Japanese Course Descriptions
Please note: The following courses are offered by the Japanese Department. Some Japanese majors and minors require courses offered by other departments. Please refer to those areas of study for those course descriptions.
Introductory Japanese I (MLA)(GL)
JPN 1010 / 4 credits
The course is an introduction to the Japanese language and culture, stressing both spoken and written Japanese. It teaches listening, speaking, visual recognition, and writing skills through active participation by the students in communicative situations. By the end of the course, the students are able to initiate and, to some degree, sustain oral communication in Japanese, gaining recognition and writing ability of Hiragana, Katakana, and some Kanji, the three sets of symbols used in written Japanese, while understanding some fundamentals of Japanese social values and ways of thinking.
Fall
Introductory Japanese II (MLA)(GL)
JPN 1020 / 4 credits
This course continues to engage students in listening, speaking, reading, and writing. An interpersonal mode is stressed in communicative contexts. By the end of the course, the students are able to initiate and, to a greater degree, sustain oral communication with some cultural nuances. Kanji recognition and writing is increased via email, calligraphy, and simple handwriting. The students are expected to learn approximately 80 Kanji in Japanese.
Prerequisite: JPN 1010
Spring
Elementary Japanese I
JPN 2010 / 4 credits
This course proceeds with an integrated approach and rebalances the four language skills. Speaking and listening continue to be a focal point while more emphasis is placed on writing and reading. Listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills are developed into an interpretative mode while expanding the interpersonal one. By the end of the course, students are expected to be able to perform communicative tasks such as description, interpretation, comparison, giving suggestions, and asking questions in a culturally acceptable manner. Students are expected to recognize and master 150 Kanji.
Prerequisite: JPN 1020 or equivalent
Corequisite: JPN 2011
Fall
Elementary Oral Japanese I
JPN 2011 / 1 credit
This course must be taken concurrently with Japanese 2010 and enhances the oral aspect of Japanese 2010. It meets once a week to expand students’ oral competence in dealing with topics and themes presented in Japanese.
Prerequisite: JPN 1020 or equivalent
Corequisite: JPN 2010
Fall
Elementary Japanese II
JPN 2020 / 4 credits
The class engages students in more complex communicative contexts. The four basic language skills, listening, speaking, reading, and writing, are now entering into a preliminarily interpretative mode while we continue to expand the interpersonal one. Basic grammar patterns will be thoroughly taught. By the end of the course, orally in a communicable manner, the students are expected to have the basic survival abilities to live in Japanese society using fundamental Japanese language structures and common vocabulary related to everyday and communication needs. Some basic Japanese honorific forms will also be introduced. Students are expected to master 200 Kanji and to be able to write greeting letters, career objectives, diaries, and memos among other simple writings.
Prerequisites: JPN 2010 and JPN 2011
Corequisite: JPN 2021
Spring
Elementary Oral Japanese II
JPN 2021 / 1 credit
This course must be taken concurrently with Japanese 2020. Japanese 2021 is an oral class and enhances the speaking aspect of Japanese 2020. It meets once a week to expand students’ oral competence in dealing with topics and themes presented in the regular Japanese 2020 class.
Prerequisites: JPN 2010 and JPN 2011
Corequisite: JPN 2020
Spring
Calligraphy and Japanese Language (CL)(IDP)(OC)
JPN 2070 / 4 credits
Departing from 汉字 (hanzi) and 漢字 (kanji), the writing systems of Chinese and Japanese, this course takes a holistic approach to the languages, philosophies, arts, and histories of China and Japan, using calligraphy as a central lens for cultural understanding. Students explore the historical development and aesthetic principles of Chinese and Japanese calligraphy, along with the cultural values of Daoism, Confucianism, and Zen Buddhism, and the meditative aspects of calligraphic practice. They will also learn basic calligraphy techniques, practice foundational styles, and complete a hands-on calligraphy project. No prior Chinese or Japanese language background is required. The course is conducted in English.
Intermediate Japanese I (CL)(ITL)
JPN 3010 / 4 credits
This course will complete the study of basic Japanese grammar and syntax. The four basic language skills, listening, speaking, reading, and writing, are mainly in an interpretative mode. The communicative context is idea- or opinion-oriented and requires interpretative, subjective, and emotional expressions and responses. Orally in a culturally and pragmatically appropriate manner, the students are expected to initiate, sustain, and expand conversations on various topics beyond their daily lives. Cultural differences and social relationships will be introduced and brought to discussions in Japanese as vital aspects of cultural studies. By the end of the term, the students will have been introduced to all the basic grammar patterns of Japanese and will have mastered a total of at least 300 Kanji.
