ANTH 335  Japanese Culture & Society

Fall 2005

TuTh 9:30-10:45

Rm: LA3-106

Code #1114

 

 

Instructor:  Eugene E. Ruyle

Office: FO5-231

Tel: (562) 985-5364

Email: eruyle@csulb.edu

Office Hours:  Th 8-9,
and by appointment

 

 

Japanese Culture and Society

 

Catalog: Description: Cultural and social institutions, kinship, family structure, religion, law, politics, and economy from traditional to modern times.

 

COURSE OBJECTIVES

This course is designed to provide a general introduction to Japanese culture and society as objects of scientific inquiry through examination of the major problems in the analysis of historical and contemporary sociocultural systems in Japan.  It is also intended to acquaint students with the major research strategies, analytical tools, and theoretical perspectives of social science.

An important aspect of this course is that it is taught from the scientific perspective of historical materialism (i.e. Marxism).  The unfamiliarity of this perspective for most students should prove challenging.

TEXTBOOKS

 

Japan: Its History and Culture,  by W. Scott Morton.  New York: McGraw-Hill.
 4th Edition, 2004.

 

Japan and the Pacific Rim, 7th Edition, by Dean W. Collinwood. McGraw-Hill/Dushkin, 2004. (Global Studies Series)

 

(additional required readings may be added during the course of the semester)

 

CONTACTING THE INSTRUCTOR

The best way to contact me is by talking to me after class. You may also: 1. e-mail  me at:  eruyle@csulb.edu (Be sure to begin your Subject heading with ANTH 335, otherwise I may miss it)., or 2. call my office at 562 985-5364 and leave a message on my Voice Mail, Please do not call the Department Secretary, as she will only leave me a note which I may not receive for a few days.

As indicated above, my Office Hours are on Thursdays from 8-9 am. I am available at other times by appointment only.

You can access my web page at: < http://www.cuyleruyle.com/ >, where you will find some course material and other writings of interest.

 

 

REQUIRED WORK

1.   Class Participation & Achievement:  Regular class attendance is a course requirement. In addition to the videos, important material that is not covered in the textbook and readings will be presented in lecture, and there may also be changes in the course syllabus which will be announced in lecture. Most of the material to be covered will be unfamiliar to you, so regular class attendance will give you an opportunity to discuss facts and theories that may seem difficult. Attendance at all the student reports is mandatory. Attendance will be taken at unspecified times. Your class participation and achievement score will normally be the same as your average midterm score, with adjustments as appropriate. As indicated below, it will count approximately one fifth of your grade in the course.

 

2.   Examinations:  There will be two midterm exams, with both objective (T/F, multiple choice, matching) and essay questions. There will also be a final exam which will be comprehensive and cover the entire course.  The final will be  similar to the midterms. The lowest of your three exam scores [two midterms and one final exam] scores will be dropped. This means that you will not have to take the final exam if you are content with your scores on the two midterms. Taken together, the examinations will count approximately two fifths of your grade in the course

3.   Term Paper/Oral Report Project: This project is designed to give you an opportunity to investigate more deeply some topic of interest to you and present the results of your investigation to the class in an oral report.  It will involve four stages: (1) a Paper Proposal, due in the second week of class, (2) a Penultimate Draft, due one week after the First Midterm, and (3)  an Oral Report, to be scheduled between the 9th and 13th weeks of class (4)  a Final Draft, due in the 13th week of class.  Further information will be made available within the first few weeks of class. The Term Paper/Oral Report Project will count approximately two fifths of your grade.

TURNING IN WORK

Please note that all work must be turned in at the beginning of class on the date due. Worked turned in by other methods may not reach me and may be considered late. Work will not be accepted by email or fax.

 

GRADES

The following scale will be used to guide the instructor in assignment of grades, with adjustments as appropriate:

 

                                                                                     Total        Lowest     Lowest     Lowest    Lowest

                                                      Possible         A             B             C            D

 

              Class Partic & Achieve:       100                 90                 80                 70                 60

             3 Exams (dropping one):       200              180              160              140              120

                  Report Project (total):       200              180              160              140              120

                        [Paper Proposal]:          20                 18                 16                 14                 12

                     [Penultimate Draft]:          60                 54                 48                 42                 36

                               [Oral Report]:          60                 54                 48                 42                 36

                                 [Final Draft]:          60                 54                 48                 42                 36

                                        TOTAL:       500              450              400              350              300

 

Term Paper/Oral Report Project

 

The Oral Report/Term Paper Project is an integral part of the course.  It is designed to give you an opportunity to investigate some particular topic on your own, write an intelligent essay on your findings, and communicate them to your fellow students  Your paper should be about 2500- words (or about 10 typewritten, double-spaced pages), as appropriate to the topic.

