Courses

This First-Year Writing Seminar is about Asian Literature, Religion, and Culture and provides the opportunity to write extensively about these issues.  Topics vary by section.

Full details for ASIAN 1111 - FWS: Literature, Culture, Religion

Full details for ASIAN 1117 - FWS: Crafting Religion: Material Culture in Southeast Asia

This course provides an introduction to Korean culture and history from early times to the present. We will examine major historical time periods and cultural forms of the Korean peninsula, with a focus on the Chosŏn dynasty (1392-1910) and the twentieth century. The course is designed to give students an overview of the transformations of Korean civilization in the context of the East Asian cultural sphere and globalization. We will engage with a wide range of texts and media across time periods, including films, primary historical sources in translation, literature, and music videos. Key themes and topics of the course include the formation of South and North Korea's identities, the rise of Neo-Confucianism, Japanese colonization and postcolonialism, the construction and performance of gender, the Korean War and postwar reconstruction, environmental degradation, and developments in popular culture.

Full details for ASIAN 2218 - Introduction to Korea

This is an introduction of Chinese civilization from ancient times up to the end of the Chinese empire in 1911. It is intended to familiarize students with the major concepts of Chinese history, society, and culture, focusing on the stories of people that have been often neglected in canonical histories, such as the merchants, women, travelers, and ethnic minorities from the thirteenth to the nineteenth century.

Full details for ASIAN 2230 - Introduction to China: Outsiders in History

This course will explore religious traditions in South Asia (Pakistan, India, and Sri Lanka) and East Asia (China, Japan, and Korea) including Hinduism, Buddhism (South Asian and East Asian), Sikhism, Confucianism, Daoism, and Shintō. We will also encounter a wide range of religious expressions, including myth, ritual, pilgrimage, mysticism, meditation, and other spiritual technologies.

Full details for ASIAN 2250 - Introduction to Asian Religions

In this course, we will explore over one hundred years of Japanese cinema – one of the most prominent and diverse global film industries – from silent comedies to J-Horror, "ramen westerns" to Studio Ghibli. You will gain a thorough grounding in film vocabulary and tools of cinematic analysis, allowing for deep investigations of gender, genre, history, and the connections between film and other media in modern and contemporary Japan. All films will have English subtitles, and all readings will be available in English; no prior knowledge of Japanese language, history, or culture required.

Full details for ASIAN 2252 - Introduction to Japanese Film

This course offers an anthropological approach to the study of religious traditions and practices in South Asia: India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. The course begins with a short survey of the major religious traditions of South Asia: Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, and Islam. We look to the development of these traditions through historical and cultural perspectives. The course then turns to the modern period, considering the impact of colonialism, nationalism, and globalization upon religious ideologies and practices. The primary focus of the course will be the ethnographic study of contemporary religious practices in the region. We examine phenomena such as ritual, pilgrimage, possession, devotionalism, monasticism, asceticism, and revivalism through a series of ethnographic case studies. In so doing, we also seek to understand the impact of politics, modernity, diasporic movement, social inequality, changing gender roles, and mass mediation upon these traditions and practices.

Full details for ASIAN 2254 - South Asian Religions in Practice: The Healing Traditions

This course explores the breadth of music found in present day China, Japan, and Korea--from indigenous musical traditions, through adaptations of Western art music, up to the latest popular styles--as well as the presence of traditional East Asian musics outside East Asia, including right here at Cornell. In both cases, music offers a lens for examining the myriad social and cultural forces that shape it, and that are shaped by it. The course's academic focus on critical reading and listening, written assignments, and discussion is complemented by opportunities to engage directly with music, whether attending concerts or participating in workshops with student-led ensembles.

Full details for ASIAN 2259 - Music in and of East Asia

Japanese pop culture—anime, manga, video games, music and more—has been a major phenomenon with massive worldwide popularity for the last three decades. In this course, we will explore a wide range of Japanese pop cultural forms, exploring the interactions between different media, Japanese pop culture as global pop culture, and a variety of modes of analyzing visual and audio materials. We will also see how pop cultural works themselves, in their content and form, engage with questions of gender, technology, fandom, nation, and the environment. No prior knowledge of Japanese language, culture, or history required. All readings and screenings will be available in English or with English subtitles.

Full details for ASIAN 2260 - Japanese Pop Culture

Can we identify a distinctive Asian food and food culture? Challenging attempts to define heterogenous gastronomic practices as authentic reflections of a static Asian identity, this course discusses how food, diet, and cuisine have been integral to shaping boundaries of culture, identity, and nation across geographical and temporal divisions in Asia. We will examine how people use daily and visceral food experiences to imagine themselves as members of a given community, be it a nation, ethnicity, class, gender, or religion, while also examining how food practices constantly challenge that fixation and redraw these categories. Through examining a wide range of materials in diverse disciplines, ranging from reading historical and anthropological studies to watching "food porn" and TV cooking shows, we will discuss topics related to cookery and the media, colonialism and culinary modernity, food production and consumption, gender and cooking, food and (trans)nationalism, diaspora and globalization of food as well as eating and inequality.

Full details for ASIAN 2272 - Food and Asia

This course explores Asian speculative literary fiction and cinema including early mythological influences, science fiction, and contemporary discourses of technoscientific progress. Students will examine the historical development of the broad genres in their specific contexts; the conceptual relations between realism, science, fantasy, and speculation; and ultimately, question past and future understandings of "Asia" as speculative.

Full details for ASIAN 2282 - Speculative Asias

Trade in and to Asia proved to be a key force in creating our modern "globalized" world. The Indian Ocean and the China Seas converged on Southeast Asia, where a cosmopolitan array of ships from every shore plied their trade, set sail, and returned with the monsoon winds. People, goods, and ideas also traveled on camelback across the undulating contours of the Gobi Desert, connecting India, the Near East and Central Asia with China, Korea, and Japan. This course introduces students to the raw ingredients of things in motion, poised interactively in time and space, as material worlds collide. Wood, bamboo, bronze, clay, earthenware, ink, spices, textiles and tea - students will navigate sites of encounter at the Herbert F. Johnson Museum from pre modern to the present.

