East Asian Languages and Literatures

308 Hall of Graduate Studies, 432.2860
M.A., M.Phil., Ph.D.

Chair
John Whittier Treat

Director of Graduate Studies
Edward Kamens (310 HGS, 432.2862, edward.kamens@yale.edu)

Professors
Kang-i Sun Chang, Edward Kamens, Haun Saussy (Comparative Literature), Hugh Stimson, John Whittier Treat, Mimi Hall Yiengpruksawan (History of Art), Stanley Weinstein (Emeritus; East Asian Languages & Literatures; Religious Studies)

Associate Professor
Charles Laughlin

Assistant Professors
Aaron Gerow, Christopher Hill

Lecturer
Pauline Lin

Senior Lectors
Seungja Choi, Koichi Hiroe, Zhengguo Kang, Yoshiko Maruyama, John Montanaro, Ling Mu, Michiaki Murata, Masahiko Seto, Mari Stever, Wei Su, William Zhou

Lectors
Angela Lee-Smith, Rongzhen Li, Ninghui Liang, Hiroyo Nishimura, Jianhua Shen, Li-li Teng, Peisong Xu

Fields of Study
Fields for doctoral study are Chinese literature and Japanese literature. (See also the Combined Ph.D. Program in Film Studies.) Although the primary emphasis is on these East Asian subjects, the department welcomes applicants who are seeking to integrate their interests in Chinese or Japanese literature with interdisciplinary studies in such fields as history, history of art, linguistics, religious studies, comparative literature, film studies, literary theory and criticism, and the social sciences.

Special Admissions Requirements
The department requires entering students in Chinese or Japanese (and the Combined Program in Film Studies) to have completed at least three years of study, or the equivalent, of either Chinese or Japanese. Students applying in Chinese are expected to have completed at least one year of literary Chinese. Students applying in premodern Japanese are expected to have completed at least one year of literary Japanese. This is a doctoral program; no students are admitted for master's degrees.

Special Requirements for the Ph.D. Degree
During the first three years of study, students are required to take at least fourteen term courses. Usually students complete twelve term courses in years one and two, and then take two tutorials or two seminars in year three. Students concentrating in Chinese or Japanese literature are encouraged to take at least one term course in Western literature or literary theory. All students must prove their proficiency in French, German, Russian, or another European language that the director of graduate studies deems appropriate, by the beginning of the second year. In some cases, with the approval of the director of graduate studies, students in Chinese literature may substitute modern Japanese and students in Japanese literature may substitute modern Chinese for a European language. By the end of the third year, students specializing in premodern Japanese literature must pass a reading test in literary Chinese. At the end of the second full academic year, the student must take a written examination in the language of his or her specialization, including both its modern and premodern forms.

At the end of each academic year, until a student is admitted to candidacy, a faculty committee will review the student's progress. For the second year review, the student must submit a revised seminar research paper, on a topic selected in consultation with the adviser, no later than April 1 of the fourth term. No later than the end of the sixth term the student will take the qualifying oral examination. The exam will cover three fields distinguished by period and/or genre in one or more East Asian national literatures or in other fields closely related to the student's developing specialization. These fields and accompanying reading lists will be selected in consultation with the examiners and the director of graduate studies in order to allow the student to demonstrate knowledge and command of a range of topics. After having successfully passed the qualifying oral examination, students will be required to submit a dissertation prospectus to the department for approval by the end of the seventh term in order to complete the process of admission to candidacy for the Ph.D.

Opportunities to obtain experience in teaching language and literature form an important part of this program. Students in East Asian Languages and Literatures normally teach in their third and fourth years in the Graduate School.

Combined Ph.D. Program
The Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures also offers, in conjunction with the Program in Film Studies, a combined Ph.D. in East Asian Languages and Literatures and Film Studies. For further details, see Film Studies. Applicants to the combined program must indicate on their application that they are applying both to Film Studies and to East Asian Languages and Literatures. All documentation within the application should include this information.

Master's Degrees
M.Phil. The successful completion of all predissertation requirements, including the qualifying examination, will make a student eligible for an M.Phil. degree.

M.A. (en route to the Ph.D.). The successful completion of twelve term courses and languages required in the first two years of study will make a student eligible for an M.A. degree.

