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Professor Stuart
Barnett Professor Joseph McKeon |
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Once, the future was only a continuation of the present. Its changes loomed beyond the horizon. But now the future is a part of the present. Are they ready for this?
—Andrei Tarkovsky, Stalker
TEXTS:
Marius Jansen, The Making of Modern Japan, Harvard University Press
Masamune Shirow, Ghost in the Shell, Dark Horse Comics
Susan J. Napier, Anime:From Akira to Princess Mononoke, Palgrave
Katsuhiro Otomo, Akira, Vol. 6, Dark Horse Comics
Neal Stephenson, Snow Crash
RESERVE:
| BOOKS— |
Marius Jansen, The Making of Modern
Japan, Harvard University Press |
| VIDEOS— |
Akira |
NOTE: Videos can be checked out for 48 hrs; one week before class discussion of the film, the loan period for the video will revert to 2 hrs.
Sept 3
Introduction
Some cultural characteristics of the West and Japan; Geography of Japan
Sept 5
The Ideologies that Support the State and Social Mores in Japan (McKeon)
Introduction to Japanese religion: How the Japanese understand ‘religion"; the common characteristics of Japanese religions
Reischauer, "Religion" [handout]
Sept 10
Shinto in Modern Japan (McKeon)
Indebtedness to Buddhist institutional structures; emergence of State Shinto to foster loyalty to the Emperor and the Nation
- read relevant sections in Jansen (See "Shinto" in index p. 864)
Sept 12
The Meiji Restoration (McKeon)
(video to be shown)
Jansen, The Meiji Revolution, pp. 333-370
Sept 17
Confucianism: An Overview (McKeon)
Read relevant sections in Jansen (index p. 846)
Sept 19
Tokugawa Confucianism (McKeon)
Adaptation to Japanese historical and cultural sensibilities
Sept 24
Buddhism in Japan (McKeon)
Read relevant sections in Jansen (index p. 845)
Sept 26
Buddhism in Japan (McKeon)
Rites for aborted fetuses (Slides/Video)
Oct 1
Jesuit Missions in Japan (McKeon)
Early attempt on the part of westerners to adapt to Japanese cultural sensibilities
Religion Unit Exam Handed Out
Oct. 3
Christianity (McKeon)
Oct. 8
The Japanese Visual Tradition (Barnett)
Donald Keene, "Japanese Aesthetics" [handout]
Donald Richie, A Hundred Years of Japanese Film [handout]
Oct. 10
Kurosawa Overview (Barnett)
(An overview of the work of Kurosawa Akira, the director many consider to be Japan's greatest)
Donald Richie, A Hundred Years of Japanese Film [handout]
Religion Exam Due
Group Presentation Topics Due
Oct. 15
Introduction to Anime (Barnett)
Susan J. Napier, "Why Anime?" and "Anime and Local/Global Identity," Anime, pp. 3-38
Dave Kehr, "Anime, Japanese Cinema's Second Golden Age," The New York Times
"Heads Up, Mickey," Wired
Donald Richie, A Hundred Years of Japanese Film [handout]
Oct. 17
Representation and Gender (McKeon)
Anne Imamura, Re-Imaging Japanese Women [handouts]
Oct. 22
Representation and Gender (McKeon and Barnett)
Donald Richie, "Sex in Japan," [handout]
Clamp, Chobits [handout]
Group Presentation Outline Due
Oct. 24
Worshipping Virtual Idols (Barnett)
Neal Stephenson, Snow Crash
Julius Wiedemann, Digital Beauties [on reserve]Assignment: Before reading Snow Crash, flip through Digital Beauties, paying attention to the Japanese models [these have been marked with post-its]. After reading Snow Crash, go back to Digital Beauties and select two Japanese models and go to the web site listed for them. Explore. Then write a 4-page paper on Snow Crash and how your exploration in Digital Beauties supplemented, confirmed, or complicated the novel. You will be asked then to summarize your conclusion for the class. The class as a whole will discuss their reactions.
