Bridging Course, Spring 2015: Reading Assignments and other homework
Instructions for homework 1. (preparation for Class no. 2)
After you have thought about different ways of reading, please read Philip
Seaton. (2012) Japan's Culture Industries: Cool or Cruel? University of
British Columbia, Asian Pacific Memo. Retrieved February 27, 2014, from
http://www.asiapacificmemo.ca/japans-culture-industries-cool-or-cruel.
Look for the main idea (what Seaton wants the reader to know about the
topic) and the supporting points (the reasons/evidence that he uses to
support the main idea). Think about whether you agree with him or not.
Make notes to help you in the class discussion about the text. (See below.)
(You do not need to look up the meaning of every word that you do not understand,
but note words or phrases that you might use in your own writing and check
that you know how to use them correctly.)
In class students will discuss how they read the text, identify its main
idea and supporting points,, and give their opinions of the text, with
reasons. (How will this affect the way in which you read the text?)
Instructions for Homework 2. (preparation for Class no. 3)
Images are an important element of popular culture. This reading is a chapter
from a British high-school textbook on media studies. It contains information
and ideas that should help you to understand and analyze images, including
scenes in your favorite anime. Before you download and start reading, it
will probably be helpful if you think about the following:
1. The chapter talks about "signs"(Lj. A sign is made up of
a) what someone sees or hears and b) the meaning that they give what they
see or hear. For example, three people, a gardener, a poet, and an economist
might be looking at the same red rose, but it will not necessarily have
the same meaning for them. The gardener will see it as a type of flower
that needs to be cultivated in a certain way; the poet will think of it
as a symbol of love; the economist will think of it as a luxury item that
can be bought or sold. On p. 34 of the text, the "signifier"
is a) and the "signified" is b).
2. What sort of signs are there in manga and anime? What is the relationship
between the shapes that the artist has drawn and the response of the audience?
For example, how do we know whether a character is strong or weak, happy
or sad, or even male or female?
1. Download the chapter from φΖx. First read the summary of the contents
in the blue box. The meanings of "semiotics", "connotation",
"denotation" and "anchorage" will be explained in the
chapter, but make sure that you understand the other words.
2. Look quickly through the chapter. Look at the headings of the sections
and at the pictures. The summary has four parts but there are seven sections.
Which sections are likely to belong to each part of the summary? (Ignore
the activities.)
3. Read each section at least twice. (Ignore the activities.) The first time, concentrate on finding the main ideas. The second time, try to understand every paragraph in detail. Use the dictionary if guessing does not help you to understand a key sentence. Think about how each section applies to the analysis of popular culture. For example, how can understanding about signs help you to analyze anime?
As you read each section, pay attention to the following:
Section 1:
1. What sorts of "texts" would you expect to find in Japanese
popular culture?
2. What sorts of codes do these texts use?
(links: p. 32, l. 16: For controversial advertisements by Benetton, see
http://www.theguardian.com/fashion/gallery/2011/nov/17/benettons-most-controversial-adverts
and http://www.benettongroup.com/40years-press/img_our_campaigns.html (especially
1992 "AIDS David Kirby", 1991 "Angel and Devil", and
1989 "Breastfeeding")
Section 2: Is someone who has grown up in Japan more likely to understand
Japanese popular culture than someone who has not? Is there a "correct"
way of understanding a particular anime? Why, or why not?
Section 3: Can you think of any examples of the use of symbolic, iconic
and indexical signs in scenes from your favorite manga or anime?
(links: p.35, l.11 http://www.truffleshuffle.co.uk/store/mens-white-sex-pistols-god-save-the-queen-tshirt-from-amplified-p-9814.html)
Section 4: How does your favorite manga or anime use color codes? What
other codes are important? Are there any codes that people who are not
used to manga or anime might find difficult to understand? Are there any
codes that might be difficult for non-Japanese to understand?
Section 5: Go back to the scenes that you looked at for Section 3. What
does the idea of denotation/connotation add to your understanding?
(links: p.43, l.14 http://www.adforum.com/award-organization/6651733/showcase/2008/ad/12659946)
Sections 6 and 7: Why have these sections been added?
(links: p.44, l.31 https://marciokenobi.wordpress.com/2014/04/30/nuts-the-final-issue-18/ [The magazine is no longer being published, but this page shows you what it was like...])
4. Go back to the summary of the contents at the beginning of the chapter.
Check that your answers to 2. were correct. Can you briefly explain each
part of the summary?
NOTE: You should write down your answers to the questions so that you can
refer to them in class. Also note any points that you want to discuss further,
or anything that was hard to understand. You should be ready to submit
this material, as proof that you have done the preparation properly.
Instructions for Homework 3 (preparation for class no. 5)
Narratives are an important element in media texts, and also in our understanding
of the world in general. This reading is a chapter from a British high-school
textbook on media studies. It contains information and ideas that should
help you to understand and analyze narratives, including the storylines
of your favorite anime.
The basic concept of narrative is much easier to understand than the concept
of "signs". However, it is important to realize, as the chapter
explains, that narratives are not limited to conscious story-telling. What
narratives are included in the concept of "Cool Japan"?
1. Download the chapter from φΖx. First read the summary of the contents
in the blue box. The meaning of "mode of address" will be explained
in the chapter, but make sure that you understand the other words.
2. Look quickly through the chapter. Look at the headings of the sections and at the pictures. The summary has three parts and there are three sections as well. Does each part correspond to one of the sections? (Ignore the activities.)
3. Read each section at least twice. (Ignore the activties and the part
about "new media platforms".) The first time, concentrate on
finding the main ideas. The second time, try to understand every paragraph
in detail. Use the dictionary if guessing does not help you to understand
a key sentence. Think about how each section applies to the analysis of
popular culture. For example, how can understanding about narrative help
you to analyze anime?
