Courses

In the early 20th century, Central Asia and Xinjiang—two Muslim-majority regions with a shared history—fell under the rule of two communist states, the USSR and China. Both states facilitated the emergence of local nations while launching aggressive secularization policies aimed at suppressing local Islamic beliefs and practices. This course takes a comparative approach to the interwoven trajectories of Islam, nation-building, and secularization in Central Asia and Xinjiang. In so doing, it pursues two overarching objectives. The first is to trace the major historical events that have shaped these regions since the late 19th century. The second is to examine the main theoretical frameworks scholars have employed to better understand these historical transformations. Key conceptual questions explored in this course include: What is nationalism and how did Central Asian nations emerge? What is Islam as an object of scholarly inquiry? What is secularism, and how does it shape and regulate religion? How did Soviet and Chinese secularization campaigns transfigure Islam in Central Asia and Xinjiang? What forces facilitate the ongoing ethnocide of the Uyghurs in Xinjiang?

Together with other creatures on the earth, we have formed food chains. In the “Anthropocene,” people have discovered food, improved it, and lived with it. The rich and varied definitions of food have also enabled humans, the animal at the top of the food chains, to create many new ones. Food enters and becomes a part of the human body; in other words, the food we consume has become ourselves. How we define food also determines the way in which we relate to other living beings. We will explore cultural practices of food chains in East Asian societies, with a focus on China, Japan, and South Korea. class will guide students to think about the origins, production, and creation of food, as well as the politics, ethics, and technologies that are intertwined with the circulation of food. By reading ethnographies of food, this class provides students with the theoretical and methodological means to observe and analyze perhaps the most common thing in life. Food is not just a static object, but part of the global food chains that are constantly circulating, and part of the circulation with the human body.

This seminar critically explores the concept of “biosovereignty”—a framework of ideas and practices through which the state safeguards and utilizes biological resources—to examine how East Asian countries have conceptualized and governed “life” through science and technology. Through this seminar, the goal is to develop a critical understanding of “biosovereignty” and to use the concept to analyze how East Asian states have perceived “life” and “life forms” as assets and properties, as well as to discuss the stakes and implications of their biosovereignty practices. Themes such as the genetic makeup of crops, traditional medicines, seed wars, stem cells, pandemics, and human DNA inform our discussions. We also discuss how international political organizations envision biosovereignty through international treaties and projects.

We cover a variety of genres, from historical fiction to light novels, and authors ranging from Edogawa Rampo to Murakami Haruki. We analyze these works against the literary and socio-historical context of Japan and consider questions of canon formation, literary taste and value(s), and the concept of genre. Occasionally we discuss highbrow or canonical texts and interrogate the validity of the highbrow/popular distinction.

In this class, we read Natsume Sōseki’s canonical 1908 novel Sanshirō in its original Japanese. One of the most beloved works of modern Japanese literature, Sanshirō features an eponymous protagonist struggling to navigate college life, love, and friendship. I provide vocabulary lists as well as the historical background necessary to understanding the text, with a focus on its format as a newspaper serialization. Students are expected to come to class having carefully read the assigned chapter. We translate selected passages into English and discuss the text in the context of its initial publication venue and beyond. Students gain a deep understanding of this Japanese classic and become more aware of some recurrent challenges in translating Japanese into English. 

This course explores Japanese concepts of nature and the environment from the Tokugawa period to the present. Split into three modules, we consider how the Japanese government and society have responded to environmental change, degradation, and destruction. The first module—Tokugawa Nature (1600-1868)—examines shifts in agriculture and forestry, urbanization, and the emergence of scholarly knowledge of the natural world. The second module—Modern Transformation (1868-1945)—focuses on Japan’s rapid industrialization, disaster preparedness, and imperial expansion, tracing the environmental consequences of these processes on both the archipelago and East Asia. The third module—Postwar Developmentalism (1946-present)—addresses industrial pollution diseases, the Fukushima nuclear disaster, and the environmental struggles related to the American military bases in Okinawa.