Prerequisites: JPN 2020 and JPN 2021
Corequisite: JPN 3011
Fall
Intermediate Oral Japanese I
JPN 3011 / 1 credit
This course must be taken concurrently with Japanese 3010. Japanese 3011 is an oral class and enhances the speaking aspect of Japanese 3010. It meets once a week to expand students’ oral competence in dealing with topics and themes presented in the regular Japanese 3010 class.
Prerequisites: JPN 2020 and JPN 2021
Corequisite: JPN 3010
Fall
Intermediate Japanese II (CL)(ITL)
JPN 3020 / 4 credits
In this course we further practice speaking, listening, reading, and writing to attain a more authentic and more native language acquisition. While listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills are still developed in an interpretative mode, they progress toward a presentational direction. The communicative context at the 3020 level represents a bridge for students to cross back and forth from the interpersonal to the interpretative and to the presentational. Orally, the students are expected to initiate, sustain, expand, and deepen conversations on various topics in a culturally appropriate manner. Cultural components will be emphasized and significant individuals and some historic/philosophic/literary aspects are studied together with language acquisition. Approximately 400 Kanji are expected to be recognized and put into use for thematic writing.
Prerequisites: JPN 3010 and JPN 3011
Corequisite: JPN 3021
Spring
Intermediate Oral Japanese II
JPN 3021 / 1 credit
This course must be taken concurrently with Japanese 3020. This is an oral class and enhances the speaking aspect of Japanese 3020. It meets once a week to expand students’ oral competence in dealing with topics and themes presented in the regular Japanese 3020 class.
Prerequisites: JPN 3010 and JPN 3011
Corequisite: JPN 3020
Spring
Japanese and Chinese Culture and Language (OC)(CL)(ITL)
JPN 3070 / 4 credits
This course engages students in cultural studies through a sociolinguistic approach, using a cross-linguistic comparison to foster intercultural understanding. Students examine Japanese and Chinese sociocultural topics such as politeness, communication, gender, power, and business culture by analyzing linguistic features including modality markers, honorifics, address terms, fillers, and backchannels. The course aims to help students understand cultural values, identities, and social relationships through the observation and analysis of verbal and non-verbal interaction. Students will develop the ability to identify cultural nuances and gain a deeper understanding of Japanese and Chinese cultural practices. The course is conducted in English and no prior Chinese or Japanese language background is required.
Japanese Literature and Culture (HUM)(CL)(ITL)
JPN 3080 / 4 credits
In this course students will critically read and interpret translations of literary, filmic, and other texts originally written in Japanese. By studying issues such as the spread of classical cultures, cultural relationships throughout antiquity to the modern age, anxiety toward modernization and Westernization, colonialism and imperialism, national identities, ethnicity, gender, East-West relations, popular culture, labor issues, and environmental problems, students will better understand the ways that literature and culture intersect and interact with each other throughout the long, intertwined history of the two cultural spheres. Students will develop their intercultural understanding and refine their skills in critical thinking and oral and written expression.
Prerequisite: None
Senior Seminar in Japanese (CL)(ITL)
JPN 4010 / 4 credits
Students have two options to take this course: Senior Project/Thesis in the discipline of Japanese language and culture within the Department of Modern Languages or Interdisciplinary Senior Project/Thesis between the Department of Modern Languages and other departments/programs.
Prerequisites: Senior standing or consent of instructor and GNR 3510
Immersion Abroad
GNR 3510 / 12-16 credits
Linguistic and cultural immersion abroad for one term in an academic setting in a country speaking the target language. Classroom instruction for all courses, regardless of discipline, will be in the target language. (In exceptional cases, approval may be granted for substituting two summers for the term.)
Prerequisites: MLA 2200, JPN 2020 (or permission of the Chair of the Modern Languages Department)
Cultural Awareness
MLA 2200 / 1 credit
Preparation for encountering cultural differences that will be part of the linguistic and cultural immersion experiences (either in the U.S. or abroad). The focus of the course will include values clarification, cultural diversity, multicultural awareness training, and culture shock orientation. Majors who have returned from study abroad will give presentations on their experiences and be contributors to course content and activities.
Prerequisite: 2020 or equivalent in target language
Japanese and Chinese Culture Through Film (CL)(OC)(IDP)
MLA/HIS 2440 / 4 credits
The primary goal of this course is to help students identify and understand key aspects of contemporary Chinese and Japanese societies through the analysis of selected films and their meanings. The films address themes such as war, family, gender, the arts, education, food culture, and life and death, and depict both historical events and everyday life from the 1930s to the 2000s. Through readings, lectures, and discussions on traditional rituals, aesthetic norms, and religious beliefs, students will develop a deeper understanding of the political and sociocultural issues reflected in these films.