Full details for ASIAN 2285 - Introduction to Asian Art: Material Worlds

The Great Qing (1644-1911), a multi-ethnic empire that conquered China proper from the northeastern borderlands, expanded into central Asia, Mongolia, and Tibet, and consolidated the China-based empire's control over its southwestern frontiers. An heir to both Chinese and Inner Asian traditions, the Qing empire laid the foundation for the modern Chinese nation-state. In this course, students will focus on the political, legal, social, cultural, and intellectual aspects of China's long eighteenth century. Students will also locate the early modern Chinese empire in a regional and global context, examining its power influence in Korea and Southeast Asia, and its encounters and interactions with Western and Japanese imperialist powers. These encounters and interactions contributed to the domestic turmoil and foreign invasions that eventually led to the demise of China's imperial tradition. But they also gave rise to new forces that would shape the fate of modern China in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. From Spring 2021 onward, this course fulfills the pre-1800 requirement for History Major

Full details for ASIAN 2293 - Making of an Empire in China

From the poet-kings of medieval Persia to the trading networks of the famed "Silk Road" to the wandering mystics of Herat to the constitutional revolution of Iran to the colonial and post-colonial occupations of contemporary Afghanistan, this course offers a broad cultural and political history of Iranian and Turkic Central Asia.  In addition, we will explore the highly complex intellectual, artistic, and architectural trends and "cross-cultural" exchanges that formed the backbone of many disparate Iranian-Turkic cultures.

Full details for ASIAN 2294 - Of Saints, Poets, and Revolutionaries: Medieval and Modern Iran and Central Asia

This course provides students with an analytical framework to understand China's ongoing economic transformation. The courses goals include: 1) to familiarize students with different perspectives on China's economic development and future prospects; 2) to provide a close working knowledge of the evolving current situation, with a focus on internal variation within China—telling different Chinese stories, not one "China story"—and particularly emphasizing urbanization and the goal of shifting from manufacturing and export-led to services and domestic-led economy; and 3) to give students hands-on experience using Chinese economic data in the context of a brief research note. Each week will connect to current events and debates, with students writing three blog posts over the course of the semester to bring academic research and social scientific analysis to bear upon policy-relevant questions and developments.

Full details for ASIAN 3304 - China's Next Economy

This course explores the Zen's central religious, historical and aesthetic developments. We read primary sources in translation and secondary sources. We examine the rise of the Ch'an tradition in China and the development of Northern and Southern Schools. In Japan, we examine the establishment of Zen in the Kamakura period, through the development of both Rinzai and Soto Zen, and early transmissions of Chinese texts and practices to Japan through Japanese emissaries. We study the lives and writings of Eisai and Dôgen, and explore how their works influenced later developments in Zen. Next we read works by Hakuin. Last, we study how Zen is implicated in Japanese fascism and later, postwar identity discourses. Finally, we look at Zen in an American context.

Full details for ASIAN 3316 - Zen Buddhism: Ecology, Sustainability and Daily Life

Ever since the creation of the concept of a culturally and geographically stable center in China, people have been intentionally excluded from that center. Disgraced officials are sent to far-flung provinces, loyalists to past regimes hide out across China's borders, and dissidents have their entry visas revoked, making it impossible for them to return home. The experiences of these people, and the poems and stories they write, tell us a great deal about what it means and how it feels to be included and excluded. What is the difference between the way China looks from the inside and the way it looks from the outside? Who has the power to decide who gets to live in China, and how and why do they use it? What is the relationship between our identities and our homes? Texts studied will range from 300 BCE to the present; all will be read and discussed in English. 

Full details for ASIAN 3329 - Literature of Leaving China

This course explores the intentional removal of oneself from society as expressed in East Asian Buddhist literature, through the acts of hermits and pilgrims. We read the diaries, essays, autobiographies, and poetry of recluse monks and nuns from China, Korea and Japan, and the musings of pilgrims through the ages in these countries, with special attention to Japan. Last, we examine how the actions of many of these writers influenced the American counter-culture movement in the 1960's and into the present. We inquire what light these writings can shed on "the great resignation" of recent years, and "quiet quitting" as a response to late capitalism, ecosystem collapse and climate change and social upheaval in our current times. Many of the figures we read were directly critiquing social excess and materialism, and these writings offer surprising assessments of our current age.

Full details for ASIAN 3331 - Opt Out, Tune In: Hermits, Pilgrims and Dharma Bums, from East Asia to Ithaca

This course explores the practice, theory, and methodology of humanities research, critical analysis, and communication through writing and oral presentation. We will study the work and impact of humanists (scholars of literature, history, theory, art, visual studies, film, anthropology, gender and sexuality studies), who pose big questions about the human condition. By reading and analyzing their scholarship—critiquing them and engaging their ideas—we will craft our own methods and voices. Students will refine their research methods (library research, note taking, organizing material, bibliographies, citation methods, proposals, outlines, etc.) and design their own independent research project.

Full details for ASIAN 3375 - Humanities Scholars Research Methods

Surveys the modern history of Southeast Asia with special attention to colonialism, the Chinese diaspora, and socio-cultural institutions.  Considers global transformations that brought "the West" into people's lives in Southeast Asia.  Focuses on the development of the modern nation-state, but also questions the narrative by incorporating groups that are typically excluded.  Assigns primary texts in translation. 

Full details for ASIAN 3396 - Transnational Local: Southeast Asian History from the Eighteenth Century

Supervised reading and research on the problem selected for honors work.

Full details for ASIAN 4401 - Asian Studies Honors Course

The student, under faculty direction, prepares an honors essay.

Full details for ASIAN 4402 - Asian Studies Honors: Senior Essay

Intensive reading under the direction of a member of the staff.

