Wittenberg University

Academic Catalog

Professors James L. Huffman (History), Stanley L. Mickel (Chinese Language and Literature), Stephen R. Smith (Anthropology), and Bin Yu (Political Science)
Associate Professors Shih-Ming Li Chang (Theatre and Dance), Amy G. Christiansen (Japanese Language and Literature), Larry D. Gwinn (Economics), and Jennifer Oldstone-Moore, Director, (Religion)

Assistant Professors Shelley Wing Chan (Chinese Languages and Literature) and Marcia Frost (Economics)

Instructor Terumi Imai (Japanese Language and Literature)
Teaching Fellows Dawn Grimes-MacClellan and Dennis Frost

Requirements for Major
In addition to completing first year Chinese or Japanese language, the major in East Asian Studies requires a minimum of 36 semester hours from the courses listed below, 20 semester hours of which must include one East Asian history course, four semester hours; East Asian Studies 400: Senior Seminar, four semester hours; and four semester hours each from a minimum of any three of the following areas: economics, literature (either in English translation or designated upper-level language courses), political science, religion, or sociology. Twelve semester hours may be made up of electives. Twelve or more hours toward the major must be at the 300 or higher course level; these hours may not be taken abroad. Although first-year language courses are not counted toward the major, they do count toward total graduation credits.

Requirements for Minor
The minor in East Asian Studies requires 20 semester hours, 13 hours of which must be taken at Wittenberg and must include Chinese or Japanese 111 or competency, and four semester hours each from at least two of the following areas: economics, history, literature, political science, religion or sociology. A minimum of eight semester hours must be at the 200 or higher course level.

Course Listings

100C. Introduction to East Asia: Continuity and Change. 4 semester hours.

Introductory survey of the societies of China, Japan and Korea. Primarily designed for the student with no background knowledge of East Asia, this course examines the broad themes that shape these countries. Every year. Writing intensive. No prerequisites.

400. Senior Seminar. 4 semester hours.

Capstone course in which the senior East Asian Studies major integrates the major strands of East Asian history and society around a specified theme and writes an extensive research paper. Every year. Writing intensive. Prerequisite: Must be a senior East Asian Studies major.

490. Independent Study. Variable semester hours.

Course allows the advanced student the chance to do a directed independent research project. Writing intensive. Every year.

491. Internship. Variable semester hours.

At least one semester of work in some capacity related to East Asia in either the private sector or government. Student must write a paper related to the work experience. Every year. This course may be repeated for credit.

499. Honors Thesis/Project. Variable credit.

Prerequisite: 3.50 GPA, permission of the Department Chair.

Chinese

111. Elementary Chinese I. 5 semester hours.

Introduction to spoken putonghua and the Chinese writing system. Mastery of 250 characters and compounds expected. Every year.

112F. Elementary Chinese II. 5 semester hours.

Continuation of 111. Mastery of another 300 characters and compounds expected. Prerequisite: Chinese 111 or its equivalent. Every year.

130. Chinese Topics. 4 semester hours.

Topics, chosen by the instructor, designed to be of interest to the entire campus community. Taught in English, reading in English. Some sections are writing intensive. This course may be repeated for credit.

151. Modern Chinese Film and Fiction. 4 semester hours.

Survey of film and fiction in 20th century China.  Intended for students with no previous knowledge of the subject matter. Taught in English. Every year.

211. Intermediate Chinese I. 4 semester hours.

Emphasis on vocabulary acquisition and grammatical competency. Classes are conducted in spoken putonghua. Prerequisite: Chinese 112. Every year.

212. Intermediate Chinese II. 4 semester hours.

Continuation of 211. Prerequisite: Chinese 211. Every year.

230. Chinese Topics. 4 semester hours.

Topics, chosen by the instructor, designed to be of interest to the entire campus community. Taught in English, reading in English. May be writing intensive. Offered as need arises. This course may be repeated for credit.

311. Directed Reading in Chinese Newspapers. 4 semester hours.

Introduction to journalistic writing that is the basic prose style of 20th century China. Class work is conducted almost entirely in Chinese. Prerequisite: Chinese 212 or permission of instructor. Every year.

312. Directed Reading in Chinese Literature. 4 semester hours.

Intensive study of pieces representative of Republican and Communist style literature. Focus primarily on modern fiction. Prerequisite: Chinese 311 or permission of instructor. Every year.

330. Chinese Topics. 4 semester hours.

Topics, chosen by the instructor, designed to be of interest to the entire campus community. Taught in English, readings in English. May be writing intensive. Offered as need arises. This course may be repeated for credit.

490. Independent Study. 4 semester hours.

Tutorials for the student who has excelled in previous study of putonghua. Thematic content chosen according to student’s intellectual interests. Conducted entirely in putonghua. Every year. This course may be repeated for credit.

