Colorado College Asian Studies
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Courses on China
101 Elementary Chinese. Introduction to Mandarin Chinese, emphasis on basic grammar, speaking, and listening comprehension as well as mastery of some 500 characters for reading and writing. Language laboratory required. (Also listed as Chinese 101.) 2 units - Jiang
109 Chinese Meditative Arts. The history and philosophy of Chinese arts will be introduced with its applications for meditation, relaxation, concentration, and physical development. Short forms of Tai chi, Tai chi sword, and health-related techniques will be taught in conjunction with the art and practice of Chinese brush calligraphy and seal carving. Other art forms such as Chinese music, theater, and dance will be introduced briefly. The correlation/interface of the Chinese body movement and the arts practice would, hopefully, rekindle one's interest in and lead to further exploration of the Asian culture. (Also listed as Dance 102.) 1 unit - Wang
113, 114 Chinese Skill Maintenance. Conversation and limited reading and writing practice in Chinese language. Prerequisite: 101. (Also listed as Chinese 103, 104.) 1/4 unit each - Zhang
115 Conflict and Confluence in Asian Culture. Indian, Chinese, Japanese and Korean literature, art and politics with particular attention to interrelationships among Asian countries and their ongoing dialogue with Western cultures. Course includes a museum visit, a number of films, and opportunities to examine Asian art objects firsthand. Prerequisite: FYE course. First-Years only. (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.) (Also listed as AH115.) 2 units – Bentley.
117 Introduction to Asian Art. Introduction to Asian art in its historical and cultural context with emphasis on China, Japan, and India. (Also listed as Art History 113.) (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.) 2 units - Bentley
118 Civilization in East Asia. East Asian civilization from ancient to modern times. Cultural, social and political developments that shaped East Asian nations and their place in the modern world. Introduces basics of historical method: contextualization, analysis, and critical evaluation of primary sources and their significance. (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.)(Also listed as History 109.) 2 units – Williams.
155 The Art of China. Chinese art from ancient to modern times in its cultural context. Artistic and archaeological materials will be examined in order to learn where, when, and how the culture we call Chinese evolved. Special attention will be given to attitudes toward art today, and to recent archaeological discoveries. (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.) Also listed as Art History 155.) 1 unit - Bentley
201 Intermediate Chinese I. The course emphasizes the development of speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills after the elementary level. Video materials supplement the course and place the language in a cultural context. Prerequisite: 102. (Also listed as Chinese 201.) 1 unit - Jiang
202 Advanced Intermediate Chinese II. The course builds on the language proficiency gained in 201. Increased use of the written and spoken language designed to build proficiency. Prerequisite: 201. (Also listed as Chinese 202.) 1 unit - Jiang and Zhang
211 Masterpieces of Chinese Literature in Translation. This course will acquaint students with major forms of Chinese fiction: pi-chi, ch'uan-ch'i, ppien-wen, hua-pen, kung-an, and the novel, as well as modern Chinese vernacular literature. (Also listed as Chinese 212.) (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.) 1 unit - Jiang
216 Confucianism. Close reading of primary philosophical and ethical texts in the classical and Neo-Confucian traditions, including the writings of Confucius, Mencius, and Wang Yang-ming, with attention as well to modern scholarly interpretations of this literature. The influence of Confucianism on East Asian civilizations in general. (Also listed as Religion 206.) (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.) 1 unit - Gardiner
217 China in the Age of Confucius. This course examines the origins of Chinese civilization, from the divination rituals of the Bronze Age Shang Dynasty to the might Han. Considers the great religious and philosophical traditions of China’s axial age: Confucianism, Daoism, and others vying for influence in China’s bloody “Warring States” period. Students will understand the political, economic, cultural and spiritual patterns that gave shape to classical Chinese civilization. (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.)(Also listed as History 223.) 1 unit – Williams.