Program materials are available upon request to the Director of Graduate Studies, Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures, Yale University, PO Box 208236, New Haven ct 06520-8236, and at the department Web site, www.yale.edu/eall.

Courses

CHNS 500au, Man and Nature in Chinese Literature.  Kang-i Sun Chang.
TTh 1–2.15
An exploration of concepts of man and nature in traditional Chinese poetry and criticism, with special attention to historical contexts and cultural meanings. Topics include the centrality of lyricism and Taoism; depictions of nature and self-cultivation; travel in literature; the relation of poetry to painting; images of utopian communities as compared to the Western notion of Utopia; poets' strategies of self-canonization and identity. All readings in translation; no knowledge of Chinese is assumed. Optional discussion section conducted in Chinese for qualified students.

CHNS 501bu, Women Poets of Traditional China.  Kang-i Sun Chang.
TTh 1–2.15
A study of women poets in traditional China, with some attention to representation of women in male poetry as well. Issues include literary cannon and traditions, feminine voice and allegory, the abandoned woman, women in exile, the dichotomy of “yin” and “yang,” gender and genre, body and sexuality, notions of love, aesthetics of illness, and the function of memory. All readings in translation; no knowledge of Chinese assumed. Optional discussion section conducted in Chinese for qualified students. Also WGSS 770b.

CHNS 515u, Elementary Modern Chinese.  John Montanaro, William Zhou, Jianhua Shen.
MTWThF 9.30–10.20 or MTWThF 10.30–11.20 or MTWThF 11.30–12.20
Intended for students with no background in Chinese. An intensive course with emphasis on spoken language and drills. Pronunciation, grammatical analysis, conversation practice, and introduction to the reading and writing of Chinese characters. To be followed by CHNS 530.

CHNS 518u, Elementary Modern Chinese for Advanced Learners.  Ninghui Liang, William Zhou.
MTWThF 9.30–10.20 or MTWThF 10.30–11.20
First level of the advanced learner sequence. Intended for students with some background in Chinese. An intensive course with emphasis on spoken languages and drills. Pronunciation, grammatical analysis, conversation practice, and introduction to reading and writing Chinese characters. To be followed by CHNS 533. Placement confirmed by placement test on first day of class and by instructors.

CHNS 530u, Intermediate Modern Chinese.  Ling Mu, Rongzhen Li.
MTWThF 10.30–11.20 or MTWThF 11.30–12.20
An intermediate course that continues intensive training in listening, speaking, reading, and writing, and consolidates what students have achieved in the first year of study, allowing students to improve oral fluency, study more complex grammatical structures, and enlarge both reading and writing vocabulary. To be followed by CHNS 550. Prerequisite: CHNS 515 or equivalent.

CHNS 533u, Intermediate Modern Chinese for Advanced Learners.  Peisong Xu.
MTWThF 8.30–9.20 or MTWThF 9.30–10.20
The second level of the advanced learner sequence. Intended for students with intermediate to advanced oral proficiency and high elementary reading and writing proficiency. Students receive intensive training in listening, speaking, reading, and writing, supplemented by audio and video materials. The objective of the course is to balance these four skills and attain an advanced level in all of them. To be followed by CHNS 553. Prerequisite: CHNS 518 or equivalent.

CHNS 545u, Cantonese.  Wei Su.
MWF 9.30–10.20
Introduction to the Cantonese language for learners of (Mandarin) Chinese. Expands students' knowledge of the Chinese language through study of one of its most influential regional variations. Focus on listening and speaking skills, from practical daily communication to the discussion of topics of general interest. Prerequisite: CHNS 530, CHNS 518, or equivalent.

CHNS 550u, Advanced Modern Chinese.  Li-li Teng.
MTWThF 10.30–11.20 or MTWThF 11.30–12.20
Third level of the standard foundational sequence of modern Chinese language study in the areas of speech, listening, reading, and writing. Use of audio-visual materials, oral presentations, skits, and longer and more frequent writing assignments to assimilate more sophisticated grammatical structures. Introduction to a wide variety of written forms and styles. Use of both traditional and simplified forms of Chinese characters. After CHNS 530.