As you read each section, pay attention to the following:
Section 1:
1. Did narratives play an important role in your childhood? What storybooks,
manga, anime or other media texts do you remember?
2. Think of an important news story that you have been following recently.
Is there a clear narrative?
3. Think of the narrative of your favourite manga, anime, movie, or TV
drama. Does it follow the basic formula given on p. 50?
4. Do the characters in your favourite manga anime, movie, or TV drama fit the basic types given in the activity box on p. 55?
5. Can you think of any way in which narratives are used to explain other
aspects of Japanese popular culture, or the concept of "Cool Japan"?
Section 2:
By "mode of address", the writers mean the relationship that
is created between the text and the audience by the way in which the story
is told.
1. a) What effect does a "voice-over" have on a narrative? b)
Can you think of any popular culture texts that have voice-overs?
2. a) What effect does the use of enigma codes have on the relationship
between the text and the audience? b) Can you give any examples from a
favorite manga or anime, or from another text related to popular culture?
3. Can you think of any other ways in which relations are created between
the text and the audience?
Section 3:
1. What genre does your favorite manga or anime belong to?
2. Are there any narrative techniques that are closely related to this
genre?
Go back to the summary at the beginning of the chapter. Check that your
guess about the contents of each section was correct. Can you briefly explain
each part of the summary?
Take notes as before.
Instructions for the Reading Homework in preparation for Class no. 20 (June
26)
I would like you to read Douglas McGray, "Japan's gross national cool", which appeared in Foreign Policy in May 2002. This is an influential
article that Tsutsui refers to in both the Introduction and in Chapter
5, so it is probably worth reading. You may need to register in order to
read the article. This will involve giving an e-mail address and a password,
but you do not need to pay any money. If you have difficulty in accessing
the article, there is a version that I have copied from the internet and
reformatted available from φΖx.
The article should not be too difficult to understand, but since it is
a bit long, I will divide up responsibility as follows:
Everyone should read the introduction and the final section ("All
medium, no message?") and have a quick look through the rest of the
piece. Look for the main idea and supporting points. Think about the strength
of his arguments and whether or not you agree. He wrote this twelve years
ago. Is the situation still pretty much the same, or has it changed? (How
has it changed?)
Takaya, Yunei, Shan, Mami, Ryota and Gaku should read "The Pokemon
hegemon", again looking for the main idea and supporting points, and
thinking about the strength of his arguments, your opinion etc.
Shiori, Chihiro, Nanami, Kaoru, Gen and Seito should read "Japan's
postmodern pop", again looking for the main idea and supporting points,
and thinking about the strength of his arguments, your opinion etc.
Seiji, Yosuke, Mai, Miku Kaho and Haruki should read "Meet Hello Kitty,
Davos cat" and "Youth with a yen for technology", again
looking for the main idea and supporting points, and thinking about the
strength of his arguments, your opinion etc.
Keitaro, Ryohei, Yudai, Takumi, Kaya and Taiki should read "Why 600
lb. wrestlers don't travel", again looking for the main idea and supporting
points, and thinking about the strength of his arguments, your opinion
etc.
In class, you will meet in groups of four and bring together the main points
of the sections you have read. You must therefore be able to explain what
you have read. Of course I will be available to answer questions, either
by e-mail before the class (but not after 14:00), or during the class itself.
I think this is enough reading for one homework, especially since you are
working for your term papers as well. I will leave reading of part of the
JETRO article until later. However, I will put it on φΖx in case you want
to look at it to see examples of economic language, for example when explaining
graphs.
Notes with regard to Chapter 5
Links related to Chapter 4. Please consider these as evidence for pp.
48-54.
Japanese originals and American remakes. (If you can give me links for
reverse examples, please do so.)
Japanese trailer for wSWx
American trailer for Godizlla: King of the Monsters
trailer for w΅lΜx
trailer for The Magnificent Seven
Dubbed versions of Japanese TV shows (Is there anything similar to this
on Japanese TV?)
MXC (Most Extreme Challenge) as dubbed for the U.S. market
Iron Chef as dubbed for the U.S. market
Sushi TV (French version)
I survived a Japanese game show
American films set in Japan
You do not have to watch these unless you are interested:
The Geisha Boy (1958) (This link gives a page with links to both the full version and
a trailer.)
The Teahouse of the August Moon (1956) (Again, gives links to both the full version and a trailer.) This
is not mentioned by Tsutsui, but I myself prefer it as a film.
As well as Lost in Translation, there is also Black Rain (1989). You might also be interested in Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence wνκΜ[NX}Xx(1983), a joint Japanese-British film.
Tsutsui does not mention James Clavell's novel Shogun, published in 1975 and made into a TV series in 1980. This bestselling novel that drew its inspiration from the life
of William Adams (OYΒjjaroused interested in Japan and in Japanese studies.
A book, Learning from Shogun, was even published so that interest in the novel (not the TV series)
could be used as a way to stimulate serious study of Japanese history.
I suspect that there was some connection between the popularity of Shogun and openness to popular Japanese culture in the U.S. in the 1980s, but
I do not have any proof.
Western views of "Cool Japan"
Saturday Night Live 2012 satire of anime fans http://vimeo.com/30767628
Jonathan Ross Japanorama series http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Japanorama
including Murakami: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6Hr0NudUNw
Jonathan Ross on Japanese/asian films http://www.theguardian.com/film/2006/jan/06/2
on video games http://www.edge-online.com/features/jonathan-ross-my-favourite-game/
Asian
Invasion 2006 Jonathan Ross series 1st on new Jse cinema e.g. Kitamura
Yohei
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buT7xjq59uo&index=2&list=PLCAC7D4D2C21ECFCA