218 Taoism. Close reading of Lao- tzu's Tao te ching and the writings of Chuang-tzu, supplemented by modern scholarly treatments of this literature. We will explore such topics in religious and philosophical Taoism as the spontaneity and naturalness of Wu- Wei; the natural world as teacher; meditative and dietary practices; the Taoist church and its priests and rituals. (Also listed as Religion 208.) (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.) 1 unit - Gardiner
224 Chinese Women Writers and Their Works. This course will focus on a comparative study of the voice of Chinese women writers in the 1920s and 1980s, examine women writers' works in a social-historical context, and discuss the difference of women's places and problems in traditional Chinese culture and modern Chinese society. The course will also try to define the similar and different expressions of "feminism" as a term in the West and the East. (Also listed as Chinese 221 and Women's Studies 224.) (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.) 1 unit - Jiang
229 20th Century China. This course will follow the turbulent history and politics of China from the Boxer Uprising of 1900 through the post-Mao reforms. Using primary documents, personal accounts, and scholarly studies, students will assess China’s political and cultural changes and continuities in historical context. (Also listed as History 225.) (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.) 1 unit - Williams
242 Religion in China. Focuses on four aspects of religion in China: folk religion, Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. The course includes an introduction to Confucius' Analects and Lao-Tzu's Tao te ching; the Chinese transformation of Buddhism and the Buddhist transformation of China; the I ching; the significance of ancestor veneration; and the centrality of ideals of harmony on individual, social, and cosmic levels. (Also listed as Religion 243.) (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.) 1 unit - Gardiner
250 Topics in Asian Studies: Word and Image in Chinese and Japanese Art. Language opens the door to culture. This course will pay attention to the relationship between Chinese language and culture, and word and image. The course begins with the study of Chinese language with emphasis on basic grammar, speaking, and listening comprehension as well as mastery of some 250 Chinese characters for reading and writing (mainly in Block 1), and then introduces students to how Chinese language and philosophical thinking transformed ways of life for the East and to the major forms of Chinese literature and art such as poetry, painting, calligraphy and traditional Chinese garden (mainly in Block 2). This is an introductory course, which attempts to spark an interest in Chinese language and art and to lead students to study Chinese language and art in a broader social and cultural context. 1 unit- Jiang
250 Topics in Asian Literature & Culture: Chinese Calligraphy. An introduction to Chinese brushwork covering calligraphy, bamboo, orchid and tree painting, as well as some bird painting. .25 units- Tu
250 Topics in Asian Literature & Culture: Word and Image in Chinese and Japanese Art: This course will examine the relationship between literature and art in Chinese and Japanese tomb art, painting, prints, and ceramics. Due to its thematic nature, the course will not provide a comprehensive Asian art survey. In China, we will examine Confucian texts and Sima Qian's Records of the Historian in relation to the Wu shrines; and Neo-Daoist writings in relation to the Seven Sages to the Bamboo Grove tomb engravings. Then we will consider allusion sin Song painting to Tang and Song poetry; and the literary basis for Ming dynasty drama illustrations and printing playing cards. In Japan, we begin by examining Heian court poetry in relation to court art. We then consider the relationship between Zen writings and medieval monochrome ink paintings; and the role of the Zen church in the shifting aesthetics of the tea ceremony. The course concluded by investigating ironic juxtapositions of word and image in ukiyo-e woodblock prints. Prerequisite:100 level AH course or COI (AH 200.) 1 unit- Bentley
250 Topics in Asian Literature & Culture: Chinese Calligraphy. An introduction to Chinese brushwork covering calligraphy, bamboo, orchid and tree painting, as well as some bird painting. .25 units- Tu
250 Topics in Asian Literature & Culture: Hero! Honor, Outlaws & Order in East Asian History and Literature. From China's legends of Warring States assassins to the bloody epics of Johnny To; from Japan's medieval Tale of the Heike to Beat Takeshi's contemporary gangster dramas, this course explores East Asian visions of the heroic -- and their social underpinnings -- from the fourth century BCE to the present. Questions this course considers are: Are heroes outsiders or insiders? How do visions of the heroic change from the 'premodern' to the 'modern' eras? How do the media of cultural transmission change over the same period? How does the emergence of the nation-state shape representations of the heroic? Course texts include: Sima Qian's biographies of the assassin-retainers; the Tale of the Heike, The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, The Outlaws of the Marsh, samurai autobiography, The Forty-Seven Ronin, as well as films by Akira Kurosawa, Johnny To, Chen Kaige, and Kitano Takeshi. (Also listed as History 200. ) (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.) 1 unit - Williams
302 Advanced Chinese Language. Intensive practice in reading, writing, speaking, and comprehending modern Chinese. Prerequisite: 202. (Also listed as Chinese 301.) (Offered as an extended format course blocks 1-8.) 1 unit - Jiang
331 Comparative Politics: China. Emphasis on the period of reform and opening to the world after 1976 and the contemporary politics of the People's Republic of China. (Also listed as Political Science 331.) 1 unit - Ito
384 Cultural and Social History of China: This course is a detailed examination of the social and cultural order of late imperial China from roughly 1500 to 1800. It begins by considering the nature of the Ming (1368-1644) dynasty as a template for understanding late imperial Chinese society. Turning to themes of continuity and change during the 17th century Ming-Qing transition, we look at the new ruling elites, the Manchus, and the construction of their multi-ethnic Qing empire. The remainder of the course consists of in-depth consideration of various themes of late imperial history through the “High Qing” period of the 18th century including: the civil service examination system, literati culture, popular religion, family life and gender roles, and legal culture. (Also listed as History 384.) (Meets the Critical Perspectives: Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.) 1 unit - Williams