ASIAN STUDIES 101 - FALL 2006

Asian Studies 101 (GE Foundations)*
*P. 87 of the SDSU General Catalogue 2006-2007 classifies this class under... area "C" Humanities... in section 2. Art, Classics, Dance, Drama, Humanities, and Music
Asian Thought and Cultures
Fall 2006

Copyright © 2006 Miguel B. Llora. All Rights Reserved.

Lecturer: Miguel Llora, MA

General Notes

Some documents on this site are provided in Microsoft Word format. You will need Microsoft Word or an equivalent to view and print these documents. Documents which are in Microsoft Word format will be annotated with this graphic: Other documents on this site are provided in Microsoft PowerPoint format. You will need Microsoft PowerPoint or an equivalent to view and print these documents. These documents will be annotated with this graphic: Some documents on this site are provided in Adobe Acrobat format. You may need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view, fill out and print these documents. This software is available for free at Adobe's Web Site. Documents which are in Adobe Acrobat format will be annotated either with "PDF" or with this graphic:

AS 101 - Asian Thought and Cultures - Fall 2006

ASIAN 101

1

Asian Thought & Cultures

0930 - 1045

TTH

SH 145

AS101 Fall - Syllabus
AS101 Fall - Film Exam Details

Asian 101 - Film Lists (available at the Media Center):
Lecturer's Collection
Media Center Collection

San Diego Asian Film Festival Movies

I strongly encourage you to get familiar with BLACKBOARD...
Grade Calculation on Blackboard
Material also provided at the Docutek ERes or Electronic Reserves & Reserves Pages...

Course Objective:
This course will explore the social, religious, political, economic, and legal foundations of East and Southeast Asia. The course content is designed to give the student a background to understand the traditions, the values and thus the societies in East and Southeast Asia. In this course we will focus on East and Southeast Asia.

Textbooks required for the class:
None.

All required readings will be available online on ECR or hardcopy at the SDSU Reserve Book Room.

Readings are taken from the following books:
Chua, Amy. World on Fire. New York: Doubleday, 2003
Heinz, Carolyn Brown. Asian Cultural Traditions. Waveland Press, Inc.: Prospect Heights, 1999.
Heidhues, Mary Somers. Southeast Asia - A Concise History. Thames and Hudson: London, 2000.
Lowenstein, Tom. The Vision of the Buddha: Buddhism - The Path to Spiritual Enlightenment. Duncan Baird Publishers: London, 1996.
Nelson, Lynn H. and Peebles, Patrick. eds. Classics of Eastern Thought. Harcourt Brace College Publishers: Fort Worth, 1991.
Owen, Norman. ed. The Emergence of Modern Southeast Asia - A New History. University of Hawaii Press: Honolulu, 2005.
Go, Julian and Foster, Anne L. eds. The American Colonial State in the Philippines: Global Perspectives. Duke University Press: Durham, 2003.
McKenna, Thomas M. Muslim Rulers and Rebels: Everyday Politics and Armed Separatism in the Southern Philippines. University of California Press: Berkeley, 1998.
Handbook of Korea. The Korean Overseas Information Service: Seoul, 2003.

Please note:
(1) The tests should be taken on the assigned date and there are no make up tests without a doctor's note.
(2) Attendance is mandatory.
(3) The videos shown in class should be watched carefully as there will be questions from them on the tests. Same goes for speakers/invited guests.
(4) There will be no midterm or final exam so each test is of equal importance.
(5) All assignments should be handed to me personally and on time. Please do not leave assignments in my (or the department's) mail box.

Evaluations:

Final Paper Resources:
SDSU
Infodome
Article Databases
Style Manuals and Citation Formats
Sample Citations in MLA Format

Paper Sample
Confucian Ethics and Daoist Naturalism in Zhang Yimou's Raise the Red Lantern - List of References
Confucian Ethics and Daoist Naturalism in Zhang Yimou's Raise the Red Lantern - Outlilne
Confucian Ethics and Daoist Naturalism in Zhang Yimou's Raise the Red Lantern - Quotes
Confucian Ethics and Daoist Naturalism in Zhang Yimou's Raise the Red Lantern - Paper [In Progess]

Extra Credit:
Students may accumulate additional points toward their class total by submitting a book report: a two page reflection.
The book choices are:
(1) Dusk: A Novel by F. Sionil Jose. ISBN# 0375751440 or
(2) To Live: A Novel by Yu Hua. ISBN# 1400031869 or
(3) The Last Time I Saw Mother: A Novel by Arlene Chai. ISBN# 0449912345 or
(4) Geisha: A Life: The Story of Mineko Iwasaki. ISBN# 0743444299 or
(5) Memoirs of a Geisha: A Novel by Arthur Golden. ISBN# 0679781587
(6) Seven years in Tibet: An account of an Austrian mountain climber Heinrich Harrer's escape from a British internment camp in India during World War II and his twenty-one-month journey through the Himalayas to safety in the Forbidden City of Lhasa in Tibet.
Kindly see me if you are planning to do this.

