| CODE | ANT2149 | ||||||||
| TITLE | Culture and Society in Contemporary Korea and Japan | ||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 02 - Years 2, 3 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 5 | ||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 4 | ||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Anthropological Sciences | ||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit will provide an overview of the major historical transformation in Korean and Japanese modernity. The study-unit will then explore select themes in the anthropology of the region. Where possible the students will be encouraged to think cross-culturally across the two areas. The two countries have shared a long and intimate history and the anthropological study of Korea was heavily influenced by the growth of anthropology in Japan. Focusing on social change in the tumultuous 20th century the course will examine a number themes consulting anthropological and sociological literature with insights taken from methods in cultural studies. Together with the general discussion over a selection of topics the course will focus on one major ethnographic text and students will also be expected to have read the text in the course of their studies as well as the selected readings per topic. Some of the topics that the study-unit will cover include: • General History and nationalism • Sex and Gender • Religions of Korea and Japan • Confucianism, Capitalism and Modernization • The modern family • Anthropology of Emotions • Consumption, Film and Popular culture Study-unit Aims: This study-unit will aim to: - Offer students an introduction to the modern history, culture and society of East Asia; - Enable students to gain a solid grounding the classical and contemporary anthropological literature on Korea and Japan; - Enable the students to analyse the broader regional contexts of modernization in the region as well as the particularities of the national contexts of South Korea and Japan; - Introduce the students to the social and political issues that are of concern within the region and each national context respectively; - Increase the awareness of the region as a complex and rapidly changing social environment with a deep, shared tradition. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Provide an overview of the anthropological debates on modernity in South Korea and Japan; - Analyze the impact of colonialism and globalization on the socio-cultural transformations of the region; - Unite the ethnographic texts of both areas; - Compare the main fields of anthropological scholarship in the region; - Synthesise and evaluate major ethnographic texts of the region. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Read critically and selectively and make sense of a range of case studies in relation to classical and contemporary theory; - Navigate with confidence online journal databases; - Perform under exam conditions; - Synthesize knowledge learned throughout the study-unit and its readings in response to set questions. All of these skills are transferable and will prove invaluable to students in other subjects as well in any future careers they undertake. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main Texts: - Sugimoto, Y. (2003). An Introduction to Japanese Society. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. - UNESCO, Ed. (2003). Korean Anthropology. Elizabeth NJ, Holly. - Robertson, J., Ed. (2008). A companion to the Anthropology of Japan. Malden, Blackwell. Material from these textbooks will be supplemented by a selection of ethnographic texts made available to the students. |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | ||||||||
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| LECTURER/S | Jean-Paul Baldacchino |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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