Economics

260C. East Asian Economies. 4 semester hours.

Study of specific problems and institutions of the East Asian economies. Topics include development, trade, and commercial policies as well as fiscal and monetary policies in the region. Prerequisites: Economics 190. Writing intensive. Alternate years.

290. Economics in Transition. Variable credit.

Study of some area of current interest in economics. Open to the major and the non-major. Some sections writing intensive. Prerequisite: Economics 190. This course may be repeated for credit.

Geography

250. East Asian Geography. 2 or 4 semester hours.

Detailed spatial analysis of cultural, physical, economic and urban patterns in a region. Regions to be studied are announced each time the course is offered; examples are Third World Development, Africa, Middle America, Russia and Central Eurasia, East Asia, and Southeast Asia. Most sections are writing intensive. Every year. This course may be repeated with a different region for credit.

History

101. Topics. 2 to 4 semester hours.

Surveys that study some region or civilization of the past. Some sections are writing intensive. May be repeated for credit.

101C. Silk Road Empires. 2 to 4 semester hours.

161C. Pre-Modern East Asia. 4 semester hours.

Survey of the history of East Asia’s three major countries – China, Japan and Korea – from earliest times until the beginning of the 17th century. The focus is on culture and thought, as well as major political developments. Every year.

162C. Modern East Asia. 4 semester hours.

Survey of the history of East Asia’s three major countries – China, Japan, and Korea – from the 17th century to the present. The focus is on the response of these countries to the challenges of an increasingly global world. Every year.

202. Nationalism in East Asia. 4 semester hours.

203. Meiji Japan: Grappling with the Modern. 4 semester hours.

263C. Age of the Samurai. 4 semester hours.

This course examines the era (1160-1868) when the warrior class dominated Japanese life. It focuses on the period’s ever-changing cultural norms, value systems and political styles. No prerequisites. Writing intensive. Alternate years.

301. Topics. 2-4 semester hours.

Topical approach, focusing on a specific theme. Prerequisites vary by section. Some sections are writing intensive. May be repeated for credit. Every year.

301C. Great Mongol Khans. 2 to 4 semester hours.

361C. East Asia and the West. 4 semester hours.

Examination of the relationship of China, Japan, and the Philippines with countries of the western hemisphere before and after the onset of imperialism. Interpretations focus on concepts such as orientalism, modernity and colonialism. Prerequisite: an East Asian history course or instructor’s permission. Writing intensive. Alternate years.

362C. Japan since 1945. 4 semester hours.

Survey of Japan’s post-World War II experience, from defeat and occupation through a return to world power status. Prerequisite: An East Asian history course or instructor’s permission. Writing intensive. Alternate years.

390. Samurai, Saints, and Scribblers. 4 semester hours.

Japanese

111. Beginning Japanese. 5 semester hours.

Introduces the fundamental communication skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing, as well as sociolinguistic information necessary for effective communication with Japanese natives. Every year.

112F. Beginning Japanese II. 5 semester hours.

Continued introduction of fundamental listening, speaking, reading and writing skills, together with the relevant sociolinguistic information. Prerequisite: Japanese III or placement. Every year.

130. Japanese Topics. 4 semester hours.

Topics, chosen by the instructor, designed to be of interest to the entire campus community. Taught in English, readings in English. Some sections writing intensive. Offered as need arises. This course may be repeated for credit.

150A/C. Survey of Japanese Literature. 4 semester hours.

Introduction to major literary works written in Japan between the year 900 and the present. Designed to be of interest to the entire campus community. Taught in English, readings in English. Every year.

211. Intermediate Japanese I. 4 semester hours.

Further development of the fundamental communication skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing, as well as the sociolinguistic information necessary for effective communication with Japanese natives. Prerequisite: Japanese 112 or placement. Every year.

212. Intermediate Japanese II. 4 semester hours.

Continued development of the fundamental communication skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing, as well as the sociolinguistic information necessary for effective communication with Japanese natives. Prerequisite: Japanese 211 or placement. Every year.

230 A/C. Japanese Women Writers of the 20th Century. 4 semester hours.

p> In the Western imagination, Japanese women have been cast as gentle, voiceless creatures living in shadows of their husbands. But the fiction written by Japanese women presents a female image that is as vibrant as it is varied. This course will examine the various manifestations of the female image in the female-authored modern Japanese fiction from the turn of the century to the present. All readings are in English. Every year.

311. Advanced Japanese I. 4 semester hours.

The goal of the course is to develop culturally and socially appropriate proficiency in the four language skills: reading, writing, listening and speaking. Prerequisite: 212 or placement. Every year.

