Asian Studies

The Academic Program

1. Interdisciplinary breadth. The student must have mastered more than one academic discipline, to be able to speak to issues/ themes of their research on topics rooted in Asian traditions/regions from more than one disciplinary perspective;

   Not resolved to a course
2. Comparative Scope. The student must know in some depth more than one region in Asia; though they may focus, for instance, primarily on studies in Chinese traditions, pre-modern or modern, the student must also be able to think comparatively, and engage with more than one Asian tradition in regard to the topics/ themes that are central to their main region-specific research;

   Not resolved to a course
3. Depth of Knowledge in One Tradition. If the student’s research project is fundamentally trans-national or trans-regional, they should know at least one Asian tradition with depth and detail, including knowledge of language (see below);

   Not resolved to a course
4. The Past, the Present, and the Future. The student should be aware of modern/contemporary or pre-modern formations (depending upon the student’s scholarly focus) within the Asian traditions they study, with the idea that one cannot never really understand the present without more than cursory knowledge of the past, and also that one cannot study the past without a scholarly awareness of the present forms of political, economic, social, environmental, or religious formations at the center of a student’s project in Asian Studies;

   Not resolved to a course
5. Languages and Language Study. The student majoring in Asian Studies should demonstrate advanced knowledge of at least one Asian language central to the region/tradition that is the focus of their academic work.

   Not resolved to a course

Course Major

Thesis / Culminating Exercise

Course Minor

Honors Major

Honors Minor

1. Geographic breadth. There are two tracks within the minor:

   Not resolved to a course
2. Comparative Asian cultures: The selection of courses and the honors preparation should offer a comparative perspective on the traditional or modern cultures of Asia. Individual programs should be worked out in close consultation with the Asian studies coordinator. (Language study does not count toward this track.)

   Not resolved to a course
3. Focus on a single country or region: All courses in the program should focus on the same region or country. One or 2 credits of language study may be included.

   Not resolved to a course
4. Disciplinary breadth. Asia-related courses must be taken in at least two departments outside of the disciplinary honors major. Only one course may overlap the honors minor and the disciplinary honors major

   Not resolved to a course
5. Temporal breadth. At least one course focusing on the Premodern or Early Modern (before 1900) Eras, and at least one course on the Modern (after 1900) Era must be completed. This requirement can be fulfilled by taking at least two courses that examine substantial material on both the Premodern/Early Modern and Modern Eras.

   Not resolved to a course
6. Asian language study. Asian language study is not required, but courses in Asian languages may count toward the honors minor. Up to 2 credits of Asian language study may be applied to the honors minor. For languages offered at Swarthmore (Chinese and Japanese), courses above the second-year level count toward the minor. For Asian languages not offered at Swarthmore, courses at the entry level may be counted if the equivalent of 1.5 credits is earned in an approved program.

   Not resolved to a course
7. Honors preparation. One preparation, normally a two-credit seminar, will be submitted for external examination.

   Not resolved to a course
8. Senior Honors Seminar for minors. The student will fulfill the requirements set for honors minors by the department offering the honors preparation.

   Not resolved to a course

Fellowship and Grant Opportunities for Students

Study Abroad

Life After Swarthmore

Asian Studies Courses

Art (Art History)

1. ARTH 001G

   First Year Seminar: Brought to Life: The Art of Animation in East Asia
   1
2. ARTH 001L

   FYS: Handscrolls to Manga: Visual Storytelling in Japan
   1
3. ARTH 001S

   FYS: Uncovering Philadelphia’s Asian Art
   1
4. ARTH 001R

   FYS:Art in Flux: Metamorphosis and the Arts of China
   1
5. ARTH 003

   Asian Art: Past and Present
   1
6. ARTH 008

   Built Ecologies: Architecture, Landscape, and Environment in East Asia
   1
7. ARTH 028