What have been the primary concerns of lawmakers in China, Japan, and Korea throughout history? Were their ideas primarily shaped by “Confucian” ideas or by other, more material concerns? How did the public try to make the legal system work for them? This seminar explores these questions in three parts. Part I examines the structure of the Tang legal system and how it shaped the institutions of both Japan and Korea. Part II focuses on case studies from the seventeenth through nineteenth centuries, showing how these legal systems operated in areas ranging from land disputes to violent acts of revenge. Part III then looks at some of the dramatic changes that began in the late 19th century, as foreign imperial pressure impelled their transition to Western-style laws and court systems.

From production to circulation and consumption, the life of an artifact often unfolds across multiple geographic locations and varied environments. The movement of things in space and time offers valuable insights into the waxing and waning of maritime and terrestrial networks that fostered transregional connectivity. This course introduces students to a variety of objects from pre-modern East Asia with a view to understanding the histories of intercultural exchange inscribed into their designs, materials, and itineraries. It begins by familiarizing students with methodologies, interpretive frameworks, and critical vocabulary for studying interconnected material cultures. The rest of the course is organized as a series of case studies on specific object types and structured into four modules, each focusing on a different sphere of exchange defined by shared geography, trade, religion, or ecosystem. Through this diverse group of objects, we will explore the entanglement of material culture with evolving structures of power, networks of interregional and long-distance exchange, and the physical environment in East Asia.

How have the Chinese thought about international relations and their country’s role in the world? How has such thinking influenced China’s foreign relations past and present? This advanced seminar canvasses Chinese thinking on international relations from the imperial epoch to the present, focusing on the post-1949 era of the People’s Republic of China. It is structured around three core engagements: the historical background of Chinese thinking; policy thinking of the successive PRC leaderships; and new strands of thinking at present. It examines both the evolutionary process of thinking and a body of prominent ideas and doctrines. Throughout the course, students have the opportunity to place China’s foreign policy in a broader and deeper intellectual context than is often the case.

This course examines China’s international relations with a focus on both historical context and contemporary developments. Beginning with imperial China’s traditional foreign relations and the “century of humiliation,” the course traces the evolution of Chinese foreign policy through the Cold War period to the present day. Students analyze China’s relationships with major powers and regions, including the United States, Russia, Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, and India, while exploring critical issues such as the Taiwan question, territorial disputes in the South China Sea, and China’s growing role in global governance. Special attention is paid to understanding the drivers of China’s recent assertive turn in foreign policy under Xi Jinping, theories of international relations as applied to China's rise, and the implications of China’s increasing power for the international order. Through engagement with scholarly works and contemporary policy debates, the course provides students with a comprehensive understanding of China’s foreign relations and its emergence as a global power. 

This course provides a broad introduction to the intellectual history, philosophy, practices, and culture of Tibetan Buddhism.  In this course, we will approach Tibetan Buddhism through four topics: 1) the historical development of Buddhism in Tibet and its key characters, including major gods, goddesses, and human figures; 2) Buddhist ideas about a central theme in nearly all religions: human suffering; 3) ideas and practices that address the problem of human suffering; and 4) the lives of individuals in contemporary Tibetan Buddhist communities.  We will we will read and discuss excerpts from Tibetan Buddhist literature; learn to appreciate and analyze Tibetan art and architecture; and watch short documentaries about Tibet that allow us to see how the ideas and practices from the texts connect to peoples’ lives today.

This seminar examines the diverse and dynamic religious traditions of Korea including shamanism, Confucianism, Buddhism, Christianity, and New Religions from the pre-modern developments to religious experience in contemporary Korea including North Korea. This course adopts an interdisciplinary approach by discussing the histories and philosophies of religions, and their roles in Korean culture and society. It also deals with women’s position in traditional and contemporary Korean religions. Why study Korean religions? How can we approach Korean religions from an academic perspective? What role have religions played in Korean history, culture, and society? Through a reflection on Korean religions, students are encouraged to think critically about the concept of religion and its role.