Asian Studies

This course delves into labor in China through an anthropological lens and pays attention to various aspects, including skill and livelihood; institution and reform; culture and technology, and gender and family, based on relevant literature and first-hand fieldwork materials obtained through the teacher’s research. The concept of "labor" is not confined to Marxism, but it is extended by specific materials from anthropological labor studies. The course aims not only to lead students to master multiple situations of labor in the Chinese context, but also encourages a reflexive exploration of students finding their own positions in society.

This course examines the East Asian philosophical and religious traditions of Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism both from an internal perspective – how did each tradition represent its own values, goals, practices and methods of devotion – and external perspectives – how did the traditions spread across the East Asian subcontinent, assimilate with traditional cultural norms, and influence art and architecture. In addition to these so-called “three teachings,” we also discuss popular religion in South-east Asia, new combinatory religions such as Aum Shinrikyo and Cao Đài, and the impact of East Asian religious ideas on the West. We will also address religion in modern times, understanding how traditions continue to carve out roles for themselves in a secular world.

This course examines city and representation in Asia. Our period focus is the uneven context of modernization. The course will roughly cover developments beginning in the 1850s through the 1970s (and today). Topics discussed will include geography, landscape, and the inscription and uses of historical memory (The Past City); modernism and the rise of urban culture in the twentieth century (The Modernist City); urban forms in the age of imperialism (The Colonial City); and developmentalism and its critique in the post-war/post-independence periods (The City of the Future). it concludes with an exploration of diasporic formations, including in Vancouver—The Diasporic City.

This course examines various arts and themes from a region now called Asia, from the past to the present. Rather than providing a chronological or regional survey, it is designed to introduce students to the similarities and differences among cultures, their histories, and the skills needed to critically analyze visual materials from these regions. The primary focus will be on China, allowing students to utilize external resources such as museums and art galleries in Hong Kong. The course aims to highlight key ideas and themes in Asian art history, including how these concepts are transmitted, adapted, and transformed across different regions. Students will gain insights into fundamental aspects of Asian art, such as Buddhism, the Confucian code of authority, the significance of ink and brush painting, and contemporary art discussions that have global impact. 

This class will focus on the topic of "how to understand the traditional Taijiquan", and both philosophical and practical perspectives will be discussed by mind and felt by body. On the philosophical side, the Taijiquan's special concepts (inner Qi - inner energy), methods("If you feel comfortable then you are right"), thinking way (forget yourself and just follow your opponent), theory system (get a will by your mind, get Qi by your will, to move by your Qi ) will be discussed to show a panoramic view of traditional Taijiquan, which also with the comparative discussion between Chinese "Gongfu (kung fu) philosophy" and western philosophy.

This course explores contemporary Korean popular culture with an emphasis on drama and film, following the trajectory of the Korean wave (hallyu) with the framework of cultural translation. The course is designed to enable students to understand contested terrains in which the Korean new wave has been shaped: transnational cultural reception and national history, socio-historical, and political context of the Korean wave. Throughout the course students will learn how to analyze both of the Korean wave and their own reception of it as cultural translators.

Focusing on the cases of Taiwan, China, South Korea, and Japan, this class explores how different governance systems address social inequalities, and how Mainland China differs from its East Asian counterparts. This course is divided into two parts. The first part consists of lectures, discussions, and a data analysis workshop aimed at helping students gain theoretical and data knowledge on governance and social inequalities in East Asia. The second part of the course introduces students to comparative methods aimed at understanding different cases using empirical studies focused on East Asia; additionally, students will be invited to present conduct their own comparisons on governance and social inequalities in East Asia.    

Anthropological studies on China emerged from various directions in the last century. This course is designed to gain a deeper understanding of China through various anthropological lenses, including studies on the Han nationality, which focuses on ancient poetry; village community and economic life; familism; clan; folk religion; private life, and also studies on ethnic minorities conducted by multiple anthropological methods. The works of these anthropologists also mirror the evolution of the anthropology discipline and its changing paradigms during the 20th century. Through reading and discussing these anthropological works with different focuses, students are expected to form a comprehensive understanding of both China and anthropology. 

This course examines China’s changing international relationships in Asia and beyond through frameworks and concepts in the international relations literature. Part I sets out the context, Part II examines some of the main approaches in international relations, while Part III applies these to questions of regionalism in East Asia, maritime politics, and the Belt and Road Initiative.

This course examines the connections between different cinemas within East Asia and between East Asia and the rest of the world from a genre perspective. Hong Kong and Korean film noir, Chinese swordplay and Japanese samurai films, horror films from Hong Kong and Japan: all are examples of the transnational circulation of genres, involving processes of both localization and globalization. Students will be invited to explore genre theory, trace complex webs of creative influences, and appreciate the sameness and difference that characterize both genre films and our globalizing world. They will also have a chance to apply this new knowledge in practice, by making a short “genre film” for screening at the end of the term.