Full details for ASIAN 4404 - Supervised Reading

Visions of bodily corruption preoccupy ruler and ruled alike and prompt campaigns for moral, medical, and legal reform in periods of both stability and revolution. This seminar explores the links between political, sexual, and scientific revolutions in early modern and modern Asia. The focus is on China and Japan, with secondary attention to South Asia and Korea. Interaction with the West is a major theme. Topics include disease control, birth control and population control, body modification, the history of masculinity, honorific violence and sexual violence, the science of sex, normative and stigmatized sexualities, fashion, disability, and eugenics. The course begins with an exploration of regimes of the body in "traditional" Asian cultures. The course then turns to the medicalization and modernization of the body under the major rival political movements in Asia: feminism, imperialism, nationalism, and communism.

Full details for ASIAN 4415 - The Body Politic in Asia

Fil-Hispanic literature and art has historical been a neglected area of study in Spanish departments. This course provides a survey of the Philippines' most influential cultural producers in Spanish beginning in the nineteenth-century. We will also look at how Filipino and Spanish writers, intellectuals, and state actors imagined the relationship between Spain and Philippines during and after the colonial period.

Full details for ASIAN 4472 - Spain and the Philippines

China, a cultural giant of East Asia, made a passive entrance into modernity. With the advent of Western and American colonialism and imperialism, coupled with recent successes in westernization by the Japanese, Chinese artists had to redefine their roles as well as their visions. This turmoil bore witness to a vibrant beginning in modern Chinese art. Interactions between the Chinese themselves, and Chinese interactions with foreigners in the major cities of Shanghai and Beijing, fostered new directions in Chinese art and helped shape western visions of Chinese art history. Issues covered include: Chinese debates on western influence--their theoretical foundations and rationales; New visions for the future of Chinese art in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; Pluralistic approaches and arguments on "Chinese identity" in the modern era; Collecting art and the vision of history; The identity of traditional literati painters in the modern era-their roles, artworks, and deeds; Foreigners in China-the formation of major European collections of Chinese art, and the formation of "Chinese art history" in the West.

Full details for ASIAN 4473 - Modern Chinese Art

While Japan used to dominate the Asian gaming landscape, its East Asian and Southeast Asian neighbors have since developed into major gaming hubs with distinctive characteristics. This course presents a historical and theoretical overview of the cultural, industrial, and technological aspects of videogames within the contexts of East and Southeast Asian nations from the 1970s to the present. Although this course is organized using nation as a unit, we will study the proposed topics not solely from a national perspective, but also through the lenses of transnational media flow and globalization to shed light on the factors that regionalize videogames as a cultural imagination and an industrial system in East and Southeast Asia.

Full details for ASIAN 4483 - Videogames in East and Southeast Asia

This seminar explores how patterned cloths serve as a symbolic medium, functioning on multiple levels of understanding and communication. As spun, dyed, and woven threads of consequence, textiles can be seen to enter into all phases of social, economic, political, religious, and performance processes, often assuming unusual properties and attributes. As bearers of talismanic messages, signifiers of rank, and as the recipients of influences from maritime trade and touristic demand, textiles are read between the folds of complex exchange mechanisms in South and Southeast Asia.

Full details for ASIAN 4487 - Threads of Consequence: Textiles in South and Southeast Asia

This course presents theories of language teaching and learning, and shows how they apply to Asian language course structure, classroom instruction, and assessment techniques.  Students will observe classes taught by experienced teachers, discuss language learning theory and practice, and design and implement their own class activities. 

Full details for ASIAN 5505 - Methodology of Asian Language Learning and Teaching

Visions of bodily corruption preoccupy ruler and ruled alike and prompt campaigns for moral, medical, and legal reform in periods of both stability and revolution. This seminar explores the links between political, sexual, and scientific revolutions in early modern and modern Asia. The focus is on China and Japan, with secondary attention to South Asia and Korea. Interaction with the West is a major theme. Topics include disease control, birth control and population control, body modification, the history of masculinity, honorific violence and sexual violence, the science of sex, normative and stigmatized sexualities, fashion, disability, and eugenics. The course begins with an exploration of regimes of the body in "traditional" Asian cultures. The course then turns to the medicalization and modernization of the body under the major rival political movements in Asia: feminism, imperialism, nationalism, and communism.

Full details for ASIAN 6615 - The Body Politic in Asia

This course explores the Zen's central religious, historical and aesthetic developments. We read primary sources in translation and secondary sources. We examine the rise of the Ch'an tradition in China and the development of Northern and Southern Schools. In Japan, we examine the establishment of Zen in the Kamakura period, through the development of both Rinzai and Soto Zen, and early transmissions of Chinese texts and practices to Japan through Japanese emissaries. We study the lives and writings of Eisai and Dôgen, and explore how their works influenced later developments in Zen. Next we read works by Hakuin. Last, we study how Zen is implicated in Japanese fascism and later, postwar identity discourses. Finally, we look at Zen in an American context. This course is being taught both as an integrated arts in the curriculum course in collaboration with the Johnson Art Museum and is also part of a "Internationalizing the Cornell Curriculum."

Full details for ASIAN 6616 - Zen Buddhism: Ecology, Sustainability and Daily Life

To hone our skills in the analysis of topics in Asian studies, we will review critically a number of switchpoints that have produced conceptual difference in recent scholarly work. Asia scholars have laid claim to the historical, to modernity, coloniality, postcoloniality, religion, affect, temporality, race, capital, (mass) media, embodiment, the translocal, and the posthuman as the bases for producing conceptual difference. Each of these switchpoints has allowed for valuable interventions from Asian Studies into the humanities and social sciences. We will develop questions, criteria, and critiques to thoroughly test our tools of analysis and work toward yet other methods. Contemporary academia valorizes the production of conceptual difference. Thus, evaluation criteria routinely include originality and innovation. This is a valuable point of departure that allows us to ask, What kind of conceptual difference do we want to produce in our work? What kind of conceptual difference is intellectually rigorous? Asia as Question does not merely provide intellectual history but rather tests out—and creates—contemporary, critical approaches. As such, it interrogates especially notions of region and area; work on temporality; new ontologies; and current approaches to media ecologies. 

