Undergraduates:

Katsu-Fukuzawa Comparison............30%

Book Critique.................................... 20%

Final Project Paper.............................50%

Graduate Students:

Katsu-Fukuzawa Comparison................20%

Book Critique.........................................10%

Oral Presentation....................................30%

Final Project Paper.................................40%

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:

Katsu-Fukuzawa Comparison:

Both graduate and undergraduate students are responsible for writing a 3-5 page paper analyzing the authors of Musui's Story and The Autobiography of Fukuzawa Yukichi and the eras in which they lived. Papers should focus on the questions: 1) how similar and/or different are the characters or personalities of Katsu and Fukuzawa, 2) how are their lives and/or characters changed by the eras they lived in. Two related questions you might also want to consider and possibly include are 1) what would have happened to each if their situations were reversed, and 2) what are your own beliefs about how much of one's fate is determined by oneself and how much by external factors.

Comparisons are due: Apr. 27

Book Critiques:

Both graduate and undergraduate students are responsible for writing one book critique on either The Pacific War or Lizard. If you write the first and are not happy with your grade, you may write the second. If you write both I will use the higher grade.

You are welcome to approach these book critiques any way you like but they must include 1) a brief synopsis of what the book is about, 2) some basic information on the author, 3) a clear and accurate statement on the author's thesis, theses or opinion[s], 4) at least three examples the author uses to support her/his view, and 5) your opinion of the book and the reasons for that opinion.

Book critiques are due on the following dates:

The Pacific War: May 13

Lizard: June 3

Personal Project: Both graduate students and undergraduates are responsible for developing and researching a personal project which will be turned in as a paper at the end of the class. The choice of topic is up to you, but it must fall within the parameters of the era covered in this class.

Undergraduates are expected to write an 8-10 page paper on this topic.

Graduate Students are expected to write a 15-20 page paper on this topic and present a rough draft to the class in oral form on the date assigned. Class members are expected to offer suggestions at that time. Graduate presentations should be no less than 30 minutes. More time will be accorded you if that is possible.

LECTURE AND READING SCHEDULE

Mar. 30: Introduction

Apr. 1: NO CLASS

Meiji and Taisho Japan

Read:, Hane, pp. 42-244 ; Katsu, all, Fukuzawa, all.

Apr. 6: Bakumatsu

Apr. 8: The Meiji Restoration: Revolution from Above

Apr. 13: The Meiji Restoration: Revolution from Below

Apr. 15: Images of Meiji

Apr. 20: The Russo-Japanese War and the Rise of the Japanese Empire

Apr. 22: Democrats, Dissidents and Radicals

The Expanding War

Read: Hane, pp. 245-340; Ienaga, all.

Apr. 27: The Young Officers

Apr. 29: The War in China

May 4: Pearl Harbor and World War II

May 6: Fat Man and Little Boy

May 11: Images of the War

Postwar Japan

Read: Hane, pp. 341-end; Yoshimoto, all

May 13: The Democratization of Japan

May 18: The Reverse Course and the Cold War

May 20: The Second Miracle

May 25: Corporate Samurai

May 27: Geisha, Office Flowers and Housewives?

June 1: Graduate Presentations

June 3: Graduate Presentations