Hist 4450 History of Japan
Fall 2009, TR 9:40-11:05 a.m.
Dr. Yüan-ling Chao
Office: Peck Hall 265 (898-2629)
E-mail: ychao@mtsu.edu
Office Hours: MW 1:30-2:30 p.m., TR 8:30-9:30 a.m., and by appointment
History of Japan
This course leads students through a study of the historical, social, and cultural
developments of Japan from the very beginnings to the modern times. We will focus on
the interaction between external influences and internal dynamics in the shaping of
Japanese culture. The course will begin with a study of Chinese and Korean influence on
the formation and development of the early Japanese state, and how the warriors rose to
prominence as these adopted institutions failed. We will then explore the unique role of
the warrior tradition in medieval Japan and the symbiotic relationship between the
warriors and Zen Buddhism, a religious tradition that came from China but was shaped
and nurtured to suit the particular needs of Japanese society and government. The other
major outside influence that came from the West began to be felt in the sixteenth century
with the coming of the Jesuits, and later with the adoption of Western culture and
institutions as Japan modernized and emerged as a modern nation. We will conclude
with the re-shaping of Japan and Asia in the aftermath of WWII.
Class format will consist of both lectures and discussions. Student participation is
an integral part of the course. It is critical that students are diligent in keeping up with
the weekly readings. All students are expected to finish the assigned readings prior to
class each week so that they can fully participate in the discussions and do the written
assignments.
Books for the Course:
Textbook:
Conrad Schirokauer, David Lurie, and Suzanne Gay. A Brief History of Japanese
Civilization, 2nd edition , Thomas Wadsworth, 2006.
Supplemental Readings (in order of reading):
Murasaki Shikibu. The Tale of Genji. Translated and Abridged by Edward G.
Seidensticker. Vintage Classics, 1990.
Pierre Francois Souyri. The World Turned Upside Down: Medieval Japanese Society.
Trans. by Käthe Roth. NY: Columbia University Press, 2001.
The Autobiography of Fukuzawa Yukichi, trans. by Eiichi Kiyooka. NY: Columbia
University Press, 2006.
Gail Lee Bernstein. Isami’s House: Three Centuries of a Japanese Family. Berkeley:
University of California Press, 2005.
John W. Dower. Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II. NY: W.W.
Norton, 2000.
Course Requirements:
1.
5%
2.
3.
4.
5.
4.
10%
30%
15%
25%
15%
Attendance (0-1 absence: A; 2-3: B; 4-5: C; 6-7: D; 8 & over: F. Students
who arrive more than ten minutes late or leave early will be counted as
absent)
Participation
Two essays (five pages each)
Midterm examination
Term Paper (8-10 pages)
Final Examination
(+/- will be used)
Make-up Policy
There will be NO make-ups and missed tests and examinations will count as F.
Exceptions will only be made in documented cases of emergency and illness.
Statement on Cheating
Any form of cheating (including plagiarism) on any assignment or course work will
result in a grade of “F” for the course and further disciplinary action by the university.
“Plagiarize” is defined in Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary as “to steal and pass off
(the ideas or words of another) as one’s own,” “use (a created production) without
crediting the source,” “to commit literary theft: present as new and original an idea or
product derived from an existing source.”
Rules for Classroom Behavior
All cell phones and electronic devices should be turned off in class. Points will be
deducted from your grade if your cell phone rings during class, or if you text message.
You may use a laptop computer to take notes only. There will be a penalty for students
who surf the internet, play games, or work on other assignments during class.
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Lecture and Reading Schedule:
Readings with a “*” are available in D2L (http://elearn.mtsu.edu).
Sept. 1
Introduction and Organizational meeting
3
Early Japan and State Formation
Readings:
 Schirokauer Chs. 1, 2
 *“Prince Shtoku and His Constitution” in Sources of Japanese
Tradition, compiled by Wm. Theodore de Bary, Donald Keene,
George Tanabe and Paul Varley, vol.1 (NY: Columbia University
Press, 2001), pp. 40-55
 Begin Tale of Genji
8
Heian Politics and Society
Readings :
 Schirokauer Ch.3
 Tale of Genji
 Souyri, Chs. 1 & 2
10
Discussion on Tale of Genji and Heian society
Essay 1 due
15
Rise of the Warriors
Readings:
 Schirokauer Ch. 4
 Souyri, Chs. 3 & 4
 *Ivan Morris, “Minamoto no Yoshitsune: Victory Through
Defeat” in The Nobility of Failure: Tragic Heroes in The History
of Japan (NY: The Noonday Press, 1975), Ch.5
17
Kamakura Shogunate and the Mongol Invasion
Readings:
 Martin Collcutt, “Chinese Émigré Monks and Japanese Warrior
Rulers” in Five Mountains: The Rinzai Zen Monastic Institution in
Medieval Japan (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press,
1981), Ch.2
 Souyri, Chs. 5 & 6
22
The Kemmu Restoration and the Fourteenth Century Turning Point
Readings:
 Souryi, Ch.7
 *Ivan Morris, “Kusunoki no Masashige: Seven Lives for the
Nation,” in The Nobility of Failure, Ch. 6
3
Oct.
