Asian Studies

This course examines the impact of Zen thought and practice on Japanese culture. It covers proto-Zen from India to China; the transmission and development of Zen in Japan; and Zen’s influence on the aesthetics of everyday objects, experience, and judgments including architecture, landscaping, arts, literature, spirituality, and lifestyle.

Is Chinese philosophy incommensurable with Western philosophy, or is there a philosophy in general? There are stereotypes (opinions) about Chinese philosophy, and this course examines the truth of Chinese philosophy in particular and the truth of philosophy in general. This course introduces classical (pre-Qin) Confucianism and Legalism; investigates the problems the pre-Qin Confucian and Legalist philosophers try to answer, what their answers are, whether the answers are coherent within one text and how these answers are related to each other; and examines how these philosophical texts address philosophical problems, that is, problems that transcend a particular people, a particular time, and a particular locale. By comparing these philosophers' answers to those by other philosophers (Chinese or non-Chinese), students see the merits and problems of these answers that are still relevant today.

This course introduces the spread of Buddhist art and culture throughout South, Central, and Southeast Asia, including Tibet, by examining related architectures, sculptures and paintings. Each art history period from each region is closely examined throughout the duration of the course. Lecture topics include South Asia: the Early Period, Gandhara, Gupta period, Amaravati, Pala Period, Anuradhapura; and Polonnaruwa; Central Asia topics include areas include Afghanistan and West Turkistan; Southeast Asia topics include the Early Period, Sumatera and Java, Bagan, Angkor and Champa, and Thailand. The course concludes with discussion on Nepal and Tibet.

Lacking the basic grammar of “Western” modern constitutionalism, such as the separation of powers and judicial constitutional review, the Chinese constitutional law is key to understanding many controversies about China in the international community, especially those concerning human rights protection and the governance of autonomous regions (such as Xinjiang and Tibet) and special administrative regions (notably Hong Kong). To help better understand the characteristics of China's political and legal system and reflect on the role of the constitution in a state and how it should be enforced, this course provides a comprehensive introduction to the historical trajectory of constitution making and amending in China, the features of the current constitution, and the latest developments of its implementation, understood in the social, political, and economic contexts of China and from a comparative perspective vis-à-vis the “West.” At the same time, the course introduces some basic concepts in legal theory and constitutional law, as well as various approaches of comparative legal studies.

This course deals with premodern, modern, and contemporary Korean history from a global and historical perspective.