We’ll take an extensive look at the Tale of Genji (Genji monogatari). This novel was written by a woman, Murasaki Shikibu, in the early years of the eleventh century. Almost since the moment of its publication (copied by hand as a manuscript), readers have proclaimed it to be a masterpiece, and it has inspired generations of visual artists, and it has left an indelible mark on Japanese culture.
Table of Contents
- Slides
- Readings and class prep
- Assignments
- Extra Credit Tasks
- Where to Get Assistance?
Slides
Readings
Wednesday:
Ettinger 212, 11AM.
- “Murasaki Shikibu: On the Art of Fiction.” In Sources of Japanese Tradition, Volume One: From Earliest Times to 1600. 2nd edition, edited by Ryūsaku Tsunoda, Wm. Theodore De Bary, and Donald Keene, 201-202. New York: Columbia University Press, 2002.
- pp. 221-222: “Murasaki Shikibu: On the Art of Fiction” (PDF)
- Helen Craig McCullough, translator. Genji & Heike: Selections from The Tale of Genji and The Tale of Heike, Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1994.
- Kiritsubo (Palawnia Court) This is the opening of the novel.
Friday
Ettinger 212, 11am
- Helen Craig McCullough, translator. Genji & Heike: Selections from The Tale of Genji and The Tale of Heike, Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1994.
- The Broom Tree (start at “It was a hushed evening…”) Genji and his friends start talking about women, and what they imagine their ideal woman to be
- Aoi: Two women vie for the attention and affection of Genji, but of course within the confined/confining court system of Heian.
Assignments
1. 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).
2. Reminder: 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 |
3. Feedback with Hypothes.is
3 points, due Feb. 22, 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 5 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. |
4. Blog post (content week 6)
5 points, due Mon. Feb. 27, 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 6” 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 6 in the title, and added the post to category hst267 |
5. Show and Tell 2:
20 points, due Mon Feb.27, 11:59PM
Find all the details on the dedicated webpage (this helps me to keep the weekly schedule a bit more clutter-free).
Extra Credit tasks
EC6-1. Extra commenting
2 points, due by Sunday, Feb. 26, 11.59pm
Do you like reading your colleagues’ work? Do you like helping them out by identifying ways to make their posts better? Here’s some good news! You can earn extra credit by doing extra commenting! This assignment will be available regularly throughout the semester.
- Go to the Blog Stream of the Class
- Pick a post that piques your curiosity and that you have not yet commented on
- Use Hypothes.is group HST267, and leave feedback as we practiced with the Architects’s model
- Pick 2 other posts: they can come from other students in the blog stream, or if you like the writer, you can stay with them and comment more.
- The only conditions are
- that you do not comment on blog posts you already commented on before, as part of your regular weekly tasks.
- that the post is actually written for HST267, and not some other class. Check the category, and the content 🙃
- Add the tag extra to the comment (this helps me to keep track of how many people use this option.)
When you’re done, please read this declaration carefully and then collect your points on Canvas with the Declaration Quiz.
| Declaration |
|---|
| I selected three blogs I have not yet commented on before, from our class’ blog stream, and I used 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 added the tag extra to my Hypothes.is comments. |
| I left comments that I would like to receive myself: thoughtful, helpful, kind, but also pointing out errors so they can be fixed. |
EC6-2: (Creative Commons) Image Search
3 points, due by Sunday, Feb. 26, 11.59pm.
Find all the details for this exercise on how to find images in the Public Domain or licensed to use free of copy-right, on this dedicated webpage. You will also find the link to the declaration quiz there.
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