   Replication in Chinese Art
   1
8. ARTH 030

   Brought to Life: The Art of Animation in East Asia
   1
9. ARTH 032

   Matcha and Sencha: The Arts of Japanese Tea Culture
   1
10. ARTH 034

    Calligraphy and Typography in East Asia
    1
11. ARTH 036

    Modern Architecture in Japan: Culture, Place, Tectonics
    1
12. ARTH 037

    Modern & Contemporary Chinese Art
    1
13. ARTH 042

    Photo & East Asia
    1
14. ARTH 081

    Uncovering Philadelphia’s Asian Art
    1
15. ARTH 084

    Asia/Americas: Art Across the Pacific, 1571 to Today
    1
16. ARTH 136

    Word and Image in Japanese Art Honors Seminar
    2
17. ARTH 154

    Art of Modern China: Honors Seminar

Asian American Studies

1. ASAM 001

   First-Year Seminar: Chinatowns: Then & Now
   1
2. ASAM 002

   Taiko & Asian American Experiences
   1
3. ASAM 010

   Asian American History
   1
4. ASAM 047A

   Asian American Literature and Culture
   1
5. ASAM 047B

   Asian American War Literature
   1
6. ASAM 047C

   Asian American Gender/Sexuality/Species
   1

Asian Studies

1. ASIA 015

   Introduction to East Asian Humanities
   1
2. ASIA 027

   Writing Systems of East Asia
   1
3. ASIA 038

   The Promise and Peril of Dialogues: Theory, Practice, Comparison
   1
4. ASIA 093

   Directed Reading
   1
5. ASIA 096

   Thesis
   1
6. ASIA 180

   Honors Thesis
   2

Chinese

1. CHIN 003

   Second-Year Mandarin Chinese
   1.5
2. CHIN 004

   Second-Year Mandarin Chinese
   1.5
3. CHIN 005

   Chinese for Advanced Beginners I
   1
4. CHIN 006

   Chinese for Advanced Beginners II
   1
5. CHIN 007

   Chinese/Japanese Calligraphy
   0.5
6. CHIN 008

   Beginning and Intermediate Supplementary Chinese Reading
7. CHIN 011

   Third-Year Chinese
   1
8. CHIN 011A

   Third-Year Chinese Conversation
   0.5
9. CHIN 012

   Advanced Chinese
   1
10. CHIN 012A

    Advanced Chinese Conversation
    0.5
11. CHIN 015

    Intro to East Asian Humanities
    1
12. CHIN 020

    Readings in Modern Chinese
    1
13. CHIN 020A

    Chinese Business Conversation
    5
14. CHIN 021

    Reading and Writing in Modern Chinese
    1
15. CHIN 022

    Representing Colonial Taiwan: City and Public Space in Print
    1
16. CHIN 023

    Modern and Contemporary Chinese Literature
    1
17. CHIN 024

    Advanced Chinese for Business and Technology
18. CHIN 025

    Contemporary Chinese & Sinophone Fictions and Social Change
    1
19. CHIN 027

    Nature and the Non-Human in Classical Chinese Tales of the Strange
    1
20. CHIN 033

    Introduction to Classical Chinese
    1
21. CHIN 036

    Women’s Literature in Premodern China
    1
22. CHIN 037

    Text and Image: Classical Chinese Poetry and Painting

    Not resolved to a course
23. CHIN 052

    Chinese Opera and Performing Art
    1
24. CHIN 055

    Chinese and Sinophone Cinemas
    1
25. CHIN 056

    Travel and Relocation in Sinophone Literature
    1
26. CHIN 065

    Peking Opera and Globalization
    1
27. CHIN 071

    Topics in Modern Chinese Literature and Culture
    1
28. CHIN 086

    Chinese Food Culture and Farming: Traditions and Transitions
    1
29. CHIN 087

    Water Policies, Water Issues: China/Taiwan and the U.S.
    1
30. CHIN 088

    Governance and Environmental Issues in China
    1
31. CHIN 089

    Tea in China: Cultural and Environmental Perspectives.
    1
32. CHIN 090

    Practicum in Bridging Swarthmore and Local Chinese Communities
    1
33. CHIN 091

    Spcl Tpcs in Eng: Taiwan in Transition under Japanese Colonial Rule: Literature, Material Culture, Social movements
    1
34. CHIN 099

