At long last, Japan’s extensive love affair with China seems over –– gone, but far from forgotten! The influence of the cultural, political and economic giant to the west continues to looms large in the collective memory of the Japanese long after the last missions were sent to the Tang court (or in 894: were canceled).
This week, we level up our library and research skills, and we look at Heian literature. Next week we get a whole week with the Tale of Genji and it still won’t be enough to appreciate this fine court novel from the later part of the Heian.
Table of Contents
- Slides
- Readings and class prep
- Assignments
- Extra Credit Tasks
- Where to Get Assistance?
Slides
- Feb. 15
- Feb. 17: Heian (part 2)
Readings
Wednesday: Meet in Trexler Library B01
11AM. Prepare before class:
- Please install Zotero and the connector before we meet. We recommend not signing up with your Muhlenberg email so you’ll maintain access to the group library after graduation too.
- Use Kelly’s handy tutorial, and if need be: consult the help pages for Installation and Quick Start guide. If it really doesn’t work, we will try to get you sorted during the session, or you can visit Kelly or Jess (Denke) in the library, they are pretty good at getting people started.
- Don’t worry about the group library yet. I will invite you to our course’s group library nearer the time.
Friday
Back to the usual: Ettinger 212, 11am
- Japan Emerging: Premodern History to 1850, edited by Karl F. Friday. New York, NY: Routledge, 2018. https://muhlenberg.on.worldcat.org/oclc/787849954.
- Part 3: Chapter14
- Alternative to Japan Emerging: Varley, H. Paul. Japanese Culture. Fourth edition, updated and expanded. Honolulu: University of Hawaiʻi Press, 2000.
- pp. 58-76 (from “Of all the arts that flourished…” to the end of the chapter); skim pp. 64-67, we will go into more detail in the Tale of Genji next week.
- Selection from the Kokinshu (Collection of Ancient and Modern Poems). From: Shirane, Haruo, ed. Traditional Japanese Literature : An Anthology, Beginnings to 1600. Abridged ed. Translations from the Asian Classics. New York: Columbia University Press, 2012. (PDF)
- For the poetry fans: a selection of poems with extensive footnotes.
- For some more info on the aesthetics of Heian literature, see this entry in the Encyclopedia of Medieval Literature, e.g. the sense of miyabi or mono no aware.
Pick one of the following two short stories (fiction)
- “The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter” (Taketori monogatari).In Traditional Japanese Literature : An Anthology, Beginnings to 1600. Abridged ed., edited by Haruo Shirane. Translations from the Asian Classics. New York: Columbia University Press, 2012. (PDF)
- Guiding questions: The introduction to the tale states “the author uses satire to reveal the greed, duplicity, pretense, excessive attachment and materialism of the different suitors, to expose their excessive belief in the power of calculation.” Where in the text can you see specific examples of this? Is the writer using this tale to send a message to the Heian aristocracy? Why (not)?
- “Minister Kibi’s Adventures in China”, from Reider, Noriko T. Seven Demon Stories from Medieval Japan. Logan: Utah State University Press, 2016. (PDF)
- The story is set during the Tang dynasty, but was created in the late twelfth century, long after the official missions to Tang China had ceased in 894 (and after the demise of the Tang in 907 CE)
- Questions: What does the story tell you about the way the Japanese see their earlier relation with China? Give concrete examples from the text. Does this view differ from what you learned earlier about the relations between China and Japan? If so, what do you think caused that change?
- Useful additional material: excerpts from the “Minister Kibi’s Adventures in China” scroll, MFA. (Gdrive folder)
Assignments
1. Reminder: Blog post (content week 4)
5 points, due Mon. Feb. 13, 11:59PM
Write a blog post exploring themes or ideas based on your reading. You do not need to have all the answers. In fact, learning to ask good analytical or research questions is a skill you can develop during the semester. Remember the description of the assignment from the syllabus.
- Length: approx. 400 words. excl. list of materials consulted.
- Add the list of materials consulted at the end of the post, in Chicago notes and bibliography style.
- TOP TIP: Just copy the bibliography information from the Reading list on this webpage, do not add the descriptive notes I provide for your information.
- Add the words “Week 4” in the title.
- Please use this exact phrase, so your post will show up in the blog stream.
- Indicate which Exploration Pack you chose. [not applicable this week]
- Include a relevant image, and add a caption with the source/credit, and an Alt text description
- Post on your website, and add to the category hst267.