24
Discussion on the Kamakura Shogunate
Essay II due
29
The Ashikaga Shogunate and the Muromachi Century
Readings:
 Schirokauer Ch. 5
 Souyri, Chs. 8 & 9
1
Culture and Art in Medieval Japan
Readings:
 *H. Paul Varley, “Cultural Life of the Warrior Elite in the
Fourteenth Century,” in Jeffrey P. Mass ed. The Origins of
Japan’s Medieval World (Stanford: Stanford University Press,
1991), Ch. 9
 Souyri, Ch. 10
6
Warring States (Sengoku) Period and Unification
Readings:
 Schirokauer Ch. 6
 Souyri, Ch. 11
 *”Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s Domestic Policies” in Sources of
Japanese Tradition, compiled by Wm. Theodore de Bary, Donald
Keene, George Tanabe and Paul Varley, pp. 458-463
8
The Arrival of Europeans in Japan
Readings:
 *Olof G. Lidin, ”The Spread of the Teppô on Kyushu” and
“Francisco (Francis) Xavier in Japan” in Tanegashima: The
Arrival of Europe in Japan (Copenhagen: NIAS Press, 2002),
Chs. 11 & 12
13
The Tokugawa Shogunate
Readings:
 Schirokauer Ch.7;
 *Harold Bolitho, “The han” in Warrior Rule in Japan, edited by
Marius B. Jansen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995.
Ch. 5, pp. 202-253
15
Culture and Commerce in Tokugawa Japan
Readings:
 *Hiraku Shimoda, “Bad Sushi or Bad Merchant? The ‘Dead Fish
Poisoning Incident’ of 1852” in Modern Asian Studies 35.3 (2001):
513-531. Available through JSTOR also
 Bernstein Introduction
4
Nov.
20
Fall Break
22
Late Tokugawa and the Opening of Japan
Readings:
 *Sakuma Shozan, “Eastern Ethic and Western Science” in Sources
of Japanese Tradition, compiled by Wm. Theodore de Bary,
Donald Keene, George Tanabe and Paul Varley, vol. 2, in Ch. 36
 begin Fukuzawa’s autobiography
 Bernstein Part I
27
Discussion on Ashikaga and Tokugawa Japan
Essay III due
29
Midterm
3
Meiji Restoration
Readings:
 Schirokauer Ch. 8
 *“The Enlightened Rule of Emperor Meiji: The Charter Oath, The
Constitution of 1868, The Imperial Rescript on Education” in
Sources of Japanese Tradition, compiled by Wm. Theodore de
Bary, Donald Keene, George Tanabe and Paul Varley, vol. 2, in
Ch. 37
 continue Fukuzawa
 Bernstein, Part II
5
Prewar Japan
Readings:
 Schirokauer Chs. 9,10
 finish Fukuzawa
10
Militarism and WWII
Readings:
 Schirokauer Ch. 11;
 *“The Rise of Revolutionary Nationalism,” in Sources of
Japanese Tradition, compiled by Wm. Theodore de Bary, Donald
Keene, George Tanabe and Paul Varley, vol. 2, Ch. 44, pp. 948979
 Bernstein Part III
5
Dec.
12
WWII and the Asian War Theater
Readings:
 *Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney, “The Militarization of Cherry Blossoms:
Cherry Blossoms as the Souls of Fallen Soldiers,” in Kamikaze,
Cherry Blossoms, and Nationalism: The Militarization of
Aesthetics in Japan. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2002.
Ch.3
17
Discussion on Meiji Japan, Militarism and WWII
Essay IV due
19
Occupation
Readings:
 Schirokauer Ch. 12
 Dower
 *“The New Constitution” in Sources of Japanese Tradition,
compiled by Wm. Theodore de Bary, Donald Keene, George
Tanabe and Paul Varley, vol. 2, pp. 1031-1033
24
Postwar Recovery
Readings:
 Dower
 Bernstein Part IV
 *Lisa Yoneyama, “Taming the Memoryscape,” in Hiroshima
Traces (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1999), Ch. 1
26
Thanksgiving holiday
1
Postwar Japan
 Dower
3
Discussion on Postwar Japan
 Dower
Essay V due
8
Review
Term Paper Due December 11 (Friday) at noon.
Final Examination: December 17 (Thursday): 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
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Hist 5450
History of Japan
Fall 2009
History of Japan (Graduate)
Students enrolled in History 5450 will be required to write a term paper of 10-15
double-spaced pages with footnotes and bibliography. This will replace the term paper in
the undergraduate class. The topic of the paper is open and should be decided upon after
discussion with the instructor. Guidelines for the paper in class will apply to this paper.
Students are encouraged to submit drafts before completing the final version.
Additional Readings:
Collcutt, Martin. Five Mountains: The Rinzai Zen Monastic Institution in Medieval
Japan. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1981.
Mass, Jeffrey ed. The Origins of Japan’s Medieval World: Courtiers, Clerics, Warriors,
and Peasants in the Fourteenth Century. Stanford: Stanford University Press,
1997.
Reviews of the books due: September 29 and November 5. Reviews should be 3-5 pages.
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