Welcome to Japanese at Swarthmore College! We offer a range of courses in Japanese language, literature, and culture, which are integrated into a broad program of Asian Studies at Swarthmore College and further offerings in Japanese language, history, culture and society in the Trico Community.

Students of Japanese can take advantage of a rich environment for language study, including intensive introductory language courses, language tables and chat hours with native speakers, multimedia resources, and opportunities for study abroad. Explore this site for more information on our faculty, courses, special events, and study abroad options.

Featured Courses:

LITR 023J/JPNS 023. Manga and Anime: Socio-cultural and Linguistic Perspectives

Anime (animation) and manga (graphic novels) are robust genres for the reproduction and representation of socio-cultural and linguistic norms and values of Japanese
society over time. In this course we will discuss central themes and frameworks as they relate to Japanese society including gender, hierarchy, politeness, emotion, and
uchi/soto (inside/outside), and critically examine them within Japanese anime, manga, and other central products of pop culture. We will also explore notions such as kawaii ‘cuteness’, commensality, nature, technology, and apocalypse as they are represented in anime and manga over socio-historical time. Readings and discussions will be in
English. Class will be conducted in a seminar format that includes lectures and discussions. Student research and presentations will comprise a central part of the course. Previous coursework in Japanese language is recommended
but not required.

Fall 2009. Burdelski. 1 credit.

LITR 041J / JPNS 041. Fantastic Spaces in Modern Japanese Literature (W)

As Japanese society has transformed rapidly in the 20th century and beyond, a number of authors have turned to the fantastic to explore the pathways of cultural memory, the vicissitudes of interpersonal relationships, the limits of mind and body, and the nature of storytelling itself. In this course, we will consider the use of anti-realistic writing genres in Japanese literature from 1900 to the present, combining readings of novels and short stories with related critical and theoretical texts. Fictional works examined will include novels, supernatural tales, science fiction, and cyber-fiction by authors such as Tanizaki Junichiro, Abe Kobo, Kurahashi Yumiko, and Murakami Haruki.

Writing Class. Readings will be in English; no previous experience in Japanese studies is required.

Gardner. Fall 2009.
1 credit.

Utagawa Kuniyoshi woodblock print.

Image: detail of Utagawa Kuniyoshi's woodblock print, "Princess Takiyasha summons a skeleton to frighten Mitsukuni," from around 1844.

Featured Link: Japanese Lantern Slides from the E. Raymond Wilson Collection, Swarthmore College Peace Collection

The 257 hand-tinted lantern slides in this collection were gathered by E. Raymond Wilson while he was in Japan from Sept. 1926 to Sept. 1927, having been awarded the Japanese Brotherhood Scholarship for study and the building of friendships. The collection is part of Swarthmore College's Peace Collection and can be browsed or searched online.

fisher and sunsetwomen fencing

Above left, a sunset scene of a fisherman; above right, two women practice martial arts with bamboo sticks.