Full details for ASIAN 6622 - Asia as Question

Ever since the creation of the concept of a culturally and geographically stable center in China, people have been intentionally excluded from that center. Disgraced officials are sent to far-flung provinces, loyalists to past regimes hide out across China's borders, and dissidents have their entry visas revoked, making it impossible for them to return home. The experiences of these people, and the poems and stories they write, tell us a great deal about what it means and how it feels to be included and excluded. What is the difference between the way China looks from the inside and the way it looks from the outside? Who has the power to decide who gets to live in China, and how and why do they use it? What is the relationship between our identities and our homes? Texts studied will range from 300 BCE to the present; all will be read and discussed in English.

Full details for ASIAN 6639 - Literature of Leaving China

This seminar explores how patterned cloths serve as a symbolic medium, functioning on multiple levels of understanding and communication. As spun, dyed, and woven threads of consequence, textiles can be seen to enter into all phases of social, economic, political, religious, and performance processes, often assuming unusual properties and attributes. As bearers of talismanic messages, signifiers of rank, and as the recipients of influences from maritime trade and touristic demand, textiles are read between the folds of complex exchange mechanisms in South and Southeast Asia.

Full details for ASIAN 6644 - Threads of Consequence: Textiles in South and Southeast Asia

Fil-Hispanic literature and art has historical been a neglected area of study in Spanish departments. This course provides a survey of the Philippines' most influential cultural producers in Spanish beginning in the nineteenth-century. We will also look at how Filipino and Spanish writers, intellectuals, and state actors imagined the relationship between Spain and Philippines during and after the colonial period.

Full details for ASIAN 6672 - Spain and the Philippines

China, a cultural giant of East Asia, made a passive entrance into modernity. With the advent of Western and American colonialism and imperialism, coupled with recent successes in westernization by the Japanese, Chinese artists had to redefine their roles as well as their visions. This turmoil bore witness to a vibrant beginning in modern Chinese art. Interactions between the Chinese themselves, and Chinese interactions with foreigners in the major cities of Shanghai and Beijing, fostered new directions in Chinese art and helped shape western visions of Chinese art history. Issues covered include: Chinese debates on western influence--their theoretical foundations and rationales; New visions for the future of Chinese art in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; Pluralistic approaches and arguments on "Chinese identity" in the modern era; Collecting art and the vision of history; The identity of traditional literati painters in the modern era-their roles, artworks, and deeds; Foreigners in China-the formation of major European collections of Chinese art, and the formation of "Chinese art history" in the West.

Full details for ASIAN 6673 - Modern Chinese Art

The history of systems theory involves complex stories of technoscientific change and knowledge production on a global scale. In recent years, scholars have increasingly moved away from the field's predominantly North American and European focuses to study instead how systems theory's thinking of dynamic interrelations, and the related area of cybernetics research on self-organization and recursivity have developed in major Asian societies. This course first explores the epistemological foundations of systems theory before studying its major developments and historical case studies in the PRC, Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia. We will then examine systems theory and cybernetics' impacts on questions of technocratic governance, biopolitics, economy, gender and sexuality, and cultural and aesthetic production.

Full details for ASIAN 6681 - Systems Theory and Asia Critique

While Japan used to dominate the Asian gaming landscape, its East Asian and Southeast Asian neighbors have since developed into major gaming hubs with distinctive characteristics. This course presents a historical and theoretical overview of the cultural, industrial, and technological aspects of videogames within the contexts of East and Southeast Asian nations from the 1970s to the present. Although this course is organized using nation as a unit, we will study the proposed topics not solely from a national perspective, but also through the lenses of transnational media flow and globalization to shed light on the factors that regionalize videogames as a cultural imagination and an industrial system in East and Southeast Asia.

Full details for ASIAN 6683 - Videogames in East and Southeast Asia

Surveys the modern history of Southeast Asia with special attentions to colonialism, the Chinese diaspora, and socio-cultural institutions. Considers global transformations that brought "the West" into people's lives in Southeast Asia. Focuses on the development of the modern nation-state, but also questions the narrative by incorporating groups that are typically excluded. Assigns primary texts in translation.

Full details for ASIAN 6696 - Transnational Local: Southeast Asian History from the Eighteenth Century

Guided independent study for graduate students.

Full details for ASIAN 7704 - Directed Research

This course will introduce foundational knowledge of Bengali language and elements of culture from Bangladesh and West Bengal to anyone interested in Bengal, e.g. those planning to travel to Bangladesh and West Bengal, India.

Full details for BENGL 1100 - Elements of Bengali Language and Culture

Enables students to read and comprehend basic Bengali texts as well as speak and write in the language.

Full details for BENGL 1122 - Elementary Bengali II

Continuing focus on reading, writing, and conversational skills, this course is designed to advance students' oral competence and enhance comprehension skills through reading, conversations, and listening.

Full details for BENGL 2202 - Intermediate Bengali II

Continuing instruction in Bengali at the advanced level focusing on conversation, interview, and discussion skills.

Full details for BENGL 3302 - Advanced Bengali II

This course will introduce basic Burmese language and elements of Burmese culture to anyone who would like to learn about the country.

Full details for BURM 1100 - Elements of Burmese Language and Culture

This course focuses on building up confidence in speaking and understanding spoken Burmese at the beginner level. Emphasis is put on language you will need if you visit the country, and significant practical skills are learned along with essential information on some customs and traditions of Burmese culture. Some of the assignments are completed online using interactive video and audio materials.

Full details for BURM 1122 - Elementary Burmese (Myanmar) II

This course continues instruction of intermediate Burmese. It will focus on improving oral expression, reading and interpretation of written texts, and further development of listening skills using language learning materials based on authentic audio-video clips. Some of the assignments are completed online using interactive video and audio materials.

Full details for BURM 2202 - Intermediate Burmese (Myanmar) II

All materials used in the course are authentic Burmese stories, current event reports, radio plays, etc. The particular materials used in any given year may vary depending on the proficiency level of the students. For students who are involved in Burma/Myanmar related research, their projects may also become part of the course.

