EACS 4A East Asian Traditions: Pre-Modern Winter Quarter 2023 Mondays and Wednesdays, 2:00-3:15, Buchanan 1910 Xiaorong Li lixiaor@ucsb.edu Office Hours: Wednesdays 3:30-4:30pm Katherine Saltzman-Li ksaltzli@ucsb.edu Office Hours: Wednesdays 10:00-11:30am COURSE DESCRIPTION This course provides an introduction to the major cultures of East Asia from their origins through the nineteenth century. Through lectures on a range of topics, readings in primary and secondary sources, and discussion, you will gain familiarity with the broad historical and cultural periods and acquire a foundational understanding of major premodern cultural traditions and concerns. COURSE PREREQUISITES AND REQUIREMENTS There are no prerequisites for this class. Each week you are expected to attend all lectures and participate in your section meeting. Beginning with the class on Wednesday January 18th, there will be a very short quiz during each lecture. These quizzes will also mark your attendance. You are responsible for completing all of the weekly assignments (listed below) and thinking about the questions posed at the end of each lecture. Together, these will form the basis for quizzes and discussions. Please make sure you have completed all assigned readings before each lecture and section. Other requirements: In addition to a midterm and a final exam, you must write an essay of 2,500 words. Topic choices and expectations will be explained in section and posted on Gauchospace. PRIMARY TEXTBOOK AND ADDITIONAL READINGS Ebrey, Patricia and Anne Walthall, eds., East Asia: A Cultural, Social, and Political History, 3rd edition (Wadsworth: Cengage Learning, 2012). (E-book can be purchased or rented at https://www.amazon.com/East-Asia-Cultural-Political-History-ebook-dpB00B7JUI1Y/dp/B00B7JUI1Y) (Link is for vols. 1 & 2 combined; you are welcome to purchase vol. 1 by itself, since we will not be using vol. 2; however, the e-book pricing is the same.) All other readings will be posted on Gauchospace. GRADING Lecture Attendance and Quizzes 15% Section Attendance and Participation 20% Paper 20% Midterm Exam 20% Final Exam 25% TEACHING ASSISTANTS You will receive separate section syllabi from your TAs, who are: Isadora Connor isadoraw@ucsb.edu Hanne Deleu hannedeleu@ucsb.edu Pracheta Deshpande prachetadeshpande@ucsb.edu Wandi Wang wandiwang@ucsb.edu Teng Xu teng@ucsb.edu 1 Course Topics and Assignments M Jan. 9 Introduction to EACS 4A and to East Asia (Li and Saltzman-Li) EARLY PERIODS W Jan 11 The First Emperor of China (Li) Ebrey and Walthall, pp. 36-55 M Jan 16 HOLIDAY W Jan 18 The Three Teachings: Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism (Li) “Confucius and the Analects,” in Sources of Chinese Tradition, selected pages “The Way of Laozi and Zhuangzi,” Ibid, selected pages “The Introduction of Buddhism,” Ibid, pp. 415-32 M Jan 23 Early East Asia and Cultural Movement (Saltzman-Li) Ebrey and Walthall: “The Prehistory of East Asia” (pp. 2-7) “Buddhism in India and its Spread Along the Silk Road” (pp. 56-60) “Cultural Contact Across Eurasia (600-900)” (pp. 93-96) Chapters 6 & 7 (pp. 98-128) “CLASSICAL” PERIODS W Jan 25 M Jan 30 The Emergence of Literati Class and Culture in Tang China (Li) Selected Poems by Wang Wei, in Classical Chinese Literature, pp. 699-70 Li Bo [Bai] (Ibid, pp. 721-23, 730-31) and Du Fu (Ibid, pp. 765-74) and three Tang tales “The World in a Pillow” (Ibid, pp. 1019-24) “The Story of Yingying” (Ibid, pp. 1047-57), and “The Story of Wu Pao-an,” in Stories from a Ming Collection, pp. 121-28 Classical Literary Arts of Japan (Saltzman-Li) Ebrey and Walthall, Chapter 9 (pp. 148-168) Kokin Wakashū, The First Imperial Anthology of Japanese Poetry. Selections. Tales of Ise. Selection. Murasaki Shikibu, The Tale of Genji. Selection. MIDDLE PERIODS W Feb 1 The Rise of the Samurai and New Forms of Buddhism (Saltzman-Li) Ebrey and Walthall, Chapter 11 (pp. 183-197); Chapter 13 (212-226) The Tale of the Heike. Selections. Japanese Tales from Times Past (Konjaku monogatari shū). Selections. 2 M Feb 6 The Cultural Reach of Buddhism in Japan (Saltzman-Li) Barbara Ruch, “Medieval Jongleurs and the Making of a National Literature” Yoshida Kenkō, Essays in Idleness. Selections. Kamo no Chōmei, “An Account of My Hermitage” Renga poetry. Selections. W Feb 8 Separating the Sexes in Song China (Li) Ebrey, “Separating the Sexes,” in The Inner Quarters, pp. 21-44 (chapter from an electronic book, available on the library webpage) Ebrey and Walthall, “Neo-Confucianism [Making Comparisons],” p. 304. M Feb 13 Midterm (In Class) W Feb 15 Masters and Disciples (Saltzman-Li) “Kūkai and His Master” “Dōgen, Conversations” “Selected notes on training in the arts” M Feb 20 HOLIDAY EARLY MODERN PERIODS W Feb 22 Guest Lecture on Korea Ebrey and Walthall, Chapters 10 & 15 M Feb 27 Education and the Civil Service Examination in Ming-Qing China (Li) Ebrey and Walthall, pp. 198-210, 227-246 W Mar 1 The Chinese, Japanese, and Korean Gardens (Li) Ebrey and Walthall, pp. 270-287 Xiao Chi, Chinese Garden as Lyric Enclave, pp. 75-100 M Mar 6 Culture, Family, and Self in the Qing (Li) Shen Fu, Six Records of a Floating Life, Parts I, II, and III, pp. 24-97 W Mar 8 The Growth of Urban Culture in Japan (Saltzman-Li) Ebrey and Walthall, Chapter 17 (pp. 288-303) Gary Leupp, Servants, Shophands, and Laborers in the Cities of Tokugawa Japan Selection. Jones & Watanabe, eds., An Edo Anthology: Literature from Japan’s Mega-City, 1750-1850. Selections. M Mar 13 Ideals and Lived Life in Edo Japan (Saltzman-Li) Yamaga Sokō, “The Way of the Samurai“ Bitō Masahide, “The Akō Incident, 1701-1703“ Buyō Inshi, Matters of the World: An Account of What I Have Seen and Heard Selection. Amy Stanley, Stranger in the Shogun’s City. Selection. 3 W Mar 15 Conclusion: Premodern East Asia and Transitions to Modernity (Li and Saltzman-Li) “The Literary Chinese Sphere in East Asia” (Recorded Lecture on GauchoSpace) Ebrey and Walthall: “Europe Enters the Scene” (pp. 265-269) “Western Imperialism [1800-1900]” (pp. 306-313) Friday, March 17 PAPER DUE Monday, Mar 20, 4-7PM FINAL EXAMINATION 4