Week 1 - Aug. 29 - 31: Introduction to Asia - Geography
*by the end of the week, make sure the requirements are clear.
Aug. 29 - Asia as a Cultured Space
Heinz: Chapter 1 (3-9)
Aug. 31 - Introduction to Southeast Asia
Heidhues: Introduction (7-15)
Asia as a Cultured Space

Week 2 - Sept. 5 - 7: Confucian and Taoist China
Sept. 5 - Confucianism
An Introduction to Confucianism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confucianism
Nelson - The Analects (50-56)
Sept. 7 - Taoism
An Introduction to Taoism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taoism
Nelson - Tao Te Ching (58-66)

Their Way Out Of Chaos: Confucianism, Legalism, and Daoism

Week 3 - Sept 12 - 14: Buddhist China (Hinduism and Buddhism)
Sept. 12 - IIndia (Hinduism and Buddhism)
Lowenstein (8-33)
Nelson-Sermon at the Deer Park
Buddhism

Sept. 14 - Buddhism in China
An Introduction to Buddhism
http://www.ubfellowship.org/archive/readers/601_buddhism.htm
Chinese Buddhism
A History of Chinese Buddhism
Buddhism in China on Wikipedia
Special Feature Article:
Garfinkel, Perry. "Buddha Rising." 88-109. National Geographic December 2005.
Buddhism is gaining followers in the West with practical ways to still the mind and find enlightenment.
by Perry Garfinkel Photographs by Steve McCurry
Buddhism in China

Week 4 - Sept. 19 - 21: Confucianism and the Tao in Cinema
Sept. 19 - CChina
Heinz - Chapter 7 (246-279)
Ang Lee's - Eat, Drink, Man, Woman
Primordial Exoticizing Orientalism or Opening New Spaces of Emancipation in Ang Lee's Eat Drink Man Woman

Week 5 - Sept. 26 - 28: Mongolia
Sept. 26 - The Mongol Century (Part 1)
The Mongol Century (1-6)
http://www.geocities.com/mllora3/mongolia.htm
The 13th Century - The Mongol Century
Sept. 28 - The Mongol Century (Part 2)
The Mongol Century (7-12)
http://www.geocities.com/mllora3/mongolia.htm
Questions:
Was the Great Wall of China built to keep the Mongols out?
Not really. The Great Wall of China was built over 2,000 years ago, by Qin Shi Huangdi, the first emperor of China during the Qin (Ch'in) Dynasty (221 B.C - 206 B.C.). In Chinese the wall is called "Wan-Li Qang-Qeng" which means 10,000-Li Long Wall (10,000 Li = about 5,000 km). After subjugating and uniting China from seven Warring States, the emperor connected and extended four old fortification walls along the north of China that originated about 700 B.C. (over 2500 years ago). Armies were stationed along the wall as a first line of defense against the invading nomadic Hsiung Nu tribes north of China (the Huns). Signal fires from the Wall provided early warning of an attack. The Great Wall is one of the largest building construction projects ever completed. It stretches across the mountains of northern China, winding north and northwest of Beijing. It is constructed of masonry, rocks and packed-earth. It was over 5,000 km (=10,000 Li) long. Its thickness ranged from about 4.5 to 9 meters (15 to 30 feet) and was up to 7.5 meters (25 feet) tall. During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) [after the Yuan Dynasty - the Mongol era], the Great Wall was enlarged to 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles) and renovated over a 200 year period, with watch-towers and cannons added. Source: <http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/greatwall/Allabout.html>
Sinification of Mongols...
Mongol tents "ger" and lifestyle explored in...
Cooptation may also refer to the tactic of neutralizing or winning over a minority by assimilating them into the established group or culture.
Source: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Co-optation>
Any more 50 cent words that I throw out in class that I don't adequately define, please let me know - I'll post them.

Week 6 - Oct. 3 - 5: Tibet
Oct. 3 - Everything to do with Tibet and nothing to do with Tibet: An Examination of Ang Lee's "Chosen."
Intro to the 5 Principal Spiritual Traditions of Tibet:
Tibetan Buddhism (An Introduction)
Bonpo
Nyingma
Kahdam
Kagyu
Sakya
Gelug
Geshe Degree
Everything to do with Tibet and nothing to do with Tibet: An Examination of Ang Lee's "Chosen."
Oct. 5 - Tibet Today: Demystifying Tibet and the Cry of the Snow Lion
Tibetan Buddhism (An Introduction)
Bonpo
Nyingma
Kahdam
Kagyu
Sakya
Gelug
Geshe Degree
Introduction to Tibet and Tibetan Buddhism - No sign of Shangri-La, eh?