Full details for BURM 3302 - Advanced Burmese (Myanmar) II

This course will further advance the student's reading skills and, if needed, writing as well. Burmese texts of advanced-level complexity will be read, analyzed, and translated to English. A certain amount of discussion in Burmese is also part of the course, but the primary objective is to learn to read and understand the typical texts that appear on websites about current events, cultural trends, news from around the world, as well as short literary works by contemporary authors. Heritage speakers of Burmese as well as students who are learning Burmese as a foreign language are welcome. Reading materials are selected depending on the needs and interests of the students and differ from year to year.

Full details for BURM 3310 - Advanced Readings in Burmese (Myanmar) II

For beginners only, providing a thorough grounding in conversational and reading skills. Students with any previous background or training in the language will need to take the Mandarin Placement Test to determine which Chinese course will best suit their needs.  

Full details for CHIN 1102 - Beginning Mandarin II

Continuation of CHIN 1109. Intended primarily for students whose family language is Mandarin but who have had little or no formal training. The focus is on reading, writing and speaking, as well as culture, and current events in the Chinese speaking community.

Full details for CHIN 1110 - Beginning Chinese Reading and Writing for Students of Chinese Heritage II

A continuation of  CHIN 1121. This course helps students develop basic skills in Mandarin Chinese, at a moderate pace. For non-heritage learners only.

Full details for CHIN 1122 - Beginning Mandarin for Professional Students II

A continuation of  CHIN 1123 . This course helps students develop basic skills in Mandarin Chinese, at a moderate pace. For non-heritage learners only. 

Full details for CHIN 1124 - Beginning Mandarin for Professional Students IV

Continuing instruction in written and spoken Chinese with particular emphasis on consolidating basic conversational skills and improving reading confidence and ability.

Full details for CHIN 2202 - Intermediate Mandarin II

If your long-term goal is to move past the intermediate Chinese learning plateau and gain the ability to participate fully in the Chinese-speaking world, this course is the next step you need to take.  This course uses a combination of short essays written by well-known Chinese writers and news articles from a wonderful news platform and focuses on how to read and write effectively through 1) learning both semi-formal and formal vocabulary, modern idiomatic expressions, advanced sentence structures and the major features that characterize advanced Chinese; 2) exploring the different aspects of Chinese culture or events that interest you; 3) completing a book or a magazine in Chinese as the course project applying what students learn during the semester.  This course helps students further solidify their foundation for advanced-level study in Chinese, as well as enhance their awareness of and overall competence in cross-cultural communication.

Full details for CHIN 2210 - Intermediate Chinese Reading and Writing for Students of Chinese Heritage II

Continuing instruction in spoken and written Mandarin Chinese via text and authentic multimedia materials. 

Full details for CHIN 3302 - High Intermediate Mandarin II

This 1-credit optional course aims to expand the students' vocabulary, and advance their speaking and reading skills as well as enhance their knowledge and deepen their cultural understanding by attaching to non-language courses throughout the University.

Full details for CHIN 3316 - Mandarin Language Across the Curriculum (LAC)

Equivalent to CHIN 3302. Continuing instruction in spoken Chinese and in various genres and styles of written Chinese.

Full details for CHIN 3352 - High Intermediate Mandarin II: CAPS in Beijing

Reading, discussion, and composition at advanced levels.

Full details for CHIN 4412 - Advanced Mandarin II

This course aims to help students achieve an advanced level of performance both in speaking and writing through reading authentic Chinese materials, watching TV shows, various writing exercises, and class discussions on social and cultural topics on contemporary China.  Classical Chinese will be introduced in this course through supplementary readings.

Full details for CHIN 4428 - High Advanced Mandarin II

Equivalent to CHIN 4412 .  Reading, discussion, and composition at advanced levels.

Full details for CHIN 4452 - Advanced Mandarin II: CAPS in Beijing

This course is designed for students who have satisfactorily finished CHIN 4427 or the equivalent.  The focus of the course is on formal Chinese, and the main aim of this course is to help students achieve an advanced level of Chinese performance, so that they may combine Chinese with their work in their majors.  The course material will be formal Chinese writings by native speakers, mostly for native speakers, related to students' majors and fields of interest.  In addition, classical Chinese will also be introduced through readngs as a means to enhance students' understanding of the language.

Full details for CHIN 4454 - High Advanced Mandarin II: CAPS in Beijing

A guided reading in the original language designed to introduce students to a variety of genres and styles of classical Chinese literature while at the same time helping students achieve competence in reading classical Chinese at an advanced level. The syllabus, with a rotating thematic focus, normally includes philosophical works, historical texts, poetry and prose, anecdotes and fiction. Please consult the Department of Asian Studies course offerings for each year's thematic focus.

Full details for CHLIT 3307 - Readings in Classical Chinese Literature

Through guided reading in Chinese, this course explores topics, themes and techniques that define a type of narrative work known as chuanqi (stories of the marvelous), which were written by Tang dynasty literati on the subject of love, romance, and betrayal. The aim of the course is to help students achieve an appreciation for the early development of Chinese fiction in the context of Tang literary and popular culture.

Full details for CHLIT 4418 - Stories of Love and Romance in Stories from Tang Dynasty

Students choose a faculty member to oversee this independent study. The student and the faculty member work together to develop course content.

Full details for CHLIT 4422 - Directed Study

A guided reading in the original language designed to introduce students to a variety of genres and styles of classical Chinese literature while at the same time helping students achieve competence in reading classical Chinese at an advanced level. The syllabus, with a rotating thematic focus, normally includes philosophical works, historical texts, poetry and prose, anecdotes and fiction. Please consult the Department of Asian Studies course offerings for each year's thematic focus. An additional weekly seminar session introduces students to contemporary scholarship on critical questions and issues pertaining to the thematic foci of this course.  A final research project on an approved topic pertaining to the central theme of this course is required. 

