Course Description
To provide students who have no previous background in the subject
with a fundamental acquaintance with the historical, religious,
political, economic, and social traditions of East Asia, a
foundation upon which they can build in future studies.
Athena Title
East Asia in the World Honors
Equivalent Courses
Not open to students with credit in HIST 2600
Prerequisite
Permission of Honors
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Student Learning Outcomes
- By the end of this course, students will be able to arrive at conclusions through 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 East Asian history has shaped social and cultural identities, encouraging them to understand diverse worldviews and experiences.
Topical Outline
- 1. Introduction to the Course: Organizational Meeting
- 2. The Problem of Origins: Pre-History and Myth in China and Japan
- 3. The Shang Dynasty: The Evidence of Absence
- 4. The Western Zhou Dynasty: The Mandate of Heaven
- 5. The Eastern Zhou Dynasty: Warring States and Sanctioned Violence
- 6. Foundations of Classical Chinese Thought: Finding the Way
- 7. The Qin Dynasty: Creation of the Early Imperial Order
- 8. The Han Dynasty: Consolidation and Expansion of the Early Imperial Order
- 9. Chinese Buddhism: Assimilating Doctrines and Transforming Practices
- 10. The Sui and Tang Dynasties: Reunification and Fragmentation
- 11. Early Japan: Buddhism, Confucianism, and State Formation
- 12. Heian Japan: Shining Princes and Aristocratic Monks
- 13. The Tang-Song Transition: Early Modern Transformations of China
- 14. The Song Dynasty: Of Wen and Wu
- 15. Medieval Japan: The Rise of the Samurai and the Kamakura Shogunate
- 16. Medieval Japan: The Buddhist Soul of a Civilization
- 17. The Yuan Dynasty: Welcome to the Occupation
- 18. The Ming Dynasty: The Embarrassment of Riches
- 19. Muromachi and Sengoku Japan: “Feudalism” and Reunification
- 20. Tokugawa Japan to 1800: Tamed Samurai and Floating Worlds
- 21. The Qing Dynasty to 1800: Calm Before the Storm?
- 22. China 1800-60: Breaking in and Breaking Up
- 23. Japan 1800-68: The Collapse of the Tokugawa Order
- 24. Japan 1868-1900: The Meiji Transformation
- 25. China 1860-1911: The Collapse of the Imperial Order
- 26. Japan 1900-45: Militarism, War, and Embracing Defeat
- 27. China 1911-49: The Long Revolution
General Education Core
CORE IV: World Languages and Global Culture