    Senior Colloquium
    0.5-1
35. CHIN 103

    Lu Xun and His Legacy in 20th- Century China
    2
36. CHIN 106

    Seminar on Premodern Chinese Literature and Culture
    2
37. CHIN 107

    Contemporary Chinese Media
    2
38. CHIN 108

    The Remaking of Cinematic China: Zhang Yimou, Wong Kar-wai, and Ang Lee
    2
39. CHIN 110

    From the Periphery to the Center: Chinese Popular Culture in the Global World
    2
40. CHIN 137

    Love & Illusion in Dream of the Red Chamber
    1

Classics

1. CLST 022

   Readings in Sanskrit
   1
2. CLST 023

   Introduction to Sanskrit
   1
3. CLST 024

   Sanskrit Grammar
   1
4. CLST 028

   Origins of Indic Thought
   1
5. CLST 029

   Mythology of India
   1
6. CLST 030

   Caste and Power
   1
7. CLST 031

   Consciousness: Perspectives from Sanskrit and Beyond
   1
8. CLST 102

   Capstone: Sanskrit and Greek Epic
   2

Dance

1. DANC 003

   Taiko & Asian Amer Experience
   1
2. DANC 019

   East Asian Performing Arts on the Intercultural Stage
   1
3. DANC 025A

   Dance and Diaspora
   1
4. DANC 038

   Performing Ecstasy Dancing the Sacred
   1
5. DANC 046

   Kathak
6. DANC 049D

   Repertory/Ensemble: Taiko
7. DANC 049F

   Repertory/Ensemble: Kathak
8. DANC 052

   Studio Practice: Chinese Dance
9. DANC 057

   Taiko I
10. DANC 079

    Dancing Desire in Bollywood Films
    1
11. DANC 079A

    Screening Bollywood Film
    0.5

Economics

1. ECON 051

   International Trade and Finance

   As published: “International Trade and Finance *”
   1
2. ECON 081

   Economic Development

   As published: “Economic Development *”
   1
3. ECON 083

   East Asian Economies
   1
4. ECON 151

   International Trade

   As published: “International Trade +”
   2
5. ECON 181

   Economic Development

   As published: “Economic Development +”
   2

English Literature

1. ENGL 047A

   Asian American Literature and Culture
   1
2. ENGL 047B

   Asian American War Literature
   1
3. ENGL 047C

   Asian American Gender/Sexuality/Species
   1
4. ENGL 047D

   Southeast Asian Literature in English
   1
5. ENGL 047E

   Southeast Asian Literature in Translation
   1
6. ENGL 065

   Asian American Literature
   1
7. ENGL 066

   In/Visible: Asian American Cultural Critique
   1
8. ENGL 077

   South Asians in America
   1

Environmental Studies

1. ENVS 037

   Water Policies, Water Issues: China/Taiwan and the U.S.
   1
2. ENVS 052

   Chinese Food Culture and Farming: Traditions and Transitions
   1
3. ENVS 047

   Environment, Cultural Memory, and Social Change in Japan
   1

Film and Media Studies

1. FMST 057

   Japanese Film and Animation
   1

Global Studies

1. GLBL 017

   South Asia in Global Perspective: From Democracy to Conflict
   1
2. GLBL 052

   Studio Practice:Chinese Dance

History

1. HIST 001N

   First-Year Seminar: Chinatowns: Then & Now
   1
2. HIST 009A

   Premodern China
   1
3. HIST 009B

   Modern China: Reformers, Revolutionaries, and Rebels
   1
4. HIST 010

   Asian American History
   1
5. HIST 060

   Nature, Art, and the Science of Power in Mughal India and Renaissance Europe
   1
6. HIST 061

