Asian Studies

The Asian Studies major is intended for students who wish to engage in the study of societies and cultures from the Asian region. Building upon an interdisciplinary and transnational foundation, the Asian Studies major encourages students to pursue one or more disciplinary approaches to the study of Asia, such as art history, diplomacy and world affairs, history, Chinese language and culture, Japanese language and culture, literature, film and media, arts and culture, politics, and religious studies. Students may also explore particular issues of Asia across boundaries and disciplines.

Major

A minimum of 10 courses (to be selected from a pre-approved list of Asia-related courses, and not including the 2 units of senior comps work).

Survey Course

Students must select one course from the list below:

AMST 280/DWA 246	The United States and East Asia	4 units
ARTH 160	Introduction to East Asian Art	4 units
ASN 221	Asian Feminisms	4 units
DWA 253	Security in Asia	4 units
HIST 141	East Asian Survey	4 units
POLS 227	East Asian Politics: China, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan	4 units
RELS 160	How to Live and Die Well in Buddhist Traditions	4 units

Language

At least two semesters of Chinese or Japanese numbered 201 or above.

Seminar

The following courses may count toward the one-course seminar requirement. Students are encouraged to take the seminar by the end of their junior year and to select from the list below in consultation with their major advisor.

ARTH 360	Women in Art in East Asia	4 units
ARTH 365	Gender and Art in Japan	4 units
HIST 245/DWA 245	China and the World	4 units
HIST 344	Contemporary China: Reform, Rise, and Crisis	4 units
HIST 346	The Transformation of Urban and Rural China	4 units
HIST 348	The Chinese Cultural Revolution and the Global Sixties	4 units
RELS 261	Between Empire and Appropriation: Buddhism in the Modern World	4 units
RELS 276	Empire and Religion in Asia and the Pacific	4 units
RELS 335	Downloading Deities, Mediating Meditation, Streaming Spirits: Religion and Media in Asia	4 units

Electives

Students must select six additional courses. In addition to CHIN and JAPN courses (numbered 201 and above) and any 4-unit ASN course, students may select additional electives from the surveys and seminars listed above or from the list below:

AMST 270	Asian American Literature	4 units
AMST 272/ASN 272	Asian Immigrants in American Society	4 units
AMST 280/DWA 246	The United States and East Asia	4 units
ARTH 160	Introduction to East Asian Art	4 units
ARTH 268	The Japanese Woodblock Print	4 units
ARTH 360	Women in Art in East Asia	4 units
ARTH 365	Gender and Art in Japan	4 units
ASN 130	Introduction to Korean Society and Culture	4 units
ASN 131	Korean Pop Culture	4 units
ASN 150/CSLC 150	The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons: Masterpieces of Classical Chinese Literature	4 units
ASN 161/CSLC 161	Modern Japanese Literature	4 units
ASN 193	Directed Research in Asian Studies	2 or 4 units
ASN 221	Asian Feminisms	4 units
ASN 252/CSLC 252	To Dwell or to Wander: Reading Confucius and Zhuangzi	4 units
ASN 253/CSLC 253	The Golden Era: Literature of China's Tang and Song Dynasty	4 units
ASN 260/CSLC 260	Popular Culture and Literary Traditions of Early Modern Japan	4 units
ASN 293	Directed Research in Asian Studies	2 or 4 units
ASN 295/CSLC 295	Topics in Asian Studies	4 units
ASN 393	Directed Research in Asian Studies	2 or 4 units
CSLC 150/ASN 150	The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons: Masterpieces of Classical Chinese Literature	4 units
CSLC 252/ASN 252	To Dwell or to Wander: Reading Confucius and Zhuangzi	4 units
CSLC 253/ASN 253	The Golden Era: Literature of China's Tang and Song Dynasty	4 units
DWA 237	Cuba, Vietnam, China: Communism in a Post-Communist World	4 units
DWA 238	Identity and Citizenship: The South Asian Diaspora	4 units
DWA 245/HIST 245	China and the World	4 units
DWA 253	Security in Asia	4 units
EDUC 211	Asian American Education in K-16 Contexts	4 units
HIST 141	East Asian Survey	4 units
HIST 169/RELS 169	Transpacific Movements and Activisms: Asian and Asian American Connections Across the Pacific	4-units
HIST 242	Imperial China	4 units
HIST 243	Modern China: Colonialism, Nationalism, and Revolution	4 units
HIST 245/DWA 245	China and the World	4 units
HIST 248	Modern Japan	4 units
HIST 249	Modern Korea	4 units
HIST 344	Contemporary China: Reform, Rise, and Crisis	4 units
HIST 346	The Transformation of Urban and Rural China	4 units
HIST 348	The Chinese Cultural Revolution and the Global Sixties	4 units
MUSC 103	Music of Asia and the Pacific Islands	4 units
PHIL 213	Medieval Arabic-Islamic Philosophy	4 units
POLS 226	Contemporary Chinese Politics	4 units
POLS 227	East Asian Politics: China, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan	4 units
RELS 120	How to Live in the Midst of Dying: Religion and Climate Change	4 units
RELS 150	Introduction to Islam	4 units
RELS 160	How to Live and Die Well in Buddhist Traditions	4 units
RELS 215	Shamans, Sages, and Spirits in East Asia	4 units
RELS 252	Islam and Capitalism	4 units
RELS 255	What is the Shari’a? Justice, Law, and Ethics in Islam	4 units
RELS 256	Borderland Buddhisms: Religion in Tibet and the Himalayas	4 units
RELS 258	Magic, Morality, and Modernity in China	4 units
RELS 261	Between Empire and Appropriation: Buddhism in the Modern World	4 units
RELS 266	Sexuality and Gender in Buddhism	4 units
RELS 276	Empire and Religion in Asia and the Pacific	4 units
RELS 335	Downloading Deities, Mediating Meditation, Streaming Spirits: Religion and Media in Asia	4 units

Students may also apply MAC 244 as an elective if they have enrolled in the "The Female in Japanese Film and Media" or the "Asian American Film and Media" sections of the course.

Students may also apply MAC 246 as an elective if they have enrolled in the "New Waves of Asian Cinema" section of the course.

Students may also apply MAC 248 as an elective if they have enrolled in the "Transpacific Social Justice" section of the course.

Students may also apply MAC 260 as an elective if they have enrolled in the "Women Making Moves" section of the course.

Honors in the Major

Students with an overall GPA of 3.25 and a major GPA of 3.50 may submit an honors research proposal at the end of the fall semester of the senior year. If the proposal is supported by two faculty advisors, the student will enroll in a 2-unit Directed Research in the spring to expand the fall semester senior comprehensive paper into a 40-page paper that will be evaluated to determine whether the student has achieved Honors.

Minor

Five courses (20 units) from the Asian Studies course list. CHIN 201 and JAPN 201 or above may be counted toward the minor. At least two of these courses must be taken at Occidental.