Japanese (JPN)

• Toshiyuki Sakuragi
• Lianying Shan

We strongly encourage students of Japanese language to study in Japan. Gustavus has a student exchange relationship with Kandai Gaidai University in Osaka. Students may also choose other host institutions in Japan in consultation with faculty members in the Japanese section. For a detailed description of the Japanese Studies major and minor, please see “Japanese Studies”.

101, 102 Beginning Japanese I, II (1 course, 1 course) Intensive study of basic skills in Japanese for beginners. Emphasis will be on oral-aural practice of the language. Reading and writing will be practiced also using Japanese syllabaries and selected Chinese characters. NWEST, offered annually.

201, 202 Intermediate Japanese I, II (1 course, 1 course) A continuation of both oral-aural and reading-writing skills development with expanded use of grammatical forms and Chinese characters. Prerequisite: JPN-102 and JPN-201 respectively. NWEST, offered annually.

251, 252 Conversation and Composition I, II (1 course, 1 course) These courses are designed to give students the opportunity to further develop skills in listening, speaking, reading and writing. Prerequisite: JPN-202/JPN-251. Offered occasionally.

270 Modern Japanese Literature and Culture In English Translation (1 course) The first half of the course offers a survey of representative works of modern Japanese literature (1868-the present) with a focus on short stories. We will explore important themes, such as modernity and Westernization, self, desire, women and gender, and war and memory. The second half introduces several major topics on Japanese culture/samurai culture, the image of geisha, transnational popularity of anime, the kawaii (cuteness) culture through popular images and icons, such as Hello Kitty. The goal of this course is to familiarize students with Japan’s modern history and culture and to help students develop critical thinking and writing skills through reading, discussing, and writing about literary texts and films. LARS, NWEST, offered Fall and Spring semesters.