Idols Paper Due
Princess Mononoke: The Japanese Götterdämmerung
Oct. 29
Princess Mononoke: Group Presentations
Mononoke Paper Due
Oct. 31
Miyazaki Hayao, Princess Mononoke [on reserve]
Helen McCarthy, Hayao Miyazaki, pp. 182-203
Nov. 5
Miyazaki Hayao, Princess Mononoke [on reserve]
Susan J. Napier, "Princess Mononoke: Fantasy, the Feminine and the Myth of 'Progress'," Anime, pp. 175-192
Japan—Where the Future Has Already Happened
Nov. 7
Why Living in the Future is One of Japan's Oldest Traditions (Barnett)
Jansen, "The Opening to the World," 257-293,"Meiji Culture," 456-494
"Ichiban," Wired
William Gibson, "My Own Private Tokyo," Wired
William Gibson, Neuromancer [excerpts--handout]
Screening of clips from Bladerunner, The Fifth Element
Nov. 12
From Biology to Information--The Birth of a New Species (Barnett)
Keven Warwick, "Cyborg 1.0," Wired
Keven Warwick, "I Want to be a Cyborg," The Guardian
Lily E. Kay, "Production of Discourse," in Who Wrote the Book of Life?: A History of the Genetic Code [reserve]
Ray Kurzweil, The Age of Spiritual Machines [reserve--read chapters 9-13 (don't read fake interview sections of chaps)]
Nov. 14
You Can Be Replaced, You Know (Barnett)
Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio, "Electric Dreams: What the Future May Hold," Robo Sapiens 23-32 [on reserve]
Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio, Robo Sapiens, pp.
Robert C. Christopher, The Japanese Mind, pp. 285-294 [handout]
Reuters, "Are Robots Key to Japan's Future?"
NOTE: See assignment on Nov. 19.
Nov. 19
Clive Thompson, "Approximating Life," The New York Times Magazine [handout]
"Alan Turing," "Turing Test," EB [e-handout]
ASSIGNMENT: Go to Eliza and chat with her for 10 minutes; also go to ALICE and chat with her for 10 minutes. Write a two-page reaction/reflection/meditation on your experience. E-mail a copy to both of us on or by the 14th. Today we will discuss our experiences as a group.
Ghost in the Shell: The Hauntology of Being
Nov. 21
Ghost in the Shell: Group Presentations
Ghost Paper Due
Cyborg Exam Handed out
Nov. 26
Masamune Shirow, Ghost in the Shell
Thanksgiving
Dec 3
Mamoru Oshii, Ghost in the Shell (on reserve)
Susan J. Napier, "Doll Parts: Technology and the Body in Ghost in the Shell," Anime
Akira: Become the Apocalypse
Dec 5
Akira: Group Presentations
Akira Paper Due
Cyborg Exam due
Dec 10
Otomo Katsuhiro, Akira [on reserve]
Otomo Katsuhiro, Akira, Vol. 6.NOTE: All volumes of the manga Akira are available in the Reserve Room
Dec 12
Otomo Katsuhiro, Akira [on reserve]
Susan J. Napier, Anime, pp. 39-48
Course Requirements:
Regular class attendence and active class participation in class and group work. 10% of grade.
Two exams: one on religion and one on cyborgs. 20% of grade.
Group presentation: 10% of grade.
Final: 20% of grade.
Five reaction papers: 40% of grade (each 8%).
More than 3 absences will affect your final grade. More than 6 absences will result in failure for the course.
For each assignment, you will hand in a copy for each of your instructors. For each day a paper is late, a letter grade will be subtracted.
Group Presentations. While you will be graded individually, part of your grade will reflect the extent to which your presentation was planned in coordination with the group and the extent to which it logically adds to and complements the group as a whole. It incumbent upon each group to meet and determine the content and structure of the group presentation. Additonal research and reading is expected.
Reaction papers to films should be four pages, double spaced. They should not be a loose collection of impressions, but a focused and analytical reaction.
Do not even think of plagiarizing. This will result not only in failure for the course but expulsion from the Honors Program--and perhaps even the University.