When you’re done, read this declaration carefully and then fill out the Canvas quiz to collect your points.
| Declaration |
|---|
| – I wrote a post of approximately 400 words in response to the readings. |
| – I included the bibliographic references for the materials I used for my post. |
| – I indicated which Exploration Pack I chose. [not applicable this week] |
| – I included an image, and I provided a caption and credit (source), and an Alt text description for the image. |
| – I use the words Week 4 in the title, and added the post to category hst267 |
2. Feedback with Hypothes.is
3 points, due Feb. 15, 11:59pm
Below you find links to three blog posts from your fellow students. If one of the websites is your own, or it is twice the same person’s, refresh the page, and you should get new sites. Any of the posts that appear here are fair game for commenting, even if they are about earlier weeks: those posts came in after the first deadline.
- Post 1:
- Post 2:
- Post 3:
Leave feedback, questions, thoughts, insights about the contents of the posts of your fellow students using Hypothes.is group HST267. You can ask for clarifications, point out similarities and differences with the material you covered, or with your interpretation. This should encourage you to dive a bit deeper in the materials, or visit those you did not read at first.
Use tags in Hypothes.is: question: If you have a question; answered: if you gave an answer to a question; info: if you provide more information, looking up additional facts, drawing on knowledge from other classes; and other tags you can think of. This will help us to navigate more quickly to the questions that still need answering.
Use the “Architect’s Model” of giving feedback, and engage with concrete issues. Go beyond “Yeah, I agree,” “I like” or “I think the same”, and instead explain why you have that reaction, or if you disagree, you can try to persuade the original poster of your idea or interpretation.
Remember that Hypothes.is allows for hyperlinks, e.g. to materials that support your argument, or you can include pictures (memes! [yes, there she is again]), videos etc. that help the original poster to learn more.
When you’re done, read this declaration carefully, and then fill out the Canvas quiz to collect your points.
| Declaration |
|---|
| – I commented on three fellow students’ weekly blog post on Week 4 materials, using the Hypothes.is group HST267. |
| – I made sure to leave substantial comments that help the writer to improve the post, or to identify their strengths. |
| – I left comments that I would like to receive myself: thoughtful, helpful, kind, but also pointing out errors so they can be fixed. |
3. Blog post (content week 5)
5 points, due Mon. Feb. 20, 11:59PM
Write a blog post exploring themes or ideas based on your reading. You do not need to have all the answers. In fact, learning to ask good analytical or research questions is a skill you can develop during the semester. Remember the description of the assignment from the syllabus.
- Length: approx. 400 words. excl. list of materials consulted.
- Add the list of materials consulted at the end of the post, in Chicago notes and bibliography style.
- TOP TIP: Just copy the bibliography information from the Reading list on this webpage, do not add the descriptive notes I provide for your information.
- Add the words “Week 5” in the title.
- Please use this exact phrase, so your post will show up in the blog stream.
- Indicate which Exploration Pack you chose. [not applicable this week]
- Include a relevant image, and add a caption with the source/credit, and an Alt text description
- Post on your website, and add to the category hst267.
When you’re done, read this declaration carefully and then fill out the Canvas quiz to collect your points.
| Declaration |
|---|
| – I wrote a post of approximately 400 words in response to the readings. |
| – I included the bibliographic references for the materials I used for my post. |
| – I indicated which Exploration Pack I chose. [not applicable this week] |
| – I included an image, and I provided a caption and credit (source), and an Alt text description for the image. |
| – I use the words Week 5 in the title, and added the post to category hst267 |
4. First Reflection
8 points, due Mon Feb. 20
Find all the details on the dedicated webpage (this helps me to keep the weekly schedule a bit more clutter-free).
Extra Credit tasks
EC5-1: Follow that Footnote!
3 points, due by Sunday, Feb. 19, 11.59pm.
Read the instructions on this separate webpage (that’s to keep the weekly schedule manageable). You’ll also find the link there to the declaration quiz. It’s not difficult, but it was complex to explain if you’ve never really thought about footnotes.
Where to get assistance?
- Tea Room on in person or on Discord:
- open anytime for you
- I will be hosting Tue 2PM-3PM; Wed. 1-2PM, or at other times by appointment via Google Calendar (usually a 15-20min appointment is enough). You can also find me in my office during Tea Room times.
- Private room for confidential chat available on request.
- Discord Text Channel #hst267
- DLAs: Digital Learning Assistants: check the schedule!
- Writing Center: Sunday-Wednesday: 3:30 – 5:30 pm and 7-11 pm; Thursday: 3:30 – 5:30 pm and 7-9 pm
- Trexler Library Course Subject Guide: our own dedicated subject guide for the course
- Safety on/around campus: report an incident
