Students will be assigned short questions on most (but not
every) Friday to accompany the Wednesday readings. Answers must be typed
and turned in the following Wednesday. Late submissions will be accepted
but not for full credit. Answers will be graded on a scale of 1-5.
The purpose of these questions is to help students focus on their readings.
Additionally, two short essays will be required. The first,
3-5 pages, will be due on October 1. Students will be assigned a
topic of this essay. The second, due on December 3, will be a report
on contemporary Japanese culture. Students may select a topic of
their own interest: education, mass media, gender bias, pornography, abortion,
reactions to the atomic bomb, the portrayal of Japan in American media,
and so on. These reports, of 5-8 pages, should evidence reading in a least
two outside sources. In all written work, students must adhere to
the Academic Integrity Statement. Please consult the Course Listings
for a copy of the Statement. These essays must be turned in on time
for full credit.
NOTEWORTHY PAPERS
HOMEWORK
Fall 2001
QUESTION SET # 1
Based on your readings in Morton, pp. 35-48 and the Course pack, pp.
33-40, answer the following. Your answers (typed) are due on Wednesday,
September
5, 2001.
1. Who was Sugawara no Michizane and what was his fate?
2. Who was Fujiwara no Michinaga and what strategies did he practice
to consolidate and maintain his power?
3. After considering the selection of poems in the Course pack (from
The Tales of Ise and the Kokinshû), what would you say were the main
concerns of Japanese poetry in the Heian period?
EXTRA CREDIT—visit the Japanese Festival at the Missouri Botanical Gardens
and describe one or two of the events you encountered.
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QUESTION SET #2
Based on your readings in Morton, pp. 89-103, consider the answers to
the following questions. Write your answer to ONE. Your answer
(typed) should consist of approximately one page and is due on
Wednesday, September 19, 2001.
1. During the period of the Ashikaga Shogunate, what role did
temples and shrines play in the advancement of the economy?
2. How did the Ashikaga period differ politically from that of the Kamakura
and Heian eras?
3. Examine the ink painting by Sesshu below and describe how it represents
the aesthetic tastes of the Ashikaga period. How do these tastes
differ from those of the earlier Heian period?
For more information on the Ashikaga Period, check the following links:
Feudal
Japan
Ashikaga
Digest
Background
1
Background
2
Medieval
Culture--a Timeline
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QUESTION SET 3
Japanese Civilization
Fall 2001
Based on your readings in Morton, pp. 123-135, consider the
answers to the following questions. Write your answer to ONE.
Your answer (typed) should consist of approximately one page and is due
on Wednesday, September 26, 2001.
1. What measures did the Tokugawa Shogunate take to maintain its authority
and ensure order? Why did it deem these particular measures necessary?
What do you think were the repercussions of these measures?
2. What became of Christians during the Tokugawa era? Why were
these measures taken? What was Japan’s response to the rest of the
world during this era?
3. What became of the samurai during this age of peace? How did
Confucianism effect their lives?
EXTRA CREDIT: Attend the East Asian Symposium (or part
of it) this Saturday from 1:00-5:00 in the Woman’s Building Formal Lounge.
Briefly describe what was discussed and why you think it is significant
to our understanding of East Asia today? Kyoko Mori’s works will
be discussed from 1:00 to 2:30, followed by a refreshment break.
We will discuss Chen-yi Chang’s work from 3:00. Please join some or all
of the event!
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QUESTION SET 4
Japanese Civilization
October 17, 2001
After watching the video on October 19, 2001 (Friday) and reading
Morton, pp. 203-211, answer the following:
1. What was ultimately the original mission of the Occupation?
2. How was the Post War Japanese Constitution drafted? And how
was it received?
3. The Occupation is generally said to fall into two distinct phases,
that of 1945-1948 and that of 1948-1952. What were the causes for
the shift in Occupation strategies and interests?
Read Kojima Nobuo’s story “The American School” in your coursepack.
This story is acknowledged for its devastating irony. With this in
mind, answer the following:
4. Who are the three main characters in the story and what ulterior
motives do they harbor that ultimately lead to the final scene?
Answers are due on MONDAY, October 22, 2001.
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QUESTION SET 5
Japanese Civilization
October 22, 2001
Please answer the following questions based on your readings
in Hendry's Understanding Japanese Society, pp. 42-48, 55; Sugimoto,
An
Introduction to Japanese Society, pp. 25-29; and and the Watsuji Tetsuro
essayAnswers are due on Friday, October 26, 2001.
1. What do social anthropologists mean by the terms: uchi/soto?
2. What is depicted in the picture below? What happens here
and how does it exemplify uchi/soto?
This image was taken from the following website:
http://www.nime.ac.jp/athome/basics/guest/index2.html
For more about uchi/soto, consult this site and the following:
http://www.nime.ac.jp/athome/basics/outside/index.html
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QUESTION SET 6
Japanese Civilization
November 9, 2001
Read Sugimoto pp, 136-168; Hendry, pp, 149-167; and Chizuko
Ueno's essay "Women and Family in Transition" in your course pack, and
answer the following questions. Answers are due on Wednesday,
November 14, 2001.
1. What is meant by the "M" curve?
2. When was the Equal Employment Opportunity Law passed in Japan?
Does it insure women equal access to and opportunity in employment?
Support your answer.
3. According to Chizuko Ueno, what attitudes do young college-age
women express towards marriage in Japan today and why?
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The following contains homework assignments for last year. Students
in Japanese Civilization, Fall 2001, are not required to complete these
assignments. However, you might want to refer to them and check the
questions here against what you have covered.