312. Advanced Japanese II. 4 semester hours.

A continuation of 311, the goal of the course is to develop culturally and socially appropriate proficiency in the four language skills: reading, writing, listening and speaking.Prerequisite: 311 or placement. Every year.

330. Japanese Topics. 4 semester hours.

Topics, chosen by the instructor, designed to be of interest to the entire campus community. Taught in English, readings in English. May be writing intensive. Offered as need arises. This course may be repeated for credit.

490. Independent Study. Variable credit.

This course may be repeated for credit.

Political Science

205C. Chinese Politics. 4 semester hours.

Introduction to Chinese politics since 1949. Topics include a brief overview of modern Chinese history and a survey of contemporary analyses of the Chinese political process. Emphasis is given to Chinese political culture, major political institutions and current policy issues. Every third year.

210C/S. East Asian Politics. 4 semester hours.

The course introduces students to the political structure and dynamics of three major countries in East Asia: Japan, China (Mainland, Taiwan and Hong Kong), and Korea (South Korea and North Korea). The major objective is to make students familiar with their history, politics and economy, their relationships with each other and the impact of East Asia as a whole on global affairs.

354. Chinese Foreign Policy. 4 semester hours.

Analysis of the evolution and workings of Chinese foreign policy behavior in terms of historical patterns, the role of ideology, military and strategic factors, economics, domestic politics and the decision-making process. Chinese relations with the United States, Russia, Japan and other nations are discussed. Prerequisite: Political Science 102 or 205 and junior standing. Writing intensive. Alternate years.

355. East Asian Foreign Relations 4 semester hours.

The course introduces students to the dynamic interactions between major powers in East Asian ( Japan, China, the United States, Russia and Korea). The objective is to make students understand and be able to critically analyze diplomatic process, patterns of external behavior of major powers, and transnational forces at work in the region. Prerequisite: Political Science 102, 210 or 251.

Religion

134C/R. Chinese and Japanese Religious Traditions. 4 semester hours.

Examination of several religious traditions that have significance for nations of East Asia: the Confucian, Daoist, Buddhist, Shinto and Christian tradition in China and comparison between Japanese, Chinese and American religious perspectives are considered. Every year.

333C/R. Buddhist Thought and Scriptures. 4 semester hours.

Seminar on the more important scriptures in the Buddhist tradition. An exegesis is made of selected portions of major Mahayana Buddhist scriptures against the background of Buddhist history, central themes and seminal thinkers. Writing intensive. Every third year.

335C/R. The Confucian Tradition and Its Critics. 4 semester hours.

Seminar on the origin, development, central teachings, and institutions of the Confucian and Neo-Confucian traditions. Core Confucian writings such as the Analects, the Mencius, and the essays of Wang Yang-ming are studied. The student also becomes familiar with the criticisms of Confucianism from the Mohists to the Marxists to the contemporary Western critics. Writing intensive. Every year.

336C/R. Religious Daoism and Chinese Popular Religion. 4 semester hours.

Religious Daoism has been a way of self-cultivation, influential in Chinese imperial politics and history. This course will examine the tradition of Religious Daoism in historical context and through the study of practices, including ritual, meditation and yoga. We will also look at Religious Daoism from the vantage point of Chinese Popular Religion, the practices of the people that have been the basis of the religion of the people to the present. Class will be a combination of lecture and discussion, with student presentations and a term paper. Writing intensive.

339. Monkeys, Samurai, and Gods. 4 semester hours.

This seminar will look at religious meaning and message in some of the best loved literature of China and Japan, including Journey to the West, Tale of Heike, Dream of the Red Chamber, and Hojoki.  Class will consist mainly of seminar presentations on background as well as analysis of the texts.  Writing intensive. Alternate years.

Sociology

246C/S. Women and Family in East Asia. 4 semester hours.

Comparative, anthropologically focused analysis of the position of women in the context of the family in China, Japan and Korea. Topics include Confucian ideology and the traditional social order as well as the impact of colonialism and modernization. Writing Intensive. Alternate years.

275C/S. Contemporary Japanese Society. 4 semester hours.

Anthropological introduction to the cultural values and social organization of contemporary Japan. Uses a cross-cultural perspective to examine the changing world of kinship, the family and the local community in modern life. Writing intensive. Alternate years.

276C/S. Contemporary Korean Society. 4 semester hours.

Anthropological introduction to Korean society in a comparative East Asian context.  Beginning with an examination of traditional Korean culture, the course focuses on patterns of continuity and change in modern Korean society.  Alternate years.

301. East Asian Legal Systems. 4 semester hours.

Writing intensive. Every third year.

301C/S. East Asian Medical Systems. 4 semester hours.

Writing intensive. Every third year.

Theatre & Dance

013P. Chinese Folk Dance. 1 semester hour.

Every year.