Full details for CHLIT 6607 - Readings in Classical Chinese Literature

Through guided reading in Chinese, this course explores topics, themes and techniques that define a type of narrative work known as chuanqi (stories of the marvelous), which were written by Tang dynasty literati on the subject of love, romance, and betrayal. The aim of the course is to help students achieve an appreciation for the early development of Chinese fiction in the context of Tang literary and popular culture. . An additional weekly seminar session introduces students to contemporary scholarship on critical questions and issues pertaining to the thematic foci of this course. A final research project on an approved topic pertaining to the central theme of this course is required. 

Full details for CHLIT 6618 - Stories of Love and Romance in Stories from Tang Dynasty

Students choose a faculty member to oversee this independent study. The student and the faculty member work together to develop class readings.

Full details for CHLIT 6622 - Advanced Directed Reading

Designed for students who have no prior background in Hindi and wish to develop some basic speaking and written skills. This course offers a balanced treatment of speaking, listening comprehension, reading, and writing skills. By the end of the Elementary Hindi sequence, students will beable to (1) converse and comprehend conversations on topics such as personal needs and social activities; (2) listen and communicate main ideas of simple stories and conversations in Hindi; (3) read aloud/pronounce and write in Hindi-Urdu scripts at a satisfactory speed; (4) familiarize themselves with the language through the meaning cultural contexts and background.

Full details for HINDI 1122 - Elementary Hindi II

HINDI 2202 is the continuation of HINDI 2201. The main emphasis in this course is to reinforce the linguistic functions learned in HINDI 2201, and to build comparatively more complex functions suitable for intermediate level in Hindi. Students' competence in all four language skills will be improved in order to perform higher level tasks and function.

Full details for HINDI 2202 - Intermediate Hindi II

Throughout this course sequence all aspects of language learning are practiced; listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Video materials are used and the emphasis is on the conversational aspect of the language.

Full details for HINDI 2204 - Intermediate Hindi Reading and Writing for Heritage Students II

This is a continuation of HINDI 3301. Selected readings in modern Hindi literature. Continued work on fluency in speaking Hindi on an advanced level. There will be a combination of different reading materials from literature, journals, newspapers, and many social, entertainment, and political magazines in Hindi. Discussions will be based on those readings and articles, hence giving opportunities to express views and opinions in a fluent and effective manner.

Full details for HINDI 3302 - Advanced Hindi II

This course is for students with no previous knowledge of Indonesian or Malay language. Students will learn enough phrases to be able to handle very simple interactions, express very simple needs, and behave appropriately in Indonesian settings. Cultural information will be taught in English. Indonesianists of Cornell share fun information about their fields of expertise regarding Indonesia.  80% of the course, the Bahasa Indonesia language component, will be practiced.

Full details for INDO 1100 - Elements of Indonesian Language and Culture

Gives a thorough grounding in basic speaking, listening, reading and writing skills.

Full details for INDO 1122 - Elementary Indonesian II

Develops all four skills: reading, writing, speaking, and listening comprehension.

Full details for INDO 2202 - Intermediate Indonesian II

Practical language course at a high intermediate and low advanced level in which students read and discuss selected materials on issues of their academic interests, write essays, and make oral presentations.

Full details for INDO 3302 - Advanced Indonesian II

A critical academic language course at a higher advanced level that sharpens students' proficiency of integrated language skills from an advanced high or above level, based on the ACTFL proficiency benchmarks. Students read, discuss, debate and explore hypotheses on issues from specialized disciplines to broader abstract ideas.

Full details for INDO 4402 - Advanced Indonesian for Research II

Gives a thorough grounding in all four language skills-speaking, listening, reading, and writing-at the beginning level. The lecture provides explanation, analysis, and cultural background. Sections are conducted entirely in Japanese.

Full details for JAPAN 1102 - Elementary Japanese II

This course provides widely applicable language proficiency as an integrated Japanese course, which develops all four language skills (speaking, listening, reading, and writing) at the post-elementary level.

Full details for JAPAN 2202 - Intermediate Japanese II

For students who have learned basic Japanese skills and would like to develop higher skills in reading, writing, speaking, and listening.

Full details for JAPAN 3302 - High Intermediate Japanese II

Develops reading, writing and oral communication skills at the advanced level.

Full details for JAPAN 4402 - Advanced Japanese II

Students choose a faculty member to oversee this independent study. The student and the faculty member work together to develop class readings.

Full details for JPLIT 6625 - Directed Readings

Full details for JPLIT 6628 - Advanced Directed Readings

This course will introduce basic Khmer/Cambodian language and culture to anyone with interest in the subject matter, those planning to travel to Cambodia, heritage students, etc.

Full details for KHMER 1100 - Elements of Khmer Language and Culture

Gives a thorough grounding in speaking and reading.

Full details for KHMER 1122 - Elementary Khmer II

Continuing instruction in spoken and written Khmer. Intermediate level of reading Khmer.

Full details for KHMER 2202 - Intermediate Khmer II

Continuing instruction in spoken and written Khmer; emphasis on enlarging vocabulary, increasing reading speed, and reading various genres and styles of prose.

Full details for KHMER 3302 - Advanced Khmer II

Continuation of KOREA 1101. Designed to help students acquire the 4 skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) of the Korean language and to become familiar with its culture. Basic knowledge of Korean grammar, vocabulary, expressions and cultural points will be given during the lecture. The students will then have an opportunity to practice the learned knowledge in sections. The goal of this course is to refine their survival skills in Korean. By the end of the semester, students will be able to exchange in simple conversations with native Koreans about the subjects that are familiar to them in all time frames (present, past, and future): school life, family and friends, traffic and transportation, vacation, food and restaurant, hobbies, etc.

Full details for KOREA 1102 - Elementary Korean II

Continuation of KOREA 1109. Focuses on communicative skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing by introducing a wide range of linguistic resources. Students will command daily conversation in different cultural contexts and develop an ability to summarize and reflect on literary texts and films both in oral and written modes. Students will be able to create a discourse regarding topics such as birthday, campus life, family, shopping and hobbies. Also, students will write and revise their own work regularly to improve linguistic accuracy and reduce error production.