CHNS 553u, Advanced Modern Chinese for Advanced Learners.  Zhengguo Kang.
MWF 9.30–10.20 or MWF 10.30–11.20
Third level of the advanced learner sequence in Chinese. Intended for students with advanced speaking and listening skills (able to conduct conversations fluently on broad topics) but with high intermediate reading and writing skills (able to write 1,000 to 1,200 characters). Readings on contemporary life in China and Taiwan, supplemented with authentic video and other selected reading materials. Class discussion, presentations, and regular written assignments. Texts in simplified characters with vocabulary in both simplified and traditional characters. After CHNS 533 or equivalent.

CHNS 556u, Readings in Contemporary Chinese Texts.  Wei Su.
MW 11.30–12.45 or TTh 11.30–12.45
Completes the standard sequence in Chinese. Selected readings in Chinese fiction, essays, and articles of the past twenty years. Lectures, discussion, and written work in Chinese aim at integrated mastery of the modern language. Prerequisite: CHNS 550 or equivalent.

CHNS 557au, Readings in Modern Chinese Short Stories.  Zhengguo Kang.
TTh 2.30–3.45
An advanced language course designed to further develop students' overall language skills through reading and discussion of modern short stories. Conducted in Chinese. After CHNS 550 or equivalent.

CHNS 560u, Introduction to Literary Chinese.  Hugh Stimson.
MWF 10.30–11.20
Reading and interpretation of texts in various styles of literary Chinese (wenyan), with attention to basic problems of syntax and literary style. After CHNS 533 or 550.

CHNS 561u, Literary Chinese through Modern Chinese.  Pauline Lin.
TTh 11.30–12.45
Integration of the learning of literary Chinese (wenyan) with acquisition of modern language skills, with attention to basic problems of syntax and literary style. Conducted in Chinese. After CHNS 530 or equivalent.

CHNS 562u, Intermediate Literary Chinese: Old Chinese Prose and Poetry.  Hugh Stimson.
Close reading of texts of the first millennium B.C.E. with attention to syntax and style. Prerequisite: CHNS 560 or equivalent.

CHNS 565bu, Chinese Composition.  Zhengguo Kang.
TTh 2.30–3.45
Intended for advanced students with solid oral and reading proficiency but who want to improve their writing skills. The course offers a systematic writing program, from simple assignments like descriptions, narratives, and expositions to more sophisticated critical essays. Prerequisite: CHNS 553, 556, 557, or equivalent.

CHNS 572au, The Classic Chinese Novel.  Charles Laughlin.
MW 1–2.15
Introduction to the full-length Chinese novel in the Ming and Qing dynasties (fourteenth to nineteenth century) in translation. Focus on works most influential in later times, including Outlaws of the Marsh, Journey to the West, Dream of the Red Chamber (Story of the Stone), Jin Ping Mei, The Scholars, and others. Western scholarship on the Chinese novel also discussed. Previous course work on traditional Chinese literature preferred, but no knowledge of Chinese is required.

[CHNS 574au, The Revolutionary Tradition in Modern Chinese Literature.]

[CHNS 575, Wenxin Diaolong: Literary and Cultural Readings.]

[CHNS 578a, Shishuo xinyu and Six Dynasties Aesthetics.] 

CHNS 585bu, Chinese Modernism.  Charles Laughlin.
MW 1–2.15
Exploration of modernist and avant-garde literature in China. Discussion of issues of translation and modernity in a global context in fiction, poetry, drama, and film from the 1920s to the 1990s. Authors from China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong include Ding Ling, Shi Zhecun, Eileen Chang, Xi Xi, Yu Hua, Can Xue, Liu Suola, Zhang Dacun, Zhu Tianwen, and Gao Xingjian. Films by Huang Jianxin, Chen Kaige, and Wong Kar-wai. Prerequisite: CHNS 574a or permission of instructor. All readings in translation; no knowledge of Chinese assumed.

[CHNS 600, Seminar in Tang Literature.]

[CHNS 634, The Canon of Poetry (Shi Jing).]

[CHNS 635, The Tradition of the Song Lyric (Ci).]

[CHNS 639a, Canon and Gender in Ming-Qing Poetry and Drama.]  

