Japanese

This course explores how games such as Ghost of Tsushima and Rise of the Rōnin have become one of the key vehicles through which people in Japan and across the world encounter the samurai and compares these depictions to historical realities. Students investigate how and why the samurai emerged as a distinct group, how they changed across Japan’s long history and the evolving and selective nature of samurai representations. As a final project, students collaborate to design their own samurai-themed video games.

This course explores Japanese literature written in the wake of World War II, focusing on how writers grappled with the profound disruptions of defeat, occupation, memory, and reconstruction. Spanning from the immediate postwar period to contemporary works, class readings include short stories, novels, memoirs, essays, and manga by authors such as Dazai Osamu, Sakaguchi Ango, Ota Yoko, Enchi Fumiko, Oe Kenzaburo, and Kono Fumiyo. The course also considers broader historical and cultural contexts through critical texts such as John Dower’s Embracing Defeat, and extend the inquiry into diasporic and transnational perspectives by reading works by Min Jin Lee and Kim Tal-su.

The course examines how literature reflects and interrogates key themes of the postwar condition—survival, trauma, gender and power, the legacy of imperialism, and the tension between memory and forgetting. Some knowledge of Japanese literature is preferred but not required.  

This course aims to further develop students' communication skills on daily topics of general interests. It enhances students' socio-cultural awareness and enables them to communicate meaningfully in appropriate manner using more complex grammar structures including passive forms, embedded questions, and a limited set of polite expressions. Approximately 150 kanji will be introduced, and students will be able to write short coherent texts and understand various types of texts including some formal ones.

This class is a comprehensive study of basic beginner level Japanese over the four skills of speaking, listening, reading, and writing. It aims to help students understand and use everyday words and expressions to communicate; convey information about themselves, their experiences, and simple comments in conversation, while understanding basic Japanese syntax, vocabulary, and pronunciation and becoming familiar with Japanese notation.

This course is designed for students seeking a comprehensive introduction to elementary Japanese across the four core skills: speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Through interactive classroom activities, it provides opportunities for students to communicate effectively in colloquial spoken and written Japanese; understand fundamental grammatical structures; convey information orally, and express personal opinions.

The class also develops literacy skills by reading and writing paragraphs using Hiragana, Katakana, and approximately 300 Kanji characters. Emphasis is placed on practical usage and foundational fluency to support everyday communication.

This course is intended for students with no prior background in Kanji. Students learn approximately 300 Kanji characters and related vocabulary drawn from the JLPT N4 and N3 Kanji lists. The course emphasizes practical recognition and usage, with the goal of students becoming familiar with at least 70% of the introduced Kanji.

This course is designed for absolute beginners or those just beginning their journey in Japanese and want to develop practical communication skills through face-to-face instruction and practice. Students engage in interactive speaking and listening activities in class, focusing on essential conversational skills such as greetings, self-introductions, and asking and answering questions. Through practical exercises and authentic interactions, learners gain confidence in using Japanese in real-life situations while deepening their understanding and appreciation of the Japanese language and culture. Students interested in strengthening their foundation in beginner-level vocabulary and grammar are encouraged to also enroll in the 1-credit self-paced online course, LANG1212: Japanese Vocabulary and Grammar Essentials I. Graded P or F.

This online course is designed for students beginning their journey in Japanese, with a focus on building a solid and comprehensive foundation in vocabulary and grammar structures. Students explore the fundamentals of the Japanese writing and sound system while deepening their understanding of beginner-level grammar and vocabulary. The flexible format allows students to progress at their own pace through engaging video lectures, interactive chatbot exercises, online quizzes, and a final in-person exam. Students gain a strong grasp of Japanese sentence structures and essential grammar rules but also develop a robust vocabulary that enables them to construct simple sentences, understand basic texts, and engage in elementary-level communication with confidence. Students are encouraged to also enroll in the 2-credit LANG 1211: Communicative Japanese for Beginners I to reinforce their learning through face-to-face conversational practice and real-life scenarios. Graded P or F.

This class is designed for students to learn basic Japanese (CEFL, A1 level), focusing on Japanese language necessary for living in Japan. The class aims to help students to: 1) Communicate using basic words and expressions; 2) Convey information about themselves, their experiences, and simple comments in conversation; and 3) Understand basic Japanese syntax, vocabulary, and pronunciation, and gain familiarity with Japanese notation.

This course is a continuation of Ritmál II. Students gain greater proficiency in Kanji and Katakana, as well as improving reading and writing skills in Japanese.