Week 7 - Oct. 10 - 12: Japan
Oct. 10 - Introduction to Tokugawa Japan: The Seeds of "Japanese" Identity
Tokugawa Japan: The Social and Economic Antecedents of Modern Japan (11-36)
The Japanese Literature Homepage
Japanese Old Photos in Bakumatsu-Meiji Period
The Floating World of Ukiyo-e
The Woodblock Prints of Ando Hiroshige
Japan Center for Asian Historical Records
Kyodo News International
Mainichi Daily News
The Tokugawa Shogunate

Oct. 12 - Introduction to Meiji Japan through an examination of the The Last Samurai... Please make sure to watch the movie prior to coming to class as I will not summarize it... The movie is on reserve for the class and the code is:
DVD 713 - The Last Samurai
... and Shinto and Buddhism in Japan
Meiji Japan and The Last Samurai

An Introduction to Shinto
http://www.ubfellowship.org/archive/readers/601_shinto.htm
Heinz - Chapter 8 (311-327)
Backup only.... In Class Slide Show: SS-52 - Castle Towns: An Introduction to Tokugawa Japan (42 Slides)

More Movies [Suggested]:
Twilight Samurai
Heaven and Earth
Zatoichi
The Sea is Watching
Kagemusha

Week 8 - Oct. 17 - 19: Korea
Oct. 17 - Modern History
Handbook of Korea (91-115)
Handbook of Korea (424-443)
Introduction to the Koreas

For those of you working on movies with Korean content, please feel free to checkout these sites:

Week 9 - Oct. 24 - 26: An Introduction to the Mainland Southeast Asian Region of Burma/Cambodia/Thailand/Vietnam/Laos
Oct. 24 - Southeast Asia: The Big Picture
Heidhues - 68-75; Chua 23-48
Oct. 26 - Spread of Buddhism (Theravada) and the Indian Legacy
Mùi du du xanh - L'odeur de la papaye verte or The Scent of Green Papaya: An Hung Tran film
Introduction to Mainland Southeast Asia through the Scent of Green Papaya
Suggested alternative viewings:
Mua he chieu thang dung or THE VERTICAL RAY OF THE SUN: An Hung Tran film
Xich lo or CYCLO: An Hung Tran film

Week 10 - Oct. 31 - Nov. 2: Vietnam and Cambodia
Oct. 31 - Vietnam
Vietnam, 1700-1885: Disunity, Unity, and French Conquest in Modern Southeast Asia (106-116)
Vietnam - The Lecture

Nov. 2 - Cambodia
Cambodia, 1796-1885:Politics in a Tributary Kingdom in Modern Southeast Asia (117-122)
Cambodia - The Lecture

Week 11 - Nov. 7 - 9: Burma and Thailand
Nov. 7 - Burma
Myanmar Becomes British Burma in Modern Southeast Asia (83-92)
Burma - The Lecture

Nov. 9 - Thailand
Siam: From Ayutthaya to Bangkok in Modern Southeast Asia (93-105)
THE ISAN SAGA: THE INHABITANTS OF RURAL NORTHEAST THAILAND AND THEIR STRUGGLE FOR IDENTITY, EQUALITY AND ACCEPTANCE (1964–2004)
Thailand - The Lecture

Week 12 - Nov. 14 - 16: Laos
Nov. 14 - Laos
Laos to 1975 in Modern Southeast Asia (371-375)
Laos - The Lecture

Week 13 - Nov. 21 - 23: The Maritime Region: Indonesia/Malaysia/Philippines/Singapore/Brunei
The juxtaposition of Christianity and Islam in Southeast Asia
Nov. 21 - The Maritime Region
Islam and Christianity: Heidhues - 77-84
Introduction to Maritime Southeast Asia - The Lecture
Nov. 23 - Philippines
Islam in a Christian State
Muslim Separatism and the Bangsamoro Rebellion in Muslim Rulers and Rebels (138-169)
Inheriting the "Moro Problem": Muslim Authority and Colonial Rule in British Malaya and the Philippines in The American Colonial State in the Philippines (118-147)
SOUTHERN PHILIPPINES BACKGROUNDER:TERRORISM AND THE PEACE PROCESS
PHILIPPINES TERRORISM: THE ROLE OF MILITANT ISLAMIC CONVERTS
The Philippines - The Lecture

Week 14 - Nov. 28 - 30: Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei
Nov. 28 - Malaysia
The Malay Negeri of the Peninsula and Borneo in Modern Southeast Asia (137-146)
Nov. 30 - Singapore/Brunei
Singapore and Brunei in Modern Southeast Asia (422-430)
Culture Is Destiny - A Conversation with Lee Kuan Yew
Is Culture Destiny? The Myth of Asia's Anti-Democratic Values - Kim Dae Jung
Democracy in Confucianism

Malaysia

Singapore

Brunei

Week 15 - Dec. 5 - 7: Indonesia
Dec. 5 - Indonesia
Becoming Indonesia, 1900-1959 in Modern Southeast Asia (296-311)
Indonesia - The Lecture

Dec. 7 - Quiz 4