Full details for KOREA 1110 - Elementary Korean Reading and Writing II

Continuation of KOREA 2201 .  The course helps students develop further communicative competence by understanding and producing complex linguistic structures and pragmatically appropriate expressions in cultural contexts. Students will use linguistic tools to describe and express their stance, justification, attitudes, evaluation and complex clausal relations. Students will command a lengthy discourse regarding various topics such as holidays, birthday, cultural differences, doctor-patient talk and job interview.

Full details for KOREA 2202 - Intermediate Korean II

Continuation of KOREA 2209. Designed for Korean heritage students who can understand and speak Korean, but especially need to refine their reading and writing skills. Students will acquire concrete knowledge of grammar to use in everyday conversation, and will minimize their spelling errors in writing, through frequent discussion and composition about Korean culture, society and history. They will become confident in reading paragraph-length readings in Korean, be able to write their reflections on the passages that they have read, and speak with ease when participating in the classroom discussions. Various projects will enhance students' overall linguistic and intercultural competence.

Full details for KOREA 2210 - Intermediate Korean Reading and Writing II

Continuation of KOREA 3301. Students will continue to refine their high-intermediate language skills. Authentic published materials and documentary video-clips will be introduced in order for students to be exposed to an advanced level of Korean. Students will discuss and write an essay on topics regarding Seoul, South Korea and North Korea, housing in Korea, customs and superstition of Korea, Korean folk tales and proverbs, Korean culture of community, and Korea during the Japanese colonial period. Students are given the opportunity to do research on Korean culture and society following an academic research format and give an oral presentation in class.

Full details for KOREA 3302 - High Intermediate Korean II

This 1-credit optional course aims to expand the students' vocabulary, and advance their speaking and reading skills as well as enhance their knowledge and deepen their cultural understanding by attaching to non-language courses throughout the University.

Full details for KOREA 3316 - Korean Language Across the Curriculum (LAC)

Continuation of KOREA 4401. Designed for students to acquire advanced language skills (speaking, listening, reading and writing) through Content-Based Instruction and Project-Based Language Learning. Students will gain profound knowledge in various fields on Korea through discussion and composition: Current issues in Korean society, Korean people's thoughts and mind, tradition, history and culture. With frequent discussions and compositions on various contemporary news articles, documentaries, and a novel, students are encouraged to become Intercultural Communicative Citizens and learn the contents through the language. The expected student outcome is to gain confidence in the academic level of discussions and compositions by critical thinking and analyzing.

Full details for KOREA 4402 - Advanced Korean II

This course is intended for beginners of the Nepali language. The emphasis is given on continuation of learning basic grammar structures, and the four basic skills of language learning: speaking, listening, reading, and writing, using culturally up-to-date materials and texts.

Full details for NEPAL 1122 - Elementary Nepali II

Intermediate instruction in spoken grammar and verbal comprehension skills, with special attention to developing technical vocabularies and other verbal skills appropriate to students' professional fields.

Full details for NEPAL 2202 - Intermediate Nepali Conversation II

Systematic review of written grammar and reading comprehension, with special attention to the technical vocabularies, necessary writing skills, and published materials typical of advanced students' professional fields.

Full details for NEPAL 2204 - Intermediate Nepali Composition II

Reading of advanced texts, together with advanced drill on the spoken language.

Full details for NEPAL 3302 - Advanced Nepali II

This course introduces students to Punjabi, a major language of northern India and Pakistan. Beginning with the study of the Gurmukhi script, the course offers an intensive study of the speaking, reading, and writing of the language. This is approached through the theme-based syllabus, a discussion in small groups and paired activities on the cultural background of Punjab and Punjabi culture.

Full details for PUNJB 1122 - Elementary Punjabi II

Further develops students' skills in Punjabi, a major language of northern India and Pakistan. Continuing with the study of the Gurmukhi script, the course offers an intensive study of the speaking, reading, and writing of the language. This is approached through the theme-based syllabus, a discussion in small groups and paired activities on the cultural background of Punjab and Punjabi culture.

Full details for PUNJB 2202 - Intermediate Punjabi II

An introduction to the essentials of Sanskrit grammar. Designed to enable the student to read classical and epic Sanskrit as soon as possible.

Full details for SANSK 1132 - Elementary Sanskrit II

Readings from Sanskrit dramas and literary commentary.

Full details for SANSK 2252 - Intermediate Sanskrit II

Topics vary by semester in relation to student needs.

Full details for SANSK 5510 - Graduate Studies in Sanskrit

This course will introduce the basic Sinhala language elements and elements of Sri Lankan culture for those who are interested in the field of language and culture. Also for those planning to travel to Sri Lanka, heritage students, etc.

Full details for SINHA 1100 - Elements of Sinhala Language and Culture

Semi-intensive introduction to colloquial Sinhala, intended for beginners. A thorough grounding is given in all the language skills; listening, speaking, reading, and writing.

Full details for SINHA 1122 - Elementary Sinhala II

This course further develops student competence in colloquial Sinhala, attending to all the language skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing. In addition, this course prepares students for the transition to literary Sinhala.

Full details for SINHA 2202 - Intermediate Sinhala II

This one-semester course further develops students' comprehension of written Literary Sinhala, using sample materials from a variety of genres prepared by the instructor, as well as excerpts from texts relevant to graduate student research (when appropriate).

Full details for SINHA 4400 - Literary Sinhala II

This course will introduce very basic functional uses of Tagalog/Filipino language and elements of Filipino culture to interested students like heritage learners and those who are planning to travel briefly to the Philippines to participate in a short project or study abroad program in the country.

Full details for TAG 1100 - Elements of Tagalog-Filipino Language and Culture

Gives a thorough grounding in basic speaking and listening skills with an introduction to reading and writing.

