Llm1100 Literatures and Cultures

1 LLM1100 LITERATURES AND CULTURES OF THE WORLD (Winter 2017)

Wednesday: 17:30-19:00 SMD 422; Friday: 17:30-19:00 SMD 422

Professor: Natalia Vesselova Office: Hamelin Hall 206 Office Hours: Tuesday, 16:00-17:00 E-mail: [email protected]

COURSE DESCRIPTION This interdisciplinary course explores the ways literatures and cultures of the world are transmitted and received beyond their context of origin across different languages, nations, and cultural traditions. Communication of cultures takes various, sometime extreme forms; one of them, generally benign, is reciprocal fascination resulting in mutual enrichment. There is, however, a complexity to this interaction, as it can involve superficial understanding or entire misunderstanding of each other’s customs and values, stereotyping, and precarious power dynamics. In this course we will analyze one such case: the relationships between the “Western” culture and that of Japan. The reason for this choice is that their cultural interaction started relatively late and developed rapidly, providing rich demonstrable material. However, examples from other cultural contexts will be frequently used to clarify theoretical concepts or to illustrate certain perspectives.

The aspects to be examined are divided into five case studies; each case study includes a theoretical base, background cultural information, and artistic items (pictorial, literary, or filmic). The order of case studies is non-chronological.

METHOD The course will be a combination of lectures and class discussions; students’ input is highly encouraged.

The course will be taught in English with all readings in English. All international films will be in their respective original language with English subtitles. (NB: Generally films will be seen in longish clips with class discussion and analysis afterward.)

ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION It is the University’s policy that attending classes is mandatory. If a student misses more than three classes without a doctor’s note or other valid excuse, he or she will not be allowed to write the final exam. Participation, be it oral or written, is important for the final grade. The students who prefer not to talk in front of the class should send the professor a message with their share of the day’s discussion. Any afterthoughts or questions are always welcome. 2

EVALUATION Participation, in-class responses 5% Book/film review 10% (due date: February 8) Presentation (due date to be assigned individually) 10% Midterm exam (February 17) 20 % Research paper proposal (due date: March 3) 5% Research paper (due date: March 29) 20% Final exam (TBA): 30%

READING 1. Course package available at the Laurier Office Mart, 226 Laurier Avenue. 2. A Pale View of Hills by Kazuo Ishiguro (new and used copies available on Amazon for 2 – 5$; please order ASAP.)

ASSIGNMENTS In-class responses, oral and written (throughout the course) Active contribution in discussions, answers to spontaneously posed questions, and short in-class written responses based on the material designated for the day as well as on the major terms and concepts introduced earlier in the course.

Book/film review (approx. 700 words). A critical assessment of a book or a film (fiction or non-fiction) pertaining to the course subject matter; to be chosen by the student and approved by the professor. No research required.

Midterm exam Identification quiz concerning literary works, films, names, historical events and theoretical concepts discussed in the first half of the course; analysis of a sample work illustrating cultural interaction; a short essay question based on the studied material.

Presentation A brief talk on a chosen topic pertaining to the course subject matter but not limited to the particular cultures the course is focused upon. For example, the presenter can point to similar or opposite occurrences of cultural interaction between other civilizations. The presentations will be followed by a class discussion of the issues raised. If a student is unable to make an in-class presentation it can be replaced by a report given in the professor’s office.

Research paper proposal (approx. 250 words). A brief outline of the chosen topic; may include a list of research sources.

Research paper (approx. 1500 words, including the list of works cited. This may be a research paper on any aspect of literatures and cultures transmitting across different languages, nations, and traditions based on the theory presented in class, or a critical analysis of one or several artistic works on the syllabus (not including the ones chosen for a review). A 3 research bibliography of not less than three secondary sources is required. Materials taken from the Internet do not count as sources if they are not extensive professional film reviews or academic articles found in electronically published scholarly journals.

Final exam (TBA) Identification quiz concerning literary works, films, names, historical events and theoretical concepts discussed in the second half of the course; two essay questions from the list provided in advance, at the end of the course. The responses to essay questions may involve material of students’ choice, different from that studied in class.

All the home assignments should be written in accordance with the M.L.A. guidelines, typed in 12 point Times new Roman, double- spaced and, if longer than one page, stapled.

LATE ASSIGNMENTS Assignments submitted past their due date lose 5% of the grade each day; work submitted more than four days late will not be accepted and the grade will be zero, unless the student presents a medical certificate along with the paper or receives an extension due to special circumstances (to be requested in advance).

