MODERN AND CONTEMPORARY JAPANESE LITERATURE

This is one of the characterising courses within the "Japan" curriculum of the Corso di Laurea Magistrale in "Lingue e Civiltà dell'Asia e dell'Africa Mediterranea".
The course contributes to the attainment of the teaching goals of the Corso di Laurea in the area of the humanities-related skills.
In particular, this course helps students to acquire
- A high level of critical knowledge and understanding of various socio-cultural phenomena;
- The ability to use sources and research tools related to the chosen field with competence and confidence;
- a deeper knowledge of the social realities, ways of thinking and textual cultures of the chosen field;
- The ability to produce oral and written texts related to the field of literary studies;
- The ability to apply their knowledge to the field of literary studies.

Knowledge and Understanding:
- Basic knowledge of theoretical and methodological tools related to the study of contemporary global literature;
- In-depth knowledge of Japanese historical and literary phenomena that can be understood through such theories and methods;

Applying of knowledge and understanding:
- Ability to apply the theoretical and methodological tools acquired in the first part of the course to individual phenomena in the field of modern Japanese literature;
- Ability to recognize the application of such tools in previous scholarship;
- Ability to read and analyze literary texts written in Japan from the end of WWII to the present.

Communication:
- Summarize and communicate the gist of scholarly texts in a formally correct and effective manner, either orally or in writing.

Making judgments:
- To be able to examine available sources and identify their arguments and assumptions;

- A basic knowledge of the history of modern Japanese literature. Students who wish to deepen their knowledge are invited to contact the teacher for further reading;
- Willingness to read materials in advance and to participate in seminar classes;
- Ability to read primary and secondary sources in apanese.

Course topic: the space of the contemporary in Japan (post-World War II to the present)

The aim of the course will be to attempt to define-through a selection of literary texts produced primarily in Japan in the last forty years-the "contemporary" through an analysis of the spaces and (non)places that form the background or are the subject of the proposed narratives.
Space as a physical place will be considered (through narratives that focus on workplaces such as the factory, the office, or the "konbini"; "eccentric" places such as Okinawa, or "other" places because they are outside national borders; Fukushima and Minamata as places of contamination; Tokyo's central neighborhoods, etc.), but more importantly as a place where social practices of the "contemporary" (asymmetrical gender hierarchies, environmental issues, postwar collective memory construction, "culture clash," etc.) are made concrete.
Special emphasis will be placed on historical and textual aspects. Students will acquire solid and focused cultural-historical skills, and will grapple with the analysis and commentary of a variety of texts written in Japan from post-World War II to the present. Japanese primary sources and texts in translation will be used.

The course will include a series of lectures by invited scholars specializing in the filed.

Abe Kazushige, Nipponia Nippon, 2001
Abe Kōbō, R62 gō no hatsumei, 1953
Furukawa Hideo, Umatachi yo, sore demo hikari wa muku de, 2011
Kawakami Hiromi, Kamisama 2011, 2011
Matayoshi Eiki, Buta no mukui, 1996
Matsuda Aoko, Sutakkingu kanō (2013), Obachantachi no iru tokoro (2016)
Medoruma Shun, Suiteki, 1997
Murata Sayaka, Konbini ningen, 2016
Ogawa Yōko, Hisoyaka na kesshō, 1994
Oyamada Hiroko, Kōjō, 2010
Taguchi Randy, Fujisan, 2004
Takahashi Gen’ichirō, Koi suru genpatsu, 2011
Tawada Yōko, Inu mukōiri (1993), Kakato wo nakushite (1992), Gotthard tetsudō (1996)
Tawada Yōko, Kentōshi, 2014
Yū Miri, JR Ueno-Eki Kōenguchi, 2014


