarter of the course, students explore these patterns in a specific area, through readings selected to illuminate the particular ways in which individuals and institutions have asserted official power -- on moral or coercive grounds -- and how such authority has been questioned or defied. (3 credits UD) AS-SOC
58334 History of Traditional Japan This lecture course surveys the development of Japan's key political, social, and cultural institutions from early times through the eighteenth century. The themes we explore include the ways in which Shinto, Confucianism, and Buddhism have formed the basis for early governance and social practices in elite and popular culture, the economies that evolved within these contexts, and the effect of Japan's geography on its foreign relations. The course also aims to help students develop their skills in analyzing documents, research, and critical writing. One third of class time is reserved for discussion centering on the analysis of primary sources that include selections from classical texts and autobiographical accounts from the Heian through Edo periods. (3 credits UD) AS-SOC
58335 History of Modern Japan This course surveys the political, social, and economic changes in Japan during the past two centuries. Through primary sources in English translation, and recent scholarship on modern Japanese history, we pursue the following fundamental questions: How and why did Japan abandon its system of government by military shogunate in 1868 in favor of imperial rule and a modern nation-state? What have "nationalism," "modernity," "democracy," and "empire" meant for Japan? Who participated in the process of nation building, and what advantages or obstacles did they experience? What motivated Japan to engage in trade with the United States in the nineteenth century, and pursue military and economic expansion in Asia during the twentieth century? How have the experiences of defeat and occupation shaped postwar Japan's recovery and its recent development? (3 credits UD) AS-SOC
58480 Women in China This seminar explores the diverse and changing roles of women in Chinese society, from imperial times to the present, with special attention to regional and class variation. We analyze a variety of primary sources by and about women in China -- including literature in translation, drama, visual images (documentary and narrative film; photography), memoirs, and oral histories. Students also read recent scholarship to develop critical skills in thinking about gender and culture. The seminar format helps students develop and refine their skills at communicating findings through a variety of means -- including critical analysis, class discussion, and oral presentations. Instruction is provided in accessing and utilizing library resources relating to the Asia region and gender issues. Each student will then develop, in consultation with the instructor, a term research project resulting in a 15-20 page research paper. The course provides a valuable alternative perspective for comparative work in history, literature, anthropology, sociology, political science, Asian Studies, and women's studies. (3 credits UD) AS-ARTS AS-SOC
58393 Chinese Cinema With screens across the globe projecting iconic images of Jet Li and Gong Li, Chinese motion pictures are participating in a global exchange of technology, culture, and capital that extends back to the earliest days of cinema in the 1890s. Why do films from the People's Republic, Hong Kong, and Taiwan command such attention today -- and what is "Chinese" about these cinemas? This course introduces the widely different ways in which individual directors have represented the historical experience of modern China for local and global audiences, as they grapple with issues of colonialism, nationalism, and cultural identity during the twentieth century. Through outstanding examples from each of these three regions, we examine the relationship between film narrative and collective memory; the political and ideological concerns of filmmakers during periods of radical social change, war, and revolution; cinema as an indicator of changing tastes and values; and the connections between Chinese cinema and other literary, visual, and performing arts traditions, including the popular narrative genres of historical drama, talent-beauty romance, and martial arts. (3 credits UD) AS-ARTS AS-SOC
58467 The United States in Vietnam The origins, nature and consequences of America's involvement in Vietnam. (3 credits UD) AS-SOC
58550 America and Vietnam America's involvement in Vietnam, the most important and traumatic episode in recent U.S. foreign policy. Prerequisites: 58222 or PI (3 credits UD) AS-SOC For graduate students; advanced undergraduates with permission of instructor.
58593 History of Modern East Asia What defines East Asia, and how has it experienced modernity? In this course we'll examine, as case studies, key moments in the making of Modern East Asia -- through reading, analysis, and discussion of translated primary sources, audio-visual materials, and recent scholarship in social history, intellectual history, and international relations. Our main focus will be China, Japan, and Korea during the 19th and 20th centuries, with close attention to the regional and global interactions. Some of the key issues we will discuss include Asia's contact with the West, modern nationalism, cities and modernization, gender roles, war and revolution, and historical memory. In this seminar, the emphasis is on student participation and critical encounters with literature in the field. Students will gain training and experience doing research on Asia, and will learn more about current trends in scholarship on Asia. Sensitized by the issues raised in readings and discussion, students will prepare and write a 15-20 page research paper. (3 credits UD) AS-SOC For graduate students; advanced undergraduates with permission of instructor.
Political Science
77365 International Politics of the Asia Pacific - Contemporary foreign policies of and international relations among the U.S., China, Russia, Japan, and Korea with special emphases on foreign policy leadership and institutional processes of these countries. (3 credits UD) AS-SOC AS-PERSP
77369 Governments and Politics of China and Japan - Contemporary political institutions (governments, parties, interest groups) policy making processes and public policies of two of the most important world powers, and a brief comparison with the U.S. (3 credits UD) AS-SOC
77363 Chinese Foreign Policy and the United States - Exploration and evaluation of structural and institutional explanations of Chinese Foreign Policy decision making and major challenges in Chinese Foreign Relations (3 credits UD) AS-SOC
Some courses may be offered in rotation. For each semester's course offerings, visit the Current Schedule of Classes.