Asian Studies

This course attempts to guide students to understand various aspects of Taiwan's modern art history through reading papers, historical materials, and actual inspections (appreciating works and on-site inspections). The course initially focuses on the transplantation and establishment of the art system in Taiwan. First, the course briefly explains the process of transplanting the concept and system of "art" to East Asia and introduces the art exhibition as the most important art exhibition in Taiwan's "art" system. The course starts from the perspective of "people" and tries to understand the representative artists and their creations related to "Taiwan" by reading papers and historical materials while analyzing them in different contexts and research perspectives.  

This course offers a holistic exploration of China's engagement in global governance, emphasizing its relationships and interactions with key regions worldwide. Students will examine China's foreign policies and initiatives, focusing on its engagements with Central Asia, Europe, Japan, Latin America, the Middle East, Russia, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. Through detailed case studies and critical analysis, students will gain insights into the multifaceted nature of China's global initiatives and their impact on regional geopolitics, economic landscapes, and diplomatic relations.

This course explores social themes in Taiwan’s recent history through the concept of “musicking.” It seeks to discover the communal meanings and effects created through a variety of sonic activities by people living on this island in recent history and contemporary times. Through careful listening and participation, the course aims to gain different perspectives and a more reflexive, embodied, and affective understanding of the social organizations and changes over the last 150 years that shape Taiwanese society today. 

This course does not to fully cover or define “Taiwanese music," but rather endeavors to understand how various themes--including community building, migrations and rights, settler-colonialism, colonial-modernity, politics and economy, ethnic identity, multi-culturalism and indigenous sovereignty, gender and sexualities, space and environments, and social activism--are voiced and enacted through diverse genres of music and dance, by the indigenous, Han, newly immigrated and visiting communities of people living in Taiwan. 

This course begins after the Republic of China government retreated to Taiwan in 1949. It discusses the cross-strait confrontation and the political and social development of the Republic of China in Taiwan, as well as the relations between Taiwan, the United States, and China during the outbreak of the Korean War. It then delves into the interaction between the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union relations.  

This course examines religion in contemporary Chinese society, emphasizing its presence and influence in everyday life. It goes beyond religious texts to immerse students in the richness of Chinese spiritual life, demonstrating how religious traditions in China are not merely philosophical concepts, but living practices that shape the everyday experiences of individuals and communities. A special feature of this course is that we will take students on visits to a variety of religious sites in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area to experience firsthand the diversity and vibrancy of religious life in China. This includes participating in meditation sessions, attending religious festivals, and learning the intricacies of the tea ceremony in a Buddhist setting. In addition to these immersive activities, the course will discuss the broader role of religion in shaping contemporary Chinese society. We will explore how religious beliefs and practices intersect with important social issues such as economics, the environment, gender, sexuality, and politics. 

This course examines the connection between modern media and Korean dramatic culture. By analyzing literary elements inherent in TV dramas, animation, and popular music, as well as elements of these genres introduced into literary works, students explore interconnectedness between literature and popular culture and gain a deeper understanding of both literature and popular culture.  

The course surveys dramatic literature trends both in relation to the media through which they are broadcast as well as the cultural, social, and historical environments in which dramas and plays are situated.  

This is a historical and critical survey of modern Chinese fiction from 1917 to 1949, with emphasis on the forms of novella and short story. 

This course examines classical Chinese literary tradition in translation by focusing on genres including fiction, poetry, essays, and biographies in relation to three major themes and traditions: 1) the fantastic, the immortal, and the ghostly; 2) the moral, the loyal, and the outlaws; and 3) the romantic, the scholar, and the beauty. Through these themes and traditions, we analyze key issues regarding the formation of literary canon in China and how Han Chinese literati define the relationship between the Han and the non-Han, male and female, lawful subjects and outlaws in the process of literary canonization.

This course examines some of the main themes and issues of Korean history and cultures since the late 1980s. We often use literature and media, including short stories, feature films, documentaries, TV, and popular music, as a vehicle for understanding contemporary Korean history, culture, and society. Among the major issues we are exploring are democratization, the legacy of national division, new generation, culture industries and hallyu, cinematic re-writing of history, IMF crisis and neoliberal culture, family and gender, narratives of women, multiculturalism, and hallyu in the digital, multi-platform era. Topics include Postwar Development of South Korea, Democratization, Minjung and Democratization Movement and New Wave Cinema, New Generation and Individualism, Sunshine Policy, The Development of Culture Industries and the Korean Wave, Discourses on the Korean Wave, Asian Financial Crisis and Its Impact on Korean Society Family and Gender Relations, Gender and Sexuality in Popular Culture, Narratives of Women, Re-writing Colonial History in Film, Multiculturalism, and Hallyu 2.0 and the Korean Wave in a Digital, Multiplatform Era.

This course examines multi-disciplinary perspectives to examine significant and complex issues of Northeast Asia in the past and present. It aims to help students understand how the historical legacy of Northeast Asia is reflected in today’s states and societies of these regions, and how political, economic, social, and cultural characteristics of Northeast Asia continue to evolve in a comprehensive way.