CHNS 641a, The Reception of Tang Poetry.  Kang-i Sun Chang.
T 2.30–4.20
The importance of Tang poetry's afterlife in late Imperial China is a perfect example of the ways in which the past in Chinese literature remained an active part of the future of literature. This course examines the major anthologies of Tang poetry produced during the fourteenth and seventeenth centuries and studies how the so-called Archaists debated the relationship between literary forms and individual creativity. Subjects and schools to be covered may include the “cabinet” (tai ge) style of poetry; its relationship with the “eight-legged” (bagu) essay and the examination system; the revival of the fu genre; the Early Seven Masters, Later Seven Masters, and their impact on the cultural education.

CHNS 642b, Readings in the Chuanqi Fiction of the Ming.  Kang-i Sun Chang.
T 2.30–4.20
This course focuses on the revival of the chuanqi fiction, a classical genre in Early and Middle Ming (ca. 1400 to 1550). Among the topics covered are manuscript and print culture, chuanqi tales as political allegory, cross-generic influences, the impact of the imperial policy on literature, and problems of censorship. The seminar is designed to introduce students to critical skills of literary interpretation through the examination of a variety of source materials.

[CHNS 660bu, The Visual Imagination in Chinese Art.]  

[CHNS 671b, Anti-Romanticism: The Tradition of Irony in Twentieth-Century Chinese Women's Writing.]  

[CHNS 672a, Modern and Contemporary Chinese Poetry.]  

[CHNS 673b, The Chinese Body Politic.]  

CHNS 689b, Middle Chinese Phonology.  Hugh Stimson.
The sound system of seventh-century Chinese as presented in the Guang Yun, and its development into the sounds of modern Mandarin.

[CHNS 692a, Rereading the Six Dynasties Anthology, the Wen Xuan.]

[CHNS 695a, The Poetics of Place in Modern Chinese Literature.]  

[CHNS 696a, Chinese Literary Criticism.]  

[CHNS 704, Ming-Qing Literary Theory and Poetics.]

[CHNS 707a, Literature, Culture, and Myth in Ancient China: From Chuci to Han Poetry.]

[CHNS 840, Seminar in Qing Poetry.]

CHNS 851b, Modern Chinese Literary Journals.  Charles Laughlin.
W 3–5
A survey of major Chinese literary journals in the Republican period (1911–1949), including Xiaoshuo yuebao, Chuangzao yuekan, Xin yue, Yu si, Bei dou, Xiandai, and others. Explores the implications for research methodology of using literary journals and newspaper literary supplements as primary research resources.

[JAPN 501bu, The Tale of Genji and The Pillow Book.]  

JAPN 515u, Elementary Japanese.  Michiaki Murata, Hiroyo Nishimura.
MTWThF 9.30–10.20 or MTWThF 10.30–11.20
An introductory course in spoken Japanese. Drills in pronunciation and conversation; lectures on grammar; and an introduction to reading and writing, including hiragana, katakana, and 200 kanji.

JAPN 540u, Intermediate Japanese.  Yoshiko Maruyama, Masahiko Seto, Mari Stever.
MTWThF 10.30–11.20 or MTWThF 11.30–12.20
Emphasis on continued development in both written and spoken Japanese with reinforcement of previously learned patterns and structures. Besides the text, teaching materials include audio and video tapes for listening comprehension and speaking practice, as well as multi-media materials. Prerequisite: JAPN 515 or equivalent.

JAPN 550u, Advanced Japanese.  Koichi Hiroe, Mari Stever.
MWF 11.30–12.45 or MWF 1–2.15
An advanced Japanese language course designed to develop further students' proficiency in aural and reading comprehension, as well as speaking and writing skills. Reading and discussion of short stories, essays, and journal articles. Listening to and discussion of television and radio broadcasts. Writing practice includes diary, letters, essays, and criticism. Prerequisite: JAPN 540 or equivalent.

[JAPN 552au, The Atomic Bombings of Japan in World Culture.]  

[JAPN 553au, Modern Japanese Fiction and Its Margins.]  

JAPN 557u, Readings in Contemporary Media and Literature.  Masahiko Seto.
TTh 1–2.15
Close reading in modern Japanese writings in current affairs, social science, cultural history, and modern literature. Students develop their speaking, listening, and writing skills through discussion and written exercises. Conducted in Japanese. After JAPN 550 or equivalent.

[JAPN 559au, Readings in Literature and the Humanities.]  