You should plan to use a word processor to complete your paper. If you do not know how to use a word processor, this is an excellent time to learn. Your paper should be left justified. Do not use right justification. Be sure to use the spell checker (but also proofread your paper). Also, include a word count at the end of your paper.

Your work will be graded on form as well as content.  Spelling, grammar, and the general appearance of your finished work are all important.  It is also important that you develop a clear, concise writing style.  If you have problems with writing, you may wish to consult UniversityÕs WriterÕs Resource Lab, LAB 212, 985-4329 for assistance.

Your paper should be double spaced and stapled at the upper left hand corner.  Do not use any special folders, they only cost you money and are more trouble for me. 

Citations and bibliographic references, including internet and electronic sources, must follow the APA style. which is an Òauthor-dateÓ system. In this style of citation, the author's last name, date of publication, and page number are cited within parentheses in the text, e.g., (Ruyle, 1986, p. 3). Footnotes should be avoided. This is an efficient citation method since it enables readers to see the source and date of your citation without interrupting their line of thought. All your cited sources should be included in a special ÒReferences CitedÓ section at the end of your paper, arranged alphabetically by authorÕs last name.

The items in your References Cited section should also be in APA style, but with the following additions: 1. each of your sources must be evaluated in terms of its reliability, and 2. you must email me a copy of your References Cited section with the URL of each source formatted so that I can access it by clicking on it.

Particular attention should be paid to eliminating sexist terminology from your writing.  The use of "man" for "human," "men" for "people," and "mankind" for "humanity" is not acceptable in this course.  Also, do not use male pronouns (he, his) to refer to both men and women.

You are free to choose any topic you wish, as long as it is related to the subject matter of the course.  You may define your topic as broadly (e.g. World Hunger: Causes and Consequences) or as narrowly (The Price of Rice in China: 1945-1965) as you wish, but you should be able to say something interesting and meaningful within your paper.

Both your paper proposal and both drafts of your paper should include the dates they were completed and submitted to the instructor.

 

 Paper Proposal:  Your paper proposal will be due during the second week of class and returned to you the following week. This should be a brief description of your project, indicating why you have chosen this topic and how it is related to the course material. It should include a title, date, abstract, and short bibliography. This will ensure that you do indeed have an appropriate topic for research. It will also give me a chance to comment on the appropriateness of your topic and make suggestions as to content and bibliography. If you have a preference as to a date, be sure to include this, and I will try to accommodate you. All of this information should be included on ONE page.

Your Paper Proposal will be graded and returned to you the following week with my comments. Your Paper Proposal, Penultimate Draft, Oral Report, and Final Draft will each receive a letter grade and corresponding points as indicated in the Grade Scale in the Course Syllabus..

 

Penultimate Draft:  The penultimate draft is normally due one week after the First Midterm. This is NOT a "rough draft."  You should attempt to make it as complete and as polished as you can.   Attach your paper proposal, with instructor's comments, to your term paper.  Turn in the original, but be sure to keep a xeroxed copy in case your paper is lost. 

I will read your paper carefully and make suggestions about how you can improve it.  These suggestions may include suggestions for further research, additional areas you need to explore, and points that your need to document. I will also comment on your writing style and other technical aspects of the preparation of your Penultimate Draft. You may be asked to shorten or lengthen your paper. These comments should form the basis for your revisions in your final draft. Your Penultimate Draft will receive a letter grade and corresponding points as indicated in the Grade Scale in the Course Syllabus..

I suggest that, after you read over my comments, you schedule a meeting with me to discuss your paper and how you might best proceed.

 

Oral Report: Your Oral Report should be based on your Penultimate Draft, with appropriate revision based on my comments but it may take a different format as appropriate. Your Oral Report will be given a letter grade and an appropriate number of points as indicated above. Oral Reports will be scheduled during the 10th through the 12th week of class. Although the scheduling of reports will be open to some negotiation, once the schedule has been set, you MUST give your report when scheduled and you must attend all other reports.

 

Final Draft:  The final draft of your term paper will be due in the 14th week of class, one week before the Second Midterm. Your Final Draft should involve extensive revisions based upon my comments on your Penultimate Draft and class discussion of your Oral Report. Normally, you should plan to spend as much time revising for the Final Draft as you did on the Penultimate Draft.