Full details for TAG 1122 - Elementary Tagalog-Filipino II

Develops all four skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing.

Full details for TAG 2202 - Intermediate Tagalog-Filipino II

Continuing instruction on conversational skills but with emphasis on reading and writing. Selected core readings in contemporary Tagalog literature are used, but students, in consultation with the instructor, may select some of the class materials.

Full details for TAG 3302 - Advanced Tagalog-Filipino II

Further develops students' written and oral proficiency in order to allow them to function adequately in a Tamil-speaking environment. Of particular interest to students planning to conduct scholarly research or fieldwork in a Tamil-speaking context. Develops the students' appreciation for the rich culture of the Indian subcontinent where Tamil is spoken.

Full details for TAMIL 2202 - Intermediate Tamil II

This course introduces basic spoken Thai and various aspects of Thai culture for short-term visitors.  Through active, participatory learning this course cultivates a working knowledge of the Thai language and develops a cultural "intuition" that is meaningful and functional for achieving a smooth transition and successful experience in Thailand.  This course is for students who are personally interested in Thai culture as well as those participating in university projects in Thailand.

Full details for THAI 1100 - Elements of Thai Language and Culture

This beginning level course provides a solid grounding in all four language skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) with an emphasis on reading and writing. The aim is to enable learners to continue the process of thinking in Thai and learning to converse and "get around" in certain basic situations in daily life with an additional of basic literacy skill.

Full details for THAI 1122 - Elementary Thai II

Continues to develop and comprehensively extends the four language skills acquired at the Elementary level (listening, speaking, reading, and writing).

Full details for THAI 2202 - Intermediate Thai II

Develops conversational skill along with reading and writing skills at a High Intermediate level.

Full details for THAI 2204 - Intermediate Thai Composition and Conversation II

Develops advanced speaking skill with emphasis on selected readings in Thai from various fields, for example, History, Anthropology, Government, Economics, Agriculture, as well as other professional schools.  The readings are supplemented with visual materials such as video clips and films.

Full details for THAI 3302 - Advanced Thai II

Reading of significant novels, short stories, and poetry written since 1850 and other classical works.

Full details for THAI 3304 - Thai Literature II

This is an introductory course. It focuses on developing basic abilities to speak as well as to read and write in modern Tibetan, Lhasa dialect. Students are also introduced to modern Tibetan studies through selected readings and guest lectures.

Full details for TIBET 1112 - Elementary Modern Tibetan II

Introduces students to the grammar of Classical Literary Tibetan as found in Indian treatises translated from Sanskrit into Tibetan, as well as indigenous Tibetan philosophical works. The course progresses through a sequence of the basic rudiments of the language, including an introduction to the script and its romanization, pronunciation (central Lhasan dialect), normative dictionary order, and the basic categories of grammar. Following these preliminaries, students proceed to guided readings in Tibetan literature designed to introduce them to the formal approach of Tibetan lexical semantics with an emphasis on the role of verbs in determining argument realization options. Over the duration of the course, students encounter new vocabulary (and associated Buddhist concept hierarchies) and increasingly complex sentence structures. This course thus provides a solid foundation for the later exploration of other genres of literature and styles of composition.

Full details for TIBET 1122 - Elementary Classical Tibetan II

This two-semester class is designed to assist students who already have the equivalent of at least one year of Tibetan language study. The course is intended to build on this foundation so that students gain greater proficiency in reading a variety of classical Tibetan writing styles and genres, including (especially in the second semester) texts relevant to their research.

Full details for TIBET 2202 - Intermediate Classical Tibetan II

For those whose knowledge is equivalent to a student who has completed the first-year course. The course focuses on the further development of their skills in using the language to engage with practical topics and situations, such as seeing a doctor, reading news, writing letters, and listening to music.

Full details for TIBET 2212 - Intermediate Modern Tibetan II

This class is designed to assist students who already have the equivalent of at least two years of Classical Tibetan language study. The course is intended to build on this foundation so that students gain greater proficiency in reading a variety of classical Tibetan writing styles and genres, including texts relevant to their research.

Full details for TIBET 3302 - Advanced Classical Tibetan II

For those whose knowledge is equivalent to a student who has completed the second-year course. The course develops students' reading comprehension skills through reading selected modern Tibetan literature. Tibetan is used as the medium of instruction and interaction to develop oral fluency and proficiency.

Full details for TIBET 3312 - Advanced Modern Tibetan II

This class is an introductory class for beginners. This course will teach students how to listen, speak, read and write Urdu through vocabulary, grammar, oral and written activities, with an emphasis on reading and writing basic Urdu. The course begins by introducing the alphabet and their combinations. In addition to learning the script we will also introduce the basic knowledge and background on Urdu culture.

Full details for URDU 1125 - Introduction to Urdu Script

This course is designed to develop competence in Urdu reading and writing for students with a first-year knowledge of Hindi and knowledge of Urdu script. The goal of this course is to improve listening, speaking, reading and writing abilities in Urdu. By the end of the course, students will have the ability to read articles, write short stories and translate Urdu writings. This course may be taken concurrently with Intermediate Hindi.

Full details for URDU 2226 - Intermediate Urdu Reading and Writing II

This course is designed for anyone wishing to gain some basic Vietnamese language skills and learn various elements of Vietnamese culture. Those who are planning to take short trips to Vietnam will find this course particularly useful.  Due to the flip classroom nature of the course, it is intended for sophomores and up.

Full details for VIET 1100 - Elements of Vietnamese Language and Culture

This course gives a thorough grounding in basic speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills in Vietnamese.

Full details for VIET 1122 - Elementary Vietnamese II

Continuing instruction in spoken  and written Vietnamese with special emphasis on expanding vocabulary and  reading ability.

Full details for VIET 2202 - Intermediate Vietnamese II

Continuing instruction in spoken and written Vietnamese. The course emphasizes on enlarging vocabulary and increasing reading speed by reading various genres and styles of prose. 

Full details for VIET 3302 - Advanced Vietnamese II