31107 - Japanese Literature 1

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course students knows the general outlines of the history of Japanese literature from the origins to the beginning of modernity. They will be provided the basic analytical tools to understand the works of the main authors, and they are able to contextualize them within their cultural, linguistic, artistic and historical background.

Course contents

The course offers a historical and critical introduction to classical and premodern Japanese literature, from its origins to the early modern period, with particular attention to the formation of literary genres, the construction of the canon, the relationship between Chinese writing and vernacular writing, courtly production, women’s narrative, medieval literature, and the publishing culture of the Edo period.

The course will be structured around the following thematic clusters:

1. Introduction to the course and methodological issues
Presentation of the syllabus, working methods, and assessment procedures. Introduction to the concepts of literature, canon, genre, manuscript tradition, and the material culture of the text.

2. From the origins to the ninth century: the Nara period
The formation of writing and literary memory in ancient Japan. The course will address the Kojiki, the Nihon shoki and the rikkokushi, fudoki, kanshi, and early forms of poetic and narrative writing.

3. Ancient poetry and the formation of waka
The Man’yōshū; the relationship with Chinese poetry; the emergence of court poetry; the transition towards the Kokinwakashū and the canonisation of waka.

4. Narrative forms of the Heian period
The main genres of Heian narrative will be analysed: uta monogatari, tsukuri monogatari, pre-Genji and post-Genji monogatari. Particular attention will be devoted to the Taketori monogatari, the Ise monogatari, the Sumiyoshi monogatari, and the position of the Genji monogatari within the courtly literary system.

5. The Genji monogatari
General features of the work, narrative structure, characters, themes, narrative voice, representation of gender relations, and the role of the Genji in the formation of the Japanese literary canon. Reading and analysis of selected chapters.

6. Writings of the self and court prose
The nikki genre: Tosa nikki, Murasaki Shikibu nikki, Sarashina nikki. Introduction to zuihitsu through the Makura no sōshi. The course will discuss the relationship between experience, memory, gender, self-representation, and literary conventions.

7. Medieval literature
Social and cultural transformations between the late Heian and Kamakura periods. Reading of the Hōjōki and Tsurezuregusa as central texts for understanding historical instability, withdrawal, impermanence, and essayistic reflection.

8. Medieval narrative genres
Introduction to setsuwa, gunki monogatari, and otogizōshi. Topics such as orality, Buddhist exempla, war, the marvellous, the supernatural, and the circulation of tales will be addressed.

9. The early modern period: from manuscript to print
Introduction to Edo culture: urbanisation, literacy, publishing, material culture, schools of thought, the transformation of the reading public, and new forms of literary consumption.

10. Edo narrative
Kana-zōshi, ukiyo-zōshi, Ihara Saikaku, Chikamatsu Monzaemon and the puppet theatre, gesaku, ninjōbon, yomihon, ghost stories, courtesans, and revenge tales. Particular attention will be devoted to the relationship between entertainment, the publishing market, morality, desire, and urban culture.

A more detailed schedule of individual classes, including the dates of the in-progress written tests and the assigned readings, will be made available on Virtuale at the beginning of the course.

 

 

Readings/Bibliography

Reference textbook:

• Luisa Bienati, Adriana Boscaro, La narrativa giapponese classica, Venezia, Marsilio, 2010.

Compulsory critical texts:

• Terry Eagleton, “Cos’è la letteratura”, in Introduzione alla teoria letteraria, trad. F. Dragosei, Roma, Editori Riuniti, 1998, pp. 7-23.
• Haruo Shirane, ed., Traditional Japanese Literature: An Anthology, Beginnings to 1600, New York, Columbia University Press, 2007, “Introduction”.
• Haruo Shirane, “Canon Formation in Japan: Genre, Gender, Popular Culture, and Nationalism”, in Michel Hockx e Ivo Smits, eds., Reading East Asian Writing: The Limits of Literary Theory, London-New York, RoutledgeCurzon, 2003, pp. 22-38.
• Haruo Shirane, ed., Traditional Japanese Literature: An Anthology, Beginnings to 1600, capp. 1, 2, 3.
• Paolo Zanotti, Introduzione alla storia della poesia giapponese, Venezia, Marsilio, 2012, capp. 1-4.
• Haruo Shirane, ed., Early Modern Japanese Literature: An Anthology, 1600-1900, New York, Columbia University Press, 2002, capitoli selezionati su kana-zōshi, Chikamatsu, ninjōbon e yomihon.

Literary texts in translation
The compulsory sections of the literary texts will be indicated on Virtuale at the beginning of the course. The list includes:

