Course Description
The evolution of Japan's warrior tradition from earliest times to the late nineteenth century. The role of warriors in society, the ethics and values of the samurai, and the nature of warfare as these developed and changed during the millennium that has become known as the Age of the Samurai.
Additional Requirements for Graduate Students:
Graduate students will be challenged to read more extensively
and to integrate the materials more thoroughly, and will be
graded with higher standards and expectations than
undergraduate students. This will entail integrated reviews of
primary research in the field that is extended and applied
towards a topic of the students' choosing, and synthesis and
critique of the material as evidenced through more extensive
essay. Graduate students will produce a series of book reviews
and historiographical essays in lieu of the short papers and
exams required of the undergraduates.
Athena Title
WRLD OF THE SAMURAI
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
The principal objectives of the course are to provide students with fundamental knowledge of the history of the samurai, and to teach students to think critically for themselves about the relationships between the past and the present, to learn to ask questions of the past that enable them to understand the present and mold the future, and to become attuned to both the limitations and possibilities of change. The course seeks to acquaint students with the ways in which past societies and peoples have defined the relationships between community and individual needs and goals, and between ethical norms and decision-making. In general students will be expected to: 1. read a wide range of primary and secondary sources critically. 2. polish skills in critical thinking, including the ability to recognize the difference between opinion and evidence, and the ability to evaluate--and support or refute--arguments effectively. 3. write stylistically appropriate and mature papers and essays using processes that include discovering ideas and evidence, organizing that material, and revising, editing, and polishing the finished papers.
Topical Outline
Introduction & Course Mechanics Warriors & Military Culture in Japanese Mythology The Imperial State Army Birth of the Samurai Samurai & the State During the Heian Period Warfare During the Heian Period Warrior Culture During the Classical Age The Gempei War The Legend of Minamoto Yoshitsune The Onset of Warrior Rule? The Mongol Invasions The Second Shogunate Heroes of the Taiheiki The Age of the Country at War Warfare in Late Medieval Japan The World of Gekokujo The Korean Invasion The “Reunification” The New Era & the New Samurai Warriors Without Wars: Samurai Angst The Image of the Ronin Swordsman The Development of Japanese Bugei Bugei Training The Philosophy & Science of Combat Zen & the Sword