   Mapping Rivers: The Indus and the Ganges in Global History
   1
7. HIST 075

   Craft and Technology in China
   1
8. HIST 077

   Fashion: Theory and History
   1
9. HIST 145

   Women and Gender in Chinese History
   2

Japanese

1. JPNS 003

   Second-Year Japanese
   1.5
2. JPNS 004

   Second-Year Japanese
   1.5
3. JPNS 007

   Chinese/Japanese Calligraphy
   0.5
4. JPNS 008

   Extensive Reading in Japanese
   0.5
5. JPNS 012

   Third-Year Japanese
   1
6. JPNS 012A

   Japanese Conversation
   0.5
7. JPNS 013

   Third-Year Japanese
   1
8. JPNS 013A

   Readings in Japanese
   0.5
9. JPNS 018

   Manga, Bande Dessinée, and the Graphic Novel: A Transnational Study of Graphic Fictions

   As published: “Manga, Bande Dessinée, and the Graphic Novel: A Transnational Study of Graphic Fictions *”
   1
10. JPNS 019

    Fourth-Year Japanese

    Not resolved to a course
11. JPNS 020

    Fourth-Year Japanese
    1
12. JPNS 022

    Introduction to Japanese Linguistics
    1
13. JPNS 023

    Language in Contemporary Japanese Society and Media
    1
14. JPNS 024

    Japanese Film and Animation
    1
15. JPNS 027

    Writing Systems of East Asia
    1
16. JPNS 036

    Environment, Cultural Memory, and Social Change in Japan
    1
17. JPNS 033

    Tokyo Central: The Metropolis in Modern Japanese Literature and Film
    1
18. JPNS 035

    Narratives of Disaster and Rebuilding in Japan
    1
19. JPNS 041

    Fantastic Spaces in Modern Japanese Literature
    1
20. JPNS 042

    Language Policy and Planning in Japan
    1
21. JPNS 053

    Classical Japanese Literature and Language Change.
    1
22. JPNS 073

    Transnational Japanese Literature: Diversity and Diaspora in Modern Japanese Literature
    1
23. JPNS 075

    Japanese Modernism
    1

Music

1. MUSI 002C

   Taiko & Asian American Experiences
   1
2. MUSI 030

   Music of Asia
   1
3. MUSI 042

   Chinese Music Ensemble
4. MUSI 049A

   Balinese Gamelan

Linguistics

1. CPSC 013

   Computational Linguistics
   1
2. LING 013

   Classical Japanese Literature and Language Change
3. LING 022

   Introduction to Japanese Linguistics
   1
4. LING 023

   Language in Contemporary Japanese Society and Media.
   1
5. LING 027

   Writing Systems of East Asia
   1
6. LING 031

   Modality in Language: Mandarin and ASL as examples

   Not resolved to a course
7. LING 033

   Introduction to Classical Chinese
   1
8. LING 042

   Voices of the Silk Road: Languages, Societies, and Cultural Exchange in Central Asia
   1
9. LING 064

   Structure of Tuvan
   1
10. LING 065

    Structure of Turkish
    1
11. LING 067

    Structure of Wamesa
    1
12. LING 068

    Structure of Kyrgyz
    1
13. LING 073

    Computational Linguistics

    As published: “Computational Linguistics (cognate course)”
    1
14. LING 075

    Field Methods

    As published: “Field Methods (cognate course)”
    1

Literatures

1. LITR 015CH. Introduction to East Asian Humanities

   Not resolved to a course
2. LITR 018FJ. Manga, Bande Dessinée, and the Graphic Novel: A Transnational Study of Graphic Fictions

   Not resolved to a course
3. LITR 022

   Representing Colonial Taiwan: City and Public Space in Print
   1
4. LITR 023CH. Modern and Contemporary Chinese Literature

   Not resolved to a course
5. LITR 024J

   Japanese Film and Animation
   1
6. LITR 025CH. Contemporary Chinese & Sinophone Fictions and Social Change

   Not resolved to a course
7. LITR 027CH. Nature and the Non-Human in Classical Chinese Tales of the Strange

   Not resolved to a course
8. LITR 033J

   Tokyo Central: The Metropolis in Modern Japanese Literature and Film
   1
9. LITR 035J

   Narratives of Disaster and Rebuilding in Japan
   1
10. LITR 036CH. Women’s Literature in Premodern China