• Kojiki. Un racconto di antichi eventi, a cura di Paolo Villani, Marsilio, 2006.
• Nihon ryōiki. Cronache soprannaturali e straordinarie del Giappone, a cura di Maria Chiara Migliore, Carocci, 2010.
• Hitachi no kuni fudoki. Cronaca della provincia di Hitachi e dei suoi costumi, a cura di Antonio Manieri, Carocci, 2013.
• Scelta di poesie dal Man’yōshū e dal Kokinwakashū, materiali su Virtuale.
• Storia di un tagliabambù, a cura di Adriana Boscaro, Marsilio, 1994.
• I racconti di Ise, a cura di Andrea Maurizi, Marsilio, 2018.
• La principessa di Sumiyoshi, a cura di Carolina Negri, Marsilio, 2001.
• Murasaki Shikibu, Storia di Genji, a cura di Maria Teresa Orsi, Einaudi, 2012, capitoli selezionati.
• Diario di Murasaki Shikibu, a cura di Carolina Negri, Marsilio, 2016.
• Il diario di Tosa, Libreria Editrice Cafoscarina, 2004.
• Le memorie della dama di Sarashina, a cura di Carolina Negri, Marsilio, 2005.
• Sei Shōnagon, Le note del guanciale, SE.
• Kamo no Chōmei, Racconti di un eremo, a cura di Francesco Fraccaro, Marsilio, 2001.
• La monaca tuttofare, la donna serpente, il demone beone, a cura di Roberta Strippoli, Marsilio, 2001.
• Ihara Saikaku, Vita di una donna licenziosa, a cura di Lydia Origlia, SE, 2020.
• Onna daigaku, estratto su Virtuale.
• Il rovescio del broccato. Storie di fantasmi e cortigiane dal Giappone, a cura di Cristian Pallone, Atmosphere, 2019.
• Storie di vendetta di samurai, a cura di Mario Talamo, Atmosphere, 2021.
• Ueda Akinari, Racconti di pioggia e di luna, a cura di Maria Teresa Orsi, Marsilio.

Teaching methods

The course consists of in-person lectures devoted to the history of classical and premodern Japanese literature, the contextualisation of genres, authors, and texts, and the guided analysis of literary passages in translation. Classes will be supplemented by materials available on Virtuale, individual learning paths dedicated to theoretical and methodological issues, and, where appropriate, in-class viewing and discussion of audiovisual materials related to Japanese culture and literature.

During the course, review and discussion activities will also be provided in preparation for the three in-progress written tests, with the aim of encouraging progressive and conscious study of the topics addressed.

Assessment methods

The assessment aims to ascertain:

• knowledge of the main periods, genres, authors, and texts of classical and premodern Japanese literature;
• the ability to place works and literary phenomena within their respective historical, cultural, and material contexts;
• the ability to recognise and discuss the transformations of literary genres from ancient Japan to the early modern period;
• the ability to use appropriately the critical terminology and theoretical tools presented during the course;
• the ability to analyse literary texts in translation, connecting forms, themes, genres, and contexts.

Attending students

For attending students, the final assessment will consist of three parts:

1. Individual online learning path: 15%
Completion of the individual learning path on Virtuale will contribute 15% to the final grade. The path will be devoted to the acquisition of theoretical and methodological tools useful for the study of classical and premodern Japanese literature.

2. Three in-progress written tests: 25%
The three in-progress written tests replace the previous collaborative wiki and will contribute a total of 25% to the final grade. The tests will take place in class, on dates agreed upon with the students and communicated through Virtuale.

Each test will last 60 minutes and will consist of three open-ended questions on the topics and texts covered in the corresponding part of the course. The tests aim to assess progressive study, understanding of the contents, synthesis skills, and the ability to establish connections between texts, genres, and historical-literary contexts.

The grade for the in-progress tests will be calculated as the average of the three tests. In the event of absence from one or more tests, the student must agree with the instructor on the make-up arrangements or, where necessary, take the exam according to the procedures established for non-attending students.

During the in-progress written tests, the use of books, notes, digital materials, electronic devices, or Artificial Intelligence tools is not permitted, unless otherwise indicated by the instructor.

3. Final oral exam: 60%
The oral exam will contribute the remaining 60% to the final grade. The interview will assess overall knowledge of the syllabus, the ability to navigate the history of classical and premodern Japanese literature, understanding of the primary and critical texts, and the ability to connect works, genres, authors, and cultural contexts.

Non-attending students

Non-attending students, or students who have not taken the in-progress tests, will be assessed through:

1. Individual online learning path: 15%
Completion of the individual learning path on Virtuale will contribute 15% to the final grade, according to the same procedures established for attending students.

2. Final oral exam: 85%
The oral exam will cover the entire syllabus, the primary texts, and the critical bibliography indicated for non-attending students. The interview will assess knowledge of the main periods, genres, works, and authors of classical and premodern Japanese literature, as well as the ability to use the proposed critical tools in an informed way.

Assessment criteria

18-19: basic and partial knowledge of the topics, limited ability to place texts and genres within their historical-literary context, elementary use of critical terminology.

20-24: correct but not always in-depth knowledge of the main topics, autonomous analytical ability on circumscribed issues, generally clear exposition.

25-29: broad knowledge of the topics, good ability to connect periods, genres, works, and contexts, appropriate use of bibliography and specific terminology.

30-30L: thorough and critically developed knowledge of the topics, excellent analytical and connective skills, full command of terminology, clear, autonomous, and methodologically aware exposition.

Teaching tools

AI may be a useful tool to support individual study through further explanations, summaries, and self-assessment activities. As regards assessment, the use of AI is prohibited during the in-progress written tests and the final oral exam. Any use constitutes a violation of academic integrity.

Teaching materials, presentations, critical texts, excerpts, bibliographical indications, audiovisual materials, and individual learning paths will be made available through the Virtuale platform, in compliance with copyright regulations. The platform will also be used for communications, the class schedule, the dates of the in-progress tests, preparatory materials, and exam instructions.

Students with SLDs or temporary or permanent disabilities:we suggest that you contact the relevant university office ( https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en ) and your teacher immediately to work together to find the most effective strategies for attending classes and/or preparing for exams.
Any requests for exam accommodations must be made at least 15 days before the date of the exam, by sending an email to the teacher and copying (Cc) the email address disabilita@unibo.it (in case of disability) or dsa@unibo.it (for students with Specific Learning Difficulties).

Office hours

See the website of Samantha Audoly