about chinese pop culture

2006-12-25 13:27:04,from:WOW

Chinese history and culture cannot be properly understood without close study of what ordinary people thought, felt, and believed. Most scholarship on China has ignored this truism; this course, by contrast, is based on it. Our primary concerns will be 1) domestic and communal rituals, local cults, and other village religious activities, and 2) operas and other forms of popular performance literature-some of which were closely connected with ritual. We will also look at the design of houses and temples, various forms of divination, and the iconography of everyday life. These subjects will be studied through both written and visual documentation.

There are no prerequisites for this course, but students who have not had a college-level course on Chinese history should read a general introduction to late imperial and twentieth century history as soon as possible. A good choice would be J. K. Fairbank and Merle Goldman, China: A New History (Harvard, 1998), chapters 8-10, 12, 15-16, 18-20 (approximately 170 pages). The course readings are all in the History 100 Reader, available at Metro Publishing, 2440 Bancroft Way. (Please note that the source of each reading is identified precisely in the syllabus to make it easier to consult the original book or article.) The Fairbank and Goldman book should be readily available in local bookstores or on the internet. Students are expected to do the relevant reading before the lectures, since many of the readings will be discussed in class.

There will be no midterm or final, unless the instructor concludes that a special inducement to do the reading is required. There will be two papers, in which students will provide original interpretations of the materials covered in the syllabus and in lectures, and possibly other written work. When the lectures focus on specific texts, such as scriptures or opera scripts, participation in class discussion will be expected.

about chinese pop culture

about chinese pop culture,