| Course Number |
| Course Title Comparative |
Credits |
Instructor(s) |
| Japanese Popular Heroes, from the Age of Wars to Pre-modern Days |
2 |
Reinhold GRINDA |
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| Keywords |
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Course
Description
(including Goal and Objectives) |
(Chiefly for international students, but Japanese participants will be welcome to join!)
Japanese Popular Heroes, from the Age of Wars to Pre-modern Days
From Japan's legendary past to the advent of modern times a hundred and forty years ago, there have been a number of persons, either historical or fictional, who have become as famous as to represent their respective age. These keep reappearing again and again in novels, films, and on television. Closely linked to these are a small number of stereotypes everybody knows: samurai, yakuza, etc. Virtually all of these heroes stem from the warrior class; but they differ very much from one another with respect to their status and personality, and the age they were living in. This class will show some typical films centering on representative heroes from the Kamakura Age to the end of the Edo Era. We will see how, within three hundred years of times getting first more and more peaceful and then more and more chaotic, the image of the typical hero changed from warlord to politician to avenger (Chushingura) to complete outlaw (Shimizu no Jirocho, Kunisada Chuji): from ruling representative of the country to respectable gangster. All of these heroes are still present in the public mind now, their images being highly contradictory and quite fascinating. |
| Course Schedule |
| 1 |
Japan's History from Sengoku to Edo, a Brief Overview |
| 2-12 |
Films and Discussion |
| 13-15 |
Presentation Sessions |
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| Textbook(s) |
Prints |
| Reference(s) |
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| Grading Method |
Active Participation |
60 % |
| Presentation & Handout |
40 % |
| Message to Students |
Different times and their lions. |
| Contacts |
E-mail: grinda@kdw.kj.yamagata-u.ac.jp
Office Hour: Wed, 4:30-5:30
Office Telephone: 023-628-4934
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