Modern History of Japan

Modern History of Japan

Fall 2016

Syllabus

2017/01/23

Ryoichi Imai

International Student Center, Kyushu University

My JTW Course Page

Contents

1. Course Outline

2. Organization, Attendance, and Other Requirements

3. Pre-requisites

4. Assessment Details

5. Schedule and Readings

Course Outline

The course is designed to provide some introductory knowledge of Japanese history. The course will cover the history of Japan's political and economic system from Edo era to the end of World War II.

Organization, Attendance, and Other Requirements

Students are expected to buy the text book.

Gordon, Andrew (2003), A Modern History of Japan. Oxford University Press.

Some lecture notes will be uploaded on this website. The course consists mainly of a series of lecture given by the instructor. Depending on the number of the students who register this course, they may present some selected reading materials in the late half of the course. Each course attendant is supposed to do at least ONE oral presentation of the reading assignments. The presenter must make a set of PowerPoint slides. If too many students take this course, individual presentations will be replaced by group ones. There is one final examination, closed-book or take-home.

Pre-requisite

None.

Assessment Details

You can get two credits by satisfying the following three requirements.

1. Class Attendance and Discussion 20%

According to the government guideline, no students are allowed to take the course final examination, if they do not show up in more than 1/3 of the class meetings. The government has set up a more rigorous grading standard on credits.

2. Presentation 40%

3. Final Examination 40%

Getting the course credits is not a hard task, while no negotiation is allowed on credits or grades.

If you need 3 credits to transfer JTW credits to your home University's credit account, you have to do an extra homework, of which the detail will be specified later.

Schedule and Readings (subject to Change)

Part 1. Crisis of the Tokugawa Regime

1. (10/04) The Tokugawa Polity

Supplement:

The Sengoku Warlords and Their Culture

Dazaifu and Sumo　Sumo Banzuke

(10/11) No class. Make-up for a Monday class.

2. (10/18) Social Economic Transformations

3. (10/25) The Intellectual World of Late Tokugawa

4. (11/1) The Overthrow of the Tokugawa

Part 2. Modern Revolution, 1968-1905

5. (11/8) The Samurai Revolution