Early modern and modern Japan: the transformation of Japan from an isolationist, agrarian country to a military giant, to a broken and defeated nation, to an economic superpower.
Athena Title
Modern Japan
Prerequisite
Any HIST course or ENGL 1101 or ENGL 1101E or ENGL 1101S or ENGL 1102 or ENGL 1102E or ENGL 1102S or POLS 1101 or POLS 1101E or POLS 1101H or POLS 1101S
Semester Course Offered
Offered spring
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Student learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to arrive at conclusions about the history of modern Japan by gathering and weighing evidence, logical argument, and listening to counter argument.
By the end of this course, students will be able to write stylistically appropriate papers and essays. Students will be able to analyze ideas and evidence, organize their thoughts, and revise and edit their finished essays.
By the end of this course, students will be able to identify how the history of modern Japan shaped diverse social and cultural attitudes toward religion, identity, and morality, encouraging them to understand diverse worldviews and experiences.
By the end of this course, students will be able to apply appropriate methodological approaches to their analysis of primary sources and to organize their evidence to show historical continuities and discontinuities.
Topical Outline
The 16th Century
The Three Unifiers
The Tokugawa Polity
Tokugawa Foreign Policy
The Four Orders
Early Modern Samurai
Early Modern Peasants
Merchants & Artisans
Early Modern Urban Culture
Dangers Within
Troubles Without
The Fall of the Shogunate
The New Meiji State
The Meiji Constitution
Meiji Culture
Industrialization
Meiji Foreign Policy
The Sino-Japanese & Russo-Japanese Wars
Taisho Democracy
Showa Imperialism
The Collapse of "Party Rule"
The Coming of War
The American Occupation
The Post War Political System
The Post War Economy
Modern Japanese Culture
Institutional Competencies Learning Outcomes
Analytical Thinking
The ability to reason, interpret, analyze, and solve problems from a wide array of authentic contexts.
Communication
The ability to effectively develop, express, and exchange ideas in written, oral, interpersonal, or visual form.
Critical Thinking
The ability to pursue and comprehensively evaluate information before accepting or establishing a conclusion, decision, or action.
