Japn 311: Social Issues in Japan
Course Description:
In the course, we’ll learn about the ways that people in Japan have engaged with the vast cultural, economic, and political changes since 1945. Among other topics, we’ll read about the fights over environmental concerns, anti-war protests (including anti-U.S. military base protests), economic and gender inequalities, and the going struggle for life-work balance. As a researcher or social movements in Japan, I strive to infuse the course with a strong focus on social movements and fights for justice, in its many forms.
MLO's:
This course meets MLO 2 as well as MLO 4.
Course Narrative:
This course allowed for me to better understand the social issues that are prevalant in Japanese culture. There were many issues in Japan that I was not aware of prior to taking this course. The discussions that we had regarding the Indigenous peoples of Japan was especially interesting to me. I had taken many Japanese culture courses previous to taking this one, and yet I had not been fully aware of the struggles facing Indigenous people in Japan. I got a very different view of Japan and the ways that Japanese society functions that are often not discussed or even thought about when we study Japan. By taking this course I was able to better understand how issues in Japan were also similar to many issues facing the United States. When I learned about the struggles facing women's movements in Japan. I wrote an article review about the role that women's movements had played in a variety of issues facing Japanese society after World War II. Through this article review I was better able to understand the variety of ways that women were able to change Japanese society at large. This course also helped me develop an interest in this topic which is what I decided to study in more depth for my capstone project.
In the course, we’ll learn about the ways that people in Japan have engaged with the vast cultural, economic, and political changes since 1945. Among other topics, we’ll read about the fights over environmental concerns, anti-war protests (including anti-U.S. military base protests), economic and gender inequalities, and the going struggle for life-work balance. As a researcher or social movements in Japan, I strive to infuse the course with a strong focus on social movements and fights for justice, in its many forms.
MLO's:
This course meets MLO 2 as well as MLO 4.
Course Narrative:
This course allowed for me to better understand the social issues that are prevalant in Japanese culture. There were many issues in Japan that I was not aware of prior to taking this course. The discussions that we had regarding the Indigenous peoples of Japan was especially interesting to me. I had taken many Japanese culture courses previous to taking this one, and yet I had not been fully aware of the struggles facing Indigenous people in Japan. I got a very different view of Japan and the ways that Japanese society functions that are often not discussed or even thought about when we study Japan. By taking this course I was able to better understand how issues in Japan were also similar to many issues facing the United States. When I learned about the struggles facing women's movements in Japan. I wrote an article review about the role that women's movements had played in a variety of issues facing Japanese society after World War II. Through this article review I was better able to understand the variety of ways that women were able to change Japanese society at large. This course also helped me develop an interest in this topic which is what I decided to study in more depth for my capstone project.