You should turn in both your Penultimate Draft and your Paper Proposal with your final draft, but please do not staple them together.  Don't forget to keep Xerox copies of all your work!

The Final Draft  of your paper will receive a letter grade and a corresponding number of points. As indicated above the Final Draft will be weighted the same as your Penultimate Draft.

 

 

Abbreviations Used in Commenting on Papers and Midterm Essays

 

Although I try to make useful comments on your papers, past experience has shown that most students find these completely illegible and incomprehensible.  Accordingly, I have developed the following abbreviations to improve communications on your papers and midterm essays:

 

                                      AWK       -      awkward sentence structure or wording

                                       UNC       -      unclear

                                          CIT       -      citation?

                                               ?       -      questionable spelling, grammar, or content

                                           CA              canÕt access your source, usually internet

                                           BS       -      self explanatory

 

 

 

 

 

Tentative Schedule of course Work, Fall 2005

 

 

Part One: An Anthropological Introduction to Japan

 

1           Tue     Aug 30           course introduction

              Thu     Sep 1              Why Study Japan
Video: Lost in Translation (14 min)

 

2           Tue     Sep 6              Outcastism
Video: Hidden Japan (20 min)

              Thu     Sep 8              Outcastism
Video: Japan's Royal Family (25 min

 

3           Tue     Sep 13           Sanrizuka: The Anti- Airport Struggle
Slide show on Sanrizuka (28 min)

              Thu     Sep 15           Sanrizuka: The Anti- Airport Struggle
Paper Proposals Due

 

4           Tue     Sep 20           Why Anthropology? Why Marxism?
Video: Japan: Tarnished Miracle (18 min)

              Thu     Sep 22           Japan: Race, Language, & Culture

 

5           Tue     Sep 27           Japan: Race, Language, & Culture

              Thu     Sep 29           Japan: Race, Language, & Culture

 

6           Tue     Oct 4               Japan: Race, Language, & Culture

              Thu     Oct 6               FIRST MIDTERM

 

 

          

 

Part Two: Japanese Cultural Evolution

 

7           Tue     Oct 11            Japanaese Cultural Evolution
Video: Early Japan I (30 min)

              Thu     Oct 13            Japanaese Cultural Evolution
Video: Early Japan II (30 min)
Penuulimate Drafts due

 

8           Tue     Oct 18            Japanaese Cultural Evolution
Video: Feudal Japan I (30 min)

              Thu     Oct 20            Japanaese Cultural Evolution
Video: Feudal Japan II (30 min)

 

9           Tue     Oct 25            Meiji Restoration

                                                      Video: Meiji [1] (25 min)

              Thu     Oct 27            Meiji Restoration

                                                      Video: Meiji [2] (25 min)

 

10        Tue     Nov 1              oral reports - (4)

              Thu     Nov 3              oral reports - (4)

                                                                       

11        Tue     Nov 8              oral reports - (4)

              Thu     Nov 10           oral reports - (4)

                                                                       

12        Tue     Nov 15           oral reports - (4)

              Thu     Nov 17           oral reports - (4)

 

13        Tue     Nov 22           Western & Japanese Imperialism in Conflict

                                                      Video: tba [on Hiroshima?]

              Thu     Nov 24           Thanksgiving

 

14        Tue     Nov 29           Lecture: The American Occupation

                                                      Video: Reinventing Japan [1] (25 min)

              Thu     Dec 1              Lecture: The American Occupation

                                                      Video: Reinventing Japan [2] (25 min)
Final Drafts Due

 

15        Tue     Dec 6              Lecture: Contemporary Japan

                                                      Video: tba

         Thu   Dec 8         SECOND MIDTERM

Grades will be posted as soon as possible after the Second Midterm. Students are strongly urged to consult these ASAP to determine whether they wish to take the Optional Final Exam. I will hold special office hours during Finals Week for students who wish to discuss their performance in the course.

 

         Tue, Dec 13        (OPTIONAL) FINAL EXAMINATION  10:15-12:15 PM

The final Exam will be a two hour, essay-style exam, covering the entire course.   As indicated above, the Final Exam will be optional.

 

 

Grades will be posted within hours of the Final Examination. Students are strongly urged to consult these ASAP to confirm their grades before they are submitted to the Office of Enrollment Services.

 

Grade reports will be mailed by the Office of Enrollment Services approximately three weeks after the end of the Final Exam period. Students wishing earlier written notification may leave a  stamped, self-addressed grade report postcard with me at the Final Exam

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have an Ichi-ban Semester!