PLAGIARISM AND IMPROPER CITATION Plagiarism is an attempt to pass someone else’s words and ideas for your own; self-plagiarism includes turning in the same paper for different classes. It constitutes serious academic fraud, and the penalties vary from grading the assignment as zero to expulsion from the university. Plagiarism might sometimes result from improper citation, though being misinformed is not a valid excuse. To avoid committing plagiarism, please read the university guidelines: http://www.uottawa.ca/plagiarism.pdf Proper and improper citation will be discussed in class. If in doubt, never hesitate to consult the professor.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: http://web5.uottawa.ca/mcs-smc/academicintegrity/home.php

FREE SERVICES AVAILABLE TO STUDENTS The Mentoring Centre of the Faculty of Arts is located in room 125B, Simard Building. The SASS (Student Academic Success Service), established by the University, provides many services: https://sass.uottawa.ca/en. The SASS regularly publishes a list of academic and social activities taking place on campus on its University 101 Web portal: http://web.sass.uottawa.ca/university101/ The Access Service helps students with special needs or learning disabilities: http://www.sass.uottawa.ca/access/ 4 IMPORTANT DATES AND DEADLINES FOR THE 2016-2017 ACADEMIC YEAR http://www.uottawa.ca/important-academic-dates-and-deadlines/

SEXUAL VIOLENCE POLICY The University of Ottawa does not tolerate any form of sexual violence. Sexual violence refers to any act of a sexual nature committed without consent, such as rape, sexual harassment or online harassment. The University, as well as student and employee associations, offers a full range of resources and services allowing members of our community to receive information and confidential assistance and providing for a procedure to report an incident or make a complaint. For more information, visit www.uOttawa.ca/sexual-violence-support-and- prevention. 5 SCHEDULE 11.01 Introduction. Case Study 1. Encountering The Other. Theory: Jacques Lacan. 13.01 East meets West: Japanese representations of “Westerners” in art and literature. 18.01 West meets East: Japanese influence on European art in late 19th- early 20th centuries. 20.01 Confronting The Other in wartime: Russo-Japanese war; Aleksandr Kuprin's “Staff Captain Rybnikov”. 25.01 Interrelation with The Other in wartime: World War II; “Prize Stock” by Kenzaburo Oe. 27.01 Interrelation with The Other in wartime: World War II: The Sun, film by Aleksandr Sokurov. 01.02 Case Study 2. Orientalism. Theory: Edward Said. Two centuries of japonisme and japonesque exoticism in the “Western” fashion. 03.02 Stereotyping: Giacomo Puccini's opera Madama Butterfly. 08.02 Representations of Japan in “Western” arts. Harakiri, film by Fritz Lang (1919). Book/film review due. 10.02 Use and abuse of Kabuki theatre aesthetics and the geisha imagery in high and popular “Western” culture (Eisenstein’s grotesques; Memoirs of the Geisha). 15.02 Revision; student presentations. 17.02 Midterm February 19-25 Study Week, no classes 01.03 Case Study 3. Male Gaze. Theory: Laura Mulvey. M. Butterfly by David Henry Hwang and David Cronenberg. 03.03 Eroticizing Japan: Peter Greenaway’s film remodelling of Sei Shonagon’s Pillow Book. Research paper proposal due. 08.03 Case Study 4. Intercultural communication through high culture. Theory: Milton J. Bennet. A national poetic form transgresses borders of languages and cultures: haiku in the “West.” 10.03 Transmitting a “Western” genre to Japanese literature: Edogawa Rampo – the Edgar Allan Poe of Japan. 15.03 Putting national values in international context: Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s stories. 17.03 Adapting foreign high culture to the national: Akiro Kurosawa’s version of Shakespeare (Throne of Blood). 22.03 Akiro Kurosawa continued. 24.03 Case Study 5. Cultural Hybridity. Theory: Homi Bhabha, Peter Burke. 29.03 Between traditionalist feelings and cosmopolitan education: the tragic paradox of writer Yukio Mishima. Research paper due. 31.03 Hyphenated identity: a Japanese-British look back in space and time (A Pale View of Hills by Kazuo Ishiguro). 05.04 Murakami, manga, anime – new exoticism or globalization? Students’ presentations and group discussion. 07.04 Revision; preparation for the final exam 6