Cornyetz, N., & Copeland R. (Eds.). (2024). Reading Desire in a New Generation of Japanese Women Writers. A Special Collection of Essays. Routledge.
Davinder L. Bhowmik, (2008) Writing Okinawa. Narrative acts of identity and resistance. Routledge.
Flores, L., & Geilhorn, B. (Eds.). (2023). Literature After Fukushima. From Marginalized Voices to Nuclear Futurity. Routledge.
Haga K. (2019). The Earth Writes. The Great Earthquake and the Novel in Post-3/11 Japan. Lexington Books.
Iwata-Weickgenannt, K., & Rosenbaum, R. (Eds.). (2014). Visions of Precarity in Japanese Popular Culture and Literature (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315752754
Kimura, S. (2022). Theorizing Post-Disaster Literature in Japan. Revisiting the Literary and Cultural Landscape after the Triple Disasters (Translated by Rachel DiNitto and Doug Slaymaker). Lexington Books.
Qiao, Mina (2022). Into the Fantastical Spaces of Contemporary Japanese Literature. Lexington Books.
Yokota Murakami T. (2018). Mother-Tongue in Modern Japanese Literature and Criticism: Toward a New Polylingual Poetics. Palgrave Macmillan

The complete list will be made avaiaible in the Moodle space.

Essay writing on a text related to the course topic and oral interview to present the paper.
The exam will evaluate the acquisition of all the teaching goals of the course.

oral

Grade 30 with Honors (30L)
A 30L grade is awarded to students who excel in all areas of evaluation. The paper is characterized by:
• Theme and texts: An original and well-argued choice of topic, with texts that are consistent and relevant to the course. The analysis is thorough, critical, and highly developed.
• Bibliographic research: Independent and rigorous research with top-tier academic sources, including peer-reviewed articles and monographs. The sources are correctly contextualized.
• Style manual: Flawless adherence to citation and formatting rules. The paper is free from grammatical and syntactical errors.
• Historical and literary context: The analysis effectively contextualizes the text within both the author’s body of work and the broader landscape of contemporary Japanese literature, offering critical and in-depth insight.
Grade 27-29
Students with a grade between 27 and 29 produce well-developed papers but with minor shortcomings:
• Theme and texts: The theme is relevant, but the analysis might not be entirely original or lack deep critical reflection.
• Bibliographic research: The research is good but may lack an optimal selection of sources or full integration of key academic materials.
• Style manual: Adherence to academic conventions is generally good, but there may be minor errors in citations or formatting.
• Historical and literary context: Adequate contextualization, but not fully in-depth regarding the author or contemporary Japanese literary scene.
Grade 24-26
A grade between 24 and 26 corresponds to a satisfactory paper with notable shortcomings:
• Theme and texts: The theme is generally relevant, but the analysis is superficial or imprecise. Coherence with the course material is acceptable, but the work lacks deep critical engagement.
• Bibliographic research: The research is partial, with sources that are not always suitable or well-integrated into the analysis.
• Style manual: There are noticeable errors in adherence to academic conventions, such as incomplete citations or inconsistencies in formatting.
• Historical and literary context: The contextualization is partial or imprecise, with limited understanding of the author’s context and the broader Japanese literary scene.
Grade 18-23
A grade between 18 and 23 indicates a paper that meets the minimum course requirements but with significant shortcomings:
• Theme and texts: The theme is superficial or not entirely relevant. The analysis of the texts is incomplete and not well-developed.
• Bibliographic research: The research is insufficient, with inadequate or absent sources, and the sources used are not well integrated into the paper.
• Style manual: There are numerous errors in citations and formatting, with little attention to academic writing standards.
• Historical and literary context: The contextualization is limited, with few references to the historical context and contemporary Japanese literary scene.
Grade 17 and Below
A grade of 17 or below is given to papers that do not meet the minimum requirements:
• Theme and texts: The chosen topic is irrelevant or off-topic. The analysis is disorganized and lacks coherence.
• Bibliographic research: The research is insufficient, with low-quality sources or no sources at all.
• Style manual: The paper contains numerous errors in citation, formatting, and language. There are frequent grammatical and syntactical mistakes.
• Historical and literary context: The contextualization is almost entirely absent or incorrect, with little understanding of the historical and literary context.

Lectures and seminars. In-class participation is encouraged.

Italian

This exam (with this syllabus) will be available only for the 4 "appelli" of the 2025-26 academic year. Starting from 2026-27, a new syllabus will be in use.