Undergraduate Course: Introduction to Japanese Literature (ASST08053)
Course Outline
| School | School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 8 (Year 1 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course is designed to introduce students with little or no prior background in the subject to the study of Japanese literature through a selection of key texts. These will be studied using English translations, which will be the basis for all course assessments. For students enrolled on the MA Honours in Japanese degree or others interested in Japanese language, excerpts from the original texts will be made available for private study and reading practice.
The texts that form the focus for the course are all widely known and studied in Japan and are generally considered to be representative works that enhance understanding of Japanese cultural identity. |
| Course description |
The course will introduce and examine in detail a selection of key texts from both classical and modern Japanese literature which are regarded as significant to Japan's aesthetic and cultural traditions. At the seminars, students will be introduced to each of the texts, its author, and the historical, social and cultural background from which it emerged, and will have the opportunity to discover some of the ways in which it contributes to Japanese literary and cultural identity.
Tutorials will concentrate on discussion of set questions about the texts and assigned readings (academic articles or book chapters which deal with the week's text). Students will also be encouraged to share their own responses to the text. Each student will also be expected to contribute to tutorials by convening the discussion, recording the main points discussed and giving a short individual presentation at least once during the semester.
The course content will normally be covered in chronological order and will introduce selected works in the following areas: early Japanese poetry; writing by women at the Heian court; recluse literature of the Kamakura period; haiku and haibun (haiku-related literature); the Meiji novel; stories of modernity in Taisho and early Showa Japan; Second World War literature; immediate postwar writings; contemporary literature; literature responding to the Fukushima "triple disaster" of 2011.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2019/20, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 31 |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 30,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
166 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
60 %,
Practical Exam
40 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Reflective diary: 250 words on each week's reading, in response to set questions and following a regular format 30%«br /»
Essay: 2,500 words 60%«br /»
Tutorial tasks (short presentation, convening a discussion, recording tutorial proceedings) 10%«br /»
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| Feedback |
Students will receive regular feedback on their reflective diaries designed to support them in preparation for their tutorial presentations and essays.
There will also be a "mini-essay" formative feedback exercise in the first part of the semester. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Understand, explain and analyse key Japanese literary texts originating from a variety of time periods and sectors of society
- Situate these texts in the context of relevant historical and social developments in Japan in order to relate them to scholarship in Japanese Studies
- Conduct independent research, think critically and present information, ideas and arguments effectively in written form (assessed through the essay) and in small group discussion (assessed through the tutorial presentations)
- Participate actively in small group discussion, convene and record proceedings (assessed through the tutorial tasks)
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Reading List
Course textbooks:
Keene, D. ed. (1955; 1994.) Anthology of Japanese Literature from the Earliest Era to the Mid-nineteenth Century. New York: Grove Press.
Rimer, J.T and Gessel, V.C eds. (2011). The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Literature: Abridged. New York: Columbia University Press.
General reading:
Basho (1966) The Narrow Read to the Deep North, tr. Yuasa, N. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books.
Higginson, W. J. (1985) The Haiku Handbook. Tokyo: Kodansha.
Jacobson, D, Ito, S and Tsuboi, M. (2016). Are you an Echo? The Lost Poetry of Misuzu Kaneko. Seattle, WA: Chin Music Press.
Kawakami, H. n.d. God Bless You 2011. Tr. Goossen, T and Shibata, M. London: Granta Magazine. Available at: https://granta.com/god-bless-you-2011/
Keene, D. (1984). Dawn to the West, 2 vols. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
McClellan, E. tr. Natsume S. (1957; 2007). Kokoro. London: Peter Owen.
Miner, E.R., Morrell, R and Odagiri, H. (1985). The Princeton Companion to Classical Japanese Literature. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Research and enquiry: Problem solving; analytical thinking; critical thinking; knowledge integration and application.
Personal and intellectual autonomy: Self-awareness and reflection; independent learning and development; creative and inventive thinking.
Personal effectiveness: Planning, organising and time management; team working; flexibility.
Communication: interpersonal skills, verbal and written communication. |
| Keywords | Japanese,literature,classical,modern,reading |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Helen Parker
Tel: (0131 6)50 4230
Email: Helen.Parker@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mrs Vivien MacNish Porter
Tel: (0131 6)50 3528
Email: vivien.macnish-porter@ed.ac.uk |
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