    Not resolved to a course
11. LITR 037CH. Text and Image: Classical Chinese Poetry and Painting

    Not resolved to a course
12. LITR 038CH. The Promise and Peril of Dialogues: Theory, Practice, Comparison

    Not resolved to a course
13. LITR 052CH. Chinese Opera and Performing Art

    Not resolved to a course
14. LITR 055CH. Chinese and Sinophone Cinemas

    Not resolved to a course
15. LITR 056CH. Travel and Relocation in Sinophone Literature

    Not resolved to a course
16. LITR 075J

    Japanese Modernism
    1
17. LITR 086CG. Chinese Food Culture and Farming: Traditions and Transitions

    Not resolved to a course
18. LITR 091CH. Spcl Tpcs in Eng: Taiwan in Transition under Japanese Colonial Rule: Literature, Material Culture, Social movements

    Not resolved to a course
19. LITR 071CH. Topics in Modern Chinese Literature and Culture

    Not resolved to a course
20. LITR 073J

    Transnational Japanese Literature: Diversity and Diaspora in Modern Japanese Literature
    1
21. LITR 106CH. Seminar on Premodern Chinese Literature and Culture

    Not resolved to a course
22. LITR 107CH. Contemporary Chinese Media

    Not resolved to a course
23. LITR 110CH. From the Periphery to the Center: Chinese Popular Culture in the Global World

    Not resolved to a course

Peace and Conflict Studies

Philosophy

1. PHIL 030

   Buddhist Philosophy
   1
2. PHIL 038

   Origins of Indic Thought
   1
3. PHIL 053

   Indian Philosophy
   1
4. PHIL 135

   Topics in Indian Philosophy
   2

Political Science

1. POLS 055

   Ethics and International Relations (IR)

   Not resolved to a course
2. POLS 056

   Patterns of Asian Development (CP)

   Not resolved to a course
3. POLS 058

   Contemporary Chinese Politics (CP)

   Not resolved to a course
4. POLS 065

   War Games and Simulations (IR)

   Not resolved to a course
5. POLS 073

   Disinformation, Propaganda, and Election Interference (IR)

   Not resolved to a course
6. POLS 087

   Water Policies, Water Issues: China/Taiwan and the U.S.
   1
7. POLS 088

   Special Topics: Post-Communism in Russia and China (CP)

   Not resolved to a course
8. POLS 102

   Comparative Politics: China, Taiwan and Hong Kong (CP)

   Not resolved to a course
9. POLS 108

   Comparative Politics: East Asia (CP)

   Not resolved to a course

Religion

1. RELG 008

   Patterns of Asian Religions
   1
2. RELG 009

   The Buddhist Traditions of Asia
   1
3. RELG 012

   The History, Religion, and Culture of India I: From the Indus Valley to the Hindu Saints
   1
4. RELG 012B

   Hindu Traditions of India: Power, Love, and Knowledge
   1
5. RELG 013

   The History, Religion, and Culture of India II: Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, and Dalit in North India
   1
6. RELG 013A

   Indian Religion and Philosophy
   1
7. RELG 030

   The Power of Images: Icons and Iconoclasts

   As published: “The Power of Images: Icons and Iconoclasts *”
   1
8. RELG 034

   Partitions: Religions, Politics, and Gender in South Asia Through the Novel
   1
9. RELG 042

   Performing Ecstasy Dancing the Sacred
   1
10. RELG 049

    Yoga and Meditation: From India to the West
    1
11. RELG 051

    Asian Religions in the Americas
    1
12. RELG 055

    Interpreting Asian Religions
    1
13. RELG 073

    Namaste America
    1
14. RELG 108

    Poets, Saints, and Storytellers: The Poetry and Poetics of Devotion in South Asian Religions
    2
15. RELG 114

    Love and Religion

    As published: “Love and Religion +”
    2

Sociology and Anthropology

1. ANTH 020J

   Dance and Diaspora
   1
2. ANTH 079B

   Dancing Desire in Bollywood Films
   1
3. SOCI 034E

   Gender, Family, and Work in East Asia
   1

Note

Asian American Studies