Education Programs

Education Program "Global Japan Studies" (Graduate Level)

1. Graduate-Level Education Program Outline

The Global Japan Studies network aims to promote exchanges between Japanese studies scholars outside Japan and researchers within Japan. Its activity consists of two pillars: research and education. The GJS network works toward the formation of researchers’ community and distribution of research information on the one hand, and provides undergraduate-level courses on politics, economy, culture and society of Japan. From this year, the GJS network started a new initiative to integrate research and education by developing the graduate course ITASIA139 which is being offered as part of the curriculum of the ITASIA program in the Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies. ITASIA is a 10-week term course consisting of weekly lectures given by established scholars in and outside the University of Tokyo.

2. Eligibility

This course is open to graduate students of the ITASIA program as well as all the University of Tokyo graduate students

3. Course Title and Outline

ITASIA 139 “Intellectual Giants” in UTokyo: Critical Evaluation of Their Accomplishments in Contemporary Contexts

This graduate course is the third series of lectures that examine and critically evaluate the history of major intellectuals and scholars of or associated with the University of Tokyo in the modern period. By examining various intellectual legacies of one of the most important research and education institutions in Japan and the world, this course aims to generate critical understanding of modern knowledge production and circulation in relation to social change and cultural formation in Japan. By so doing, potential contribution of Japanese scholarship to the understanding of contemporary (global) issues will be explored.

Every year, a specific theme or period or prominent intellectual figures will be identified for focused study and discussion, and scholars working on that specific topic are invited from within or out of UTokyo to the lecture and generate classroom discussions. For 2020, the lectures will focus on histories and legacies of China studies and address the issue of how Japanese intellectuals have tried to understand China from different disciplines and perspectives. We arranged four lectures by an economist, a sociologist, a jurist, and a historian.

This lecture series is the result of collaboration among Global Japan Studies Research Network in IASA, Contemporary China Research Base in ISS, and Toyota Foundation’s Initiative Program "Recreation of Chinese Studies" in GSAS in the University of Tokyo.

4. Date, Period, and Place

Oct.1 - Nov.5, 2020 (A-1 Term)
Thursday, 4th period
Online (Zoom)
Accessible only for UTokyo Account users

5. Course Schedule

Week 1 (1st of October): Introduction
Profs. SONODA Shigeto and ZHONG Yijiang

Week 2 (8th of October): "Marxism and Chinese Economy"
Prof. MARUKAWA Tomoo (Institute of Social Science)
Lecture Transcript

Week 3 (15th of October): "Development of Empirical Sociology and China Studies in Japan"
Prof. SONODA Shigeto (Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia)
Lecture Transcript

Week 4 (22nd of October): "Studies on Chinese Law in Japan: Traditional Chinese Law, Modern Chinese Law and Contemporary Chinese Law"
Prof. TAKAMIZAWA Osamu (Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia)
Lecture Transcript

Week 5 (29th of October): "Studies on Chinese Diplomatic History in Japan: Chinese World Order and Modern Diplomacy in China"
Prof. KAWASHIMA Shin (Graduate School of Arts and Sciences)
Lecture Transcript

Week 6 (5th of November): Wrap-up Discussion
Profs. SONODA Shigeto and ZHONG Yijiang

6. Course Requirement

Attendance and discussion participation: 40%
Final report: 60%

Teaching methods: lecture and discussion
Textbooks: no textbook is required.
Prerequisite: no prerequisite is required.

7. Inquiry

To inquire about the ITASIA139 and the graduate program, please write to the following email address,
gjs@ioc.u-tokyo.ac.jp