Course Objectives
- Gain a greater knowledge of Japanese culture.
- To learn how Japanese and non-Japanese view Japanese culture.
Literature
Read one or more of these novels.
If you read The Poppy War, watch R.F. Kuang’s author talk.
If you read Pachinko, list to the New York Times Book Review podcast about the novel.
History
Read one of these books and watch this Study Hall Japanese history class.
Health
Read this book to learn how Japanese communities live longer.
Writing
Read 3 haikus by Santoka Taneda, listen to haikus by Bashō, and read a month’s worth of pillow book entries by Sei Shonagon.
Then practice these literary forms to write an original haiku and a pillow book entry.
Film and Television Studies
Watch these films and TV shows set in Japan.
Extra Credit
- Practice origami.
- Make a Japanese dish.
- Play Samurai Academy: Paws of Fury (Nintendo Switch video game).
- Visit the Japanese gardens at Como Park Zoo and Conservatory and Minnesota Landscape Arboretum.
- Experience a tea ceremony at the Como Japanese Garden or at the University of Minnesota’s Northeast Tea House.
- Learn some Japanese words on Mango Languages. Use your library card to sign in.
