A: Cultural History of East and Southeast Asia
This module is provided both in Finnish and in English. If you decide to take this course in English, you may write your term paper and other course work in English. You can also choose web courses that have been translated into English.
Organizer: Department of History, University of Oulu
Objective: The course aims at giving an insight into East and Southeast Asia through the viewpoint of the central values in the region and cultural encounters. Students can go deeply into their preferred area when selecting the literature for the book exam and topic for the essay.
Options: You can choose between two options: 1) the whole module (6 ETCS), or 2) the lecture course + book exam (2 ECTS)
2011 timetable:
Lecture course + book exam (2 op)
lectures available 9.1.-22.2.2012
home exam options 16.1., 6.2. and 20.2.2012.
Essay course (2 op)
topics available 9.1.2012
deadline 9.3.2012
Web course (2 op)
23.1.-2.3.2012.
This module will be organized in the UTU Moodle learning environment. Details and instructions:
http://moodle.utu.fi/course/category.php?id=133
Description of the module:
The module consists of three parts:
1) Lecture course and book exam (2 ECTS)
Lecture course and book exam consist of video lectures and a book exam. Lecture course and book exam are taken as a home exam. Video lectures are obligatory for all students, but the literature may be freely chosen from the following book list. Therefore, in the exam everybody answers two questions, one dealing with the video lectures and the other dealing with the specific book the student has chosen.
Literature list (you need to read only one of these books):
a) Paul Varley, Japanese culture. Honolulu, University of Hawaii Press, cop. 2000.
b) Clark, Donald N., Culture and customs of Korea. Westport, Conn, Greenwood Press, 2000.
c) W. Scott Morton, Charlton M. Lewis, China: its history and culture. New York, McGraw-Hill, cop. 2004.
d) Davison, Gary Marvin and Barbara E. Reed, Culture and customs of Taiwan. Westport, Conn, Greenwood Press, 1998.
e) Abu Talib Ahmad and Tan Liok Ee, New terrains in Southeast Asian history. Athens, Center for International Studies, Ohio University Press: Singapore University Press, National University of Singapore, 2003.
2) Essay course (2 ECTC)
Students write a term paper (8-10 pages) that deals with the cultural history of China, Japan, Korea or Southeast Asia. The topic of the essay is selected from the list provided in the learning environment.
3) Web course (2 ECTS)
The student may choose one of the following two web courses:
1. Cultural History of Japan
2. Japanese Society in Transition
The aim of the Cultural History of Japan - course is to familiarize students with the development and characteristics of the Japanese culture through some specific themes. The interaction between Western and Japanese culture is emphasized in this course because most of us encounter Japan, Japanese people and other cultures and their representatives in the context of interaction.
Culture can be defined as a society’s way of life. The Japanese Society in Transition -course concentrates on observing the changes that have occurred in Japanese society during the last 150 years. Institutions and norms that set limits, guide, and structure all social activity are the focus of the course together with the most influential ideological currents that have shaped the society.
Juha Saunavaara
Department of History
University of Oulu
puh. 08 553 3327
juha.saunavaara (at) oulu.fi