JAPA 360: Topics in Japanese Popular Culture
JAPA 360-002: Topics in Japanese Pop Culture
(Fall 2017)
04:30 PM to 05:45 PM TR
Enterprise Hall 276
Section Information for Fall 2017
Behind the flash and glitter of the ephemera of Japanese popular culture lies a deep and fascinating history, as well as an intricate system of economic connections that support the production of media within Japan and its neighbors in Asia. The purpose of this course is to study the cultural heritage of representative elements of Japanese media such as cinema, television, comics, music, and video games in order to better understand the entertainment industries that shape contemporary Japanese society and global mediascapes. We will begin in Japan's Taisho era and move through the Pacific War and its aftermath while reflecting on the role of popular culture in shaping political and national identities. We will then study anime and manga in an attempt to understand how characters and narratives are designed and marketed to appeal to different demographic audiences. Finally, we will examine the dynamics of fan cultures as we explore the interplay between cultural production and consumption in the twenty-first century. By the end of this course, students will be able to analyze a wide range of media and entertainment trends within their broader cultural, political, and economic contexts.
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Course Information from the University Catalog
Credits: 3
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.
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