Japanese
Introduction to the Japanese Language and Literature Major BA
Submit your major declaration using the Declare a Major or Minor form on the College website. Instructions for logging in and accessing the form can be found at the above link. Be sure to select the correct major so that we receive your declaration.
Once you have submitted your declaration, you can expect an email response from us in 5 business days during the Fall/Spring semester and within 10 business days at any other time.
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ADVISOR: Anri Yasuda (ay4yq). See department website under People for office hours.
The Japanese major provides a distinctive combination of analytical, interpersonal, translingual and transcultural competencies that make students sophisticated and engaged global citizens able to move between languages and cultures in a thoughtful and nuanced manner. The major offers language courses from beginning to advanced levels that develop the ability to read, write, listen and speak effectively in Japanese, as well as connect students with more specialized knowledge in their individual areas of interest, giving them the skills needed to further explore such topics in their own subsequent research or self-study outside the classroom. Students also come to develop an appreciation for contemporary Japanese social and cultural values through their engagement with the language. Content courses on Japanese literature and culture in English provide thematic breadth and historical depth to this understanding by familiarizing students with texts representing more than a millennium of writings including some of the globe’s earliest and most distinguished literary works, and by honing their appreciation of the ways in which the translation and interpretations of these texts are shaped by historical, cultural, social, and linguistic forms of difference.
Requirements: 31 credits with the following distribution
- 3 credits from the gateway course for department majors EAST 1010.
- 15 credits must be in Japanese at the 3000 level and higher. Six credits can be in two non-survey courses on Japanese literature in translation. Two credits earned through Shea House may be counted toward this requirement.
- 6 credits consisting of two survey courses in Japanese literature from the following list: JPTR 3010, JPTR 3020.
- 3 credits in one course introducing the classical form Japanese (JAPN 4710)
- 4 credits consisting of a capstone course (a DEALLC seminar at the 3000 or 4000 level in which the student writes a research paper using primary materials in Japanese) AND the one-credit capstone seminar, JPTR 4991. This course is normally taken in the spring semester of the fourth year. An independent study may not substitute. For more information click here.
- a maximum of 15 study abroad credits and domestic transfer credits are allowed at the discretion of the student’s advisor
- students in this major must maintain a satisfactory grade point in the major and related courses each semester; satisfactory is defined as an average of C (i.e., 2.0); students not maintaining this grade point are subject to discontinuation from the major.
- students who wish to double major are reminded that only two courses may count towards both majors.
Japanese Language & Literature Advising Form
Capstone enrollment forms and DMP forms are all housed on this page.