South & SE Asian Studies

This course introduces the study of martial arts in Southeast Asia from an academic and experiential perspective. Students analyze journal articles, books, and materials from social media to understand how various social, political, economic, and historical forces impacted on the production and performance of martial arts in the region. The course is complemented with hands-on sessions that further the understanding of complex historical, sociological, and cultural dimensions of various combat genres. Student assignments such as essays and group video projects reveal new ways in how Southeast Asia can be understood from multi-disciplinary perspectives.

This course covers issues concerning the causes, processes, obstacles, and consequences of democratic transition in the Philippines, Thailand, and Indonesia - three of the largest and the most populous countries of Southeast Asia. The specific issues to be covered include economic growth and stagnation, the middle class, capitalist rule, rural politics, political parties, military coups, corruption, electoral violence, gangsters, social movements, street protests, the monarchy, communal conflicts, and female politicians.

This course explores anthropology in Thailand. 

This course provides a basic understanding of Malay. Emphasis is on conversational Malay and its practical everyday discourse. To facilitate immersion into the language, students are taught listening, reading, writing, and conversing in basic conversational Malay. The rudiments of Malay grammar are taught where relevant or necessary.

This course studies gender categories and roles in Thai society. It provides an overview of the different theories relevant to the understanding of gender and sexuality; examines the social structure and ideas related to gender and sexuality in Thailand’s history and contemporary society; and analyzes the progress of feminism and LGBT’s rights in Thailand.

Using selected Singapore texts from a variety of different genres, this course explores the historical roots and contemporary relevance of literary production in Singapore. Beginning with colonial writing, the course moves through considerations of national and postcolonial literatures to contemporary concerns. Given Singapore's history, the notion of a "Singapore" text will be used creatively in order to reflect upon the growth of Singaporean identity and culture, and literary texts from other countries in the region may be used for comparative purposes.

This course introduces classical Southeast Asian dance and drama with a particular emphasis on masked dance traditions. Drawing on an analysis of scholarly texts, videos and hands-on sessions the course takes an exciting theatrical journey through Southeast Asia. The course teaches an appreciation of classical dance traditions in the region from a variety of angles, such as dramaturgical principles, music, aesthetics, ritual significance, nationalism, tourism and change. The course also teaches how to perform and create compositions in a Southeast Asian dance form. 

This course explores Thai literature since World War II, with an emphasis on close reading of selected texts in relation to their social, political, and cultural contexts.