31609 - Japanese Culture and Literature 2

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course students should deepen their competence in Japanese literary history, through analysis of general issues (periodization, literary movements and schools). They should also be acquainted with the latest methods and analytical tools they need to understand the works of the main authors, contextualising them within their cultural and historical period.

Course contents

Reading Modern and Contemporary Japan through Narrative and Cultural Expressions

The course focuses on modern and contemporary Japanese literature with emphasis on the interplay between literature, culture and society. Reading Japanese narratives from modern and contemporary Japan, we will analyze how do literature and society influence each other: historical events and occurrences, such as the Meiji restoration, the defeat of the World War II, student movements, the gas-attack in the Tokyo subway, the earthquakes, and changes in sex-role expectations, economy and demography have in different ways stimulated creative writing. In recent years, the emergence and increasing popularity of manga, animation films, videogames and “light novels” have also influenced the way stories are told. In other words, the study of modern and contemporary Japanese literature can offer an important insight into various aspects of Japanese history, culture and society.

Students who choose  not to attend the course will find all informations under the heading "Recommended reading".   

Readings/Bibliography

Bibliography for attending students: 
Students are expected to show a basic knowledge of the history of Japanese literature from 1868 to present days. Our reference text is:  

L. Bienati, P. Scrolavezza,  La narrativa giapponese moderna e contemporanea , Collana "Elementi", Marsilio, Venezia 2009   

Critical sources (compulsory)

M.R. Novielli, P. Scrolavezza, Lo schermo scritto. Letteratura e cinema in Giappone, Cafoscarina Editrice, Venezia 2012

Suggested readings:

P. Scrolavezza,  Donne senza fissa dimora: scrittura e libertà secondo Hayashi Fumiko (1903-1951), in Al di là del cliché: rappresentazioni multiculturali e transgeografiche del femminile, a cura di Marie-Christine Jullion, Clara Bulfoni, Virginia Sica, Franco Angeli Editore, Milano 2012 pp. 71-80 (available online by the beginning of the classes).    

P. Scrolavezza,  Paradisi perduti: disillusione e perdita dell'innocenza nell'ultima produzione di Hayashi Fumiko, in I dieci colori dell'eleganza. Saggi in onore di Maria Teresa Orsi, a cura di Matilde Mastrangelo e Andrea Maurizi, Aracne Editore 2013, pp. 511-525 (available online by the beginning of the classes). 

P. Scrolavezza, Silhouettes in black: l'ombra del giallo nella scrittura femminile del Giappone contemporaneo, in G. Coci (ed), Japan Pop, Roma, Aracne Editore, pp. 189-208 (available online by the beginning of the classes). . 

A. Seaman, Bodies of Evidence: Women, Society, and Detective Fiction in 1990's  Japan, Honolulu, U niversity of Hawaii Press, 2004   (a selection will be available online by the beginning of the classes) 

Mark J. McLelland, Male Homosexuality in Modern Japan. Cultural Myths and Social Realities, Curzon Press, Richmond 2000  (a selection will be available online by the beginning of the classes) 

Primary sources (compulsory):

Higuchi Ichiyō, La tredicesima notte, in Narratori giapponesi moderni I, Mondadori, Milano 1986, pp. 55-72 (available online by the beginning of the classes).

Tayama Katai, Il futon, Marsilio, Venezia 2015

Natsume Sōseki, Sanshirō, Marsilio, Venezia, 1990.

Hayashi Fumiko, Lampi, Marsilio, Venezia, 2011.  

*Hamao Shiro, Il discepolo del demonio, Atmosphere Libri, Roma 2015.

Mishima Yukio, Confessioni di una maschera,  in Romanzi e racconti,  Mondadori, Milano 2004.

Miyamoto Yuriko, Fiori tra le macerie, Pagus, Treviso 1990 (available online by the beginning of the classes). 

Kawabata Yasunari, Il Giappone, la bellezza e io (available online by the beginning of the classes). 

Ōe Kenzaburō, Io e il mio ambiguo Giappone (available online by the beginning of the classes).

Enchi Fumiko, Onnazaka. Il sentiero nell'ombra, Giunti, Firenze 1987.

Yoshimoto Banana, Kitchen, Feltrinelli, Milano, 2008.

Kirino Natsuo, Le quattro casalinghe di Tokyo, Neri Pozza Editore, Vicenza 2003.

Murakami Haruki, Uomini senza donne, Einaudi, Milano, 2015.

Ekuni Kaori, Stella stellina, a cura di P. Scrolavezza, Atmosphere libri, Roma 2013

Kakuta Mitsuyo, La cicala dell'ottavo giorno, Neri Pozza Editore, Vicenza 2014.

Scrivere per Fukushima, Atmosphere Edizioni, Roma, 2013  (a selection will be available online by the beginning of the classes) 

The Powerpoint files that will be used during the course will be available for students by the end of the course on the AMS Campus website. 
  

