Undergraduate Course: Introduction to Classical Chinese (ASST08075)
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 2 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | The course introduces the basic syntax and basic grammatical features of Classical Chinese that is, the language of the late Warring States and Former Hàn eras (3rd-2nd centuries BCE), as well as a broad range of basic vocabulary. |
| Course description |
The course is based on reading and translating early Chinese texts. Grammatical particles and constructions, problematic phrases, cultural context, and literary issues will be discussed and explained. The course also provides the students with the ability to understand classical constructions as well as rhetorical and stylistic figures and complex compositional forms in modern Chinese texts.
The course will be taught by reading texts (sometimes with commentaries) in classical Chinese sentence by sentence, analyse word meanings, word classes, syntax and other grammatical features, rhetoric, style, composition and genre. Different interpretation approaches will be discussed. Students prepare the texts at home and discuss their translations in class.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
| Additional Costs | Purchasing the textbook (Michael Fuller, An Introduction to Literary Chinese) is recommended. You can purchase the cheaper first edition in paperback format, no need to buy the more expensive second edition that was published in 2024 in hardcover format. |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2024/25, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: 0 |
| Course Start |
Full Year |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 44,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
152 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
100 %,
Coursework
0 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
|
| Additional Information (Assessment) |
One non graded formative assessment of homework in Semester 1
50% Semester 1 exam (two components: translation and grammatical analysis)
One non graded formative assessment of homework in Semester 2
50% Semester 2 exam (two components: translation and grammatical analysis) |
| Feedback |
One formative assessment of homework in each semester will be given detailed feedback regarding grammar, style, precision and nuance of interpretation.
The S1 exam will be discussed in great detail in class so that students can learn from their mistakes.
The idea behind not grading the homework assessment is that with some effort, translations into a modern language (including modern Chinese) of most of the classical texts can be found somewhere. If students submit a piece of homework to improve their mark of the course, they will most probably not produce them under exam conditions but many students will use existing translations, copy translations of other students or work together on translations. If the homework assessment is not graded it is more likely that students use this as an opportunity to test themselves and submit translations that they did under exam conditions to improve their proficiency of Classical Chinese. In cases where the homework submission fails to meet the required standard, the CO will discuss with the student and offer them special tasks and action points to improve their performance. |
| Exam Information |
| Exam Diet |
Paper Name |
Hours & Minutes |
|
| Main Exam Diet S1 (December) | Semester 1 Classical Chinese Exam | 1:30 | | | Main Exam Diet S2 (April/May) | Semester 2 Classical Chinese Exam | 1:30 | |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Demonstrate proficiency in reading basic pre-modern Chinese texts written in full-form characters and classical Chinese, which will be necessary for Honours-level study.
- Display familiarity with different genres and contents of classical Chinese texts.
- Understand certain cultural key notions and literary forms found in classical Chinese texts, which will be beneficial for more in-depth study at Honours-level.
- Understand the ways in which more sophisticated modern Chinese literary texts are constructed.
- Relate their knowledge of pre-modern Chinese to everyday contexts, to use their skills and deal with straightforward tasks with some non-routine elements and to prepare for familiar and routine tasks.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Development of linguistic skills, critical thinking, intercultural sensitivity, historical understanding, logical thinking, interpretation skills, knowledge application. |
| Keywords | China,Chinese Studies,Chinese Language,Literary Chinese,Translation |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Joachim Gentz
Tel: 0131 6503681
Email: joachim.gentz@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mrs Lina Gordyshevskaya
Tel:
Email: pgordysh@ed.ac.uk |
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