JAPN 560au, Introduction to Literary Japanese.  Edward Kamens.
MW 2.30–3.45
Introduction to the grammar and style of the premodern literary language (bungotai) through a variety of texts. Prerequisite: JAPN 550 or equivalent.

JAPN 561bu, Readings in Literary Japanese.  Edward Kamens.
M 1.30–3.20
Close analytical reading of a sequence of selections from texts of the Nara through Tokugawa periods: prose, poetry, and various genres. After JAPN 160a or equivalent.

JAPN 565a, Literary Chinese (Kambun) for Students of Japanese.  Stanley Weinstein.
An introduction to the traditional Japanese method of reading literary Chinese texts. Selections from the dynastic histories and pre-Ch'in philosophers.

[JAPN 576bu, Popular Culture from Late Edo to the Present.]

[JAPN 578au, Modern Japanese Fiction.]  

JAPN 581bu, Japanese Literature after 1970.  John Whittier Treat.
TTh 11.30–12.45
A continuation of JAPN 578a. Study of Japanese literature published between 1970 and the present. Writers may include Murakami Ryu, Maruya Saiichi, Shimada Masahiko, Nakagami Kenji, Yoshimoto Banana, Yamada Eimi, Murakami Haruki, and Medoruma Shun. No knowledge of Japanese required.

[JAPN 585bu, Naturalist Literature in the Global Frame.]  

JAPN 586au, Japanese Cinema before 1960.  Aaron Gerow.
Th 11.30–12.45, screenings W 7–9.30
An investigation of the history of Japanese cinema up until 1960, including the social, cultural, and industrial backgrounds to its development. Periods covered include the silent era, the coming of sound and the wartime period, Occupation-era film, the Golden Age of the 1950s, and the modernism of the late 1950s. No knowledge of Japanese required.

[JAPN 587bu, Japanese Cinema after 1970.]  

JAPN 700a, Readings in Premodern Japanese Literature.  Edward Kamens.
F 9–11
Close reading of Japanese prose and/or poetry of various periods; research in traditional commentary and contemporary criticism.

JAPN 710b, The Textual and Visual Cultures of Heian Japan.  Edward Kamens, Mimi Yiengpruksawan.
W 3.30–5.20
Topics in the study of the Heian period and the city-space/cultural center we call “Heian” explored through close examination of a variety of artifacts—works of art and architecture, historical and literary texts, both secular and religious. Primary documents in Japanese and Sino-Japanese (kanbun) are explored in depth; a reading knowledge of literary Japanese and of kanbun is required. Also HSAR 802b.

[JAPN 830b, Literature, Culture, and Thought in Modern Japan.]  

[JAPN 835b, Modernity and Culture in Imperial Japan.]  

JAPN 871b, Readings in Japanese Film Theory.  Aaron Gerow.
T 1.30–3.20, screenings W 7–9
Theorizations of film and culture in Japan from the 1910s to the present. Through readings in the works of a variety of authors, the course explores both the articulations of cinema in Japanese intellectual discourse and how this embodies the shifting position of film in Japanese popular cultural history.

JAPN 885, Modern Japanese Novel.  John Whittier Treat.
W 2–4.30
A seminar primarily designed as a three-year course in which graduate students specializing in Japanese literature are required to read major works of modern Japanese fiction in the original.

KREN 515u, Elementary Korean.  Angela Lee-Smith and staff.
MTWThF 9.30–10.20 or MTWThF 10.30–11.20
A beginning course in modern Korean. Pronunciation, lectures on grammar, conversation practice, and introduction to the writing system (Hankul). The 10.30–11.20 meeting time is for students with elementary aural proficiency but little training in written Korean.

KREN 535u, Intermediate Korean.  Seungja Choi and staff.
MTWThF 10.30–11.20
Continued development of skills in modern Korean, spoken and written, leading to intermediate-level proficiency. After KREN 515 or equivalent.

KREN 550u, Advanced Modern Korean.  Seungja Choi and staff.
TTh 11.30–12.45
An advanced Korean language course designed to further develop students' aural and reading comprehension, as well as speaking and writing skills. Reading and discussion of short stories, essays, and journal articles. Writing practice includes letters and essays. After KREN 535 or equivalent.

Next: East Asian Studies