Bibliography for non attending students:  
Students are expected to show a basic knowledge of the history of Japanese literature from 1868 to present days. Our reference text is:  

L. Bienati, P. Scrolavezza,  La narrativa giapponese moderna e contemporanea , Collana "Elementi", Marsilio, Venezia 2009    

Critical sources (compulsory)

M.R. Novielli, P. Scrolavezza, Lo schermo scritto. Letteratura e cinema in Giappone, Cafoscarina Editrice, Venezia 2012

P. Scrolavezza,  Interni giapponesi: nuove narrative per scenari famigliari in trasformazione, in La famiglia nelle culture e nelle società dell'Asia, a cura di Maria Angelillo, Bulzoni Editore, Roma 2013, pp. 147-160 (available online by the beginning of the classes).    

P. Scrolavezza,  Donne senza fissa dimora: scrittura e libertà secondo Hayashi Fumiko (1903-1951), in Al di là del cliché: rappresentazioni multiculturali e transgeografiche del femminile, a cura di Marie-Christine Jullion, Clara Bulfoni, Virginia Sica, Franco Angeli Editore, Milano 2012 pp. 71-80 (available online by the beginning of the classes).    

P. Scrolavezza,  Paradisi perduti: disillusione e perdita dell'innocenza nell'ultima produzione di Hayashi Fumiko, in I dieci colori dell'eleganza. Saggi in onore di Maria Teresa Orsi, a cura di Matilde Mastrangelo e Andrea Maurizi, Aracne Editore 2013, pp. 511-525 (available online by the beginning of the classes). 

P. Scrolavezza, Silhouettes in black: l'ombra del giallo nella scrittura femminile del Giappone contemporaneo, in G. Coci (ed), Japan Pop, Roma, Aracne Editore, pp. 189-208 (available online by the beginning of the classes). . 

A. Seaman, Bodies of Evidence: Women, Society, and Detective Fiction in 1990's  Japan, Honolulu, U niversity of Hawaii Press, 2004   (a selection will be available online by the beginning of the classes) 

Mark J. McLelland, Male Homosexuality in Modern Japan. Cultural Myths and Social Realities, Curzon Press, Richmond 2000  (a selection will be available online by the beginning of the classes) 

Primary sources (compulsory):

Higuchi Ichiyō, La tredicesima notte, in Narratori giapponesi moderni I, Mondadori, Milano 1986, pp. 55-72 (disponibile online fra i materiali didattici all'inizio del corso)

Tayama Katai, Il futon, Marsilio, Venezia 2015

Natsume Sōseki, Sanshirō, Marsilio, Venezia, 1990.

*Hayashi Fumiko, Lampi, Marsilio, Venezia, 2011.

*Hamao Shiro, Il discepolo del demonio, Atmosphere Libri, Roma 2015.

Tanizaki Jun'ichiro, Libro d'ombra, Bompiani, 2000 (o qualunque altra edizione)

Mishima Yukio, Patriottismo, in Romanzi e racconti, Mondadori, Milano 2004.

Abe Kobo, La donna di sabbia, Guanda, Parma 2012

Kawabata Yasunari, Il Giappone, la bellezza e io (disponibile fra i materiali didattici online all'inizio del corso).

Ōe Kenzaburō, Io e il mio ambiguo Giappone (disponibile fra i materiali didattici online all'inizio del corso).

Enchi Fumiko, Onnazaka. Il sentiero nell'ombra, Giunti, Firenze 1987.

Yoshimoto Banana, un romanzo a scelta.

Kirino Natsuo, un romanzo a scelta.

Murakami Haruki, un romanzo a scelta.

*Ekuni Kaori, Stella stellina, a cura di P. Scrolavezza, Atmosphere libri, Roma 2013

Scrivere per Fukushima, Atmosphere Edizioni, Roma, 2013 (una selezione di racconti sarà disponibile fra i materiali didattici online all'inizio del corso)

The Powerpoint files that will be used during the course will be available for students by the end of the course on the AMS Campus website. 
  

Teaching methods

The course will consist mainly in lectures held by the teacher. A strong and active participation in class discussions by the students is warmly encouraged.

Assessment methods

The exam will be oral.  The exam will test the student's ability to elaborate on the topics exposed in class, to show the knowledge acquired thorugh the study of the proposed bibliography, and their capability for critical thinking.  A critical knowledge of the topics will be evaluated as excellent, while an excessive dependence on texts and manuals without any interpretative support will be evaluated with a positive but low score. The proven and repeated difficulty in creating logical and descriptive connections between cultural phenomena and literary contents, as well as a partial reading of the compulsory bibliography will result in an insufficient evaluation. 

Teaching tools

Slides, video, multi-media supports.  A series of films related to the texts in this syllabus will be shown and discussed during classes. The list will be published by the beginning of the lessons.  
In addition to class lectures, a series of seminars held by national as well as international scholars will be organized, whose active involvement is part of the final exam.
   
The Powerpoint files used during the course will be available for students on the AMS Campus website.

Office hours

See the website of Paola Scrolavezza