History 352 
 

Class Time and Location:  Wednesdays, 6:30 to 9:20 p.m. in D. Rich Hall, Room 225 

Instructor: Phillip L. Melvin, Dean of Student Life (Retired). 

Office Hours: Wednesdays, 6 p.m. before class.  Home Phone: 893-9445. Please do not call after 9 p.m.  E-Mail: pmelvin_cc@Yahoo.com.  Web Page: www.campbell.edu/faculty/melvin 

Texts: 

Conrad Schirokaurer, M. Brown, D. Lurie & S. Gay, A Brief History of Chinese and Japanese    Civilizations (3^nd Edition). 

     Edgar Snow, Red Star Over China. (Supplemental text) 

Campbell University’s Purpose, Mission and Policies: Campbell University is committed to helping students develop an integrated Christian personality characterized by a wholeness that includes: a method of critical judgment; an appreciation for our intellectual, cultural, and religious heritage; and a sensitive awareness of the world and society in which they live and work.  The University’s mission is to provide students with the option of a Christian worldview, and is described further in the Campbell University Bulletin and the Government, History and Criminal Justice Department’s Assessment Records (Form B).  Standards and expectations regarding attendance and examination makeup are discussed in the Campbell University Bulletin as are drop-add and withdrawal policies. 

Accommodation of Disabilities:  Students with documented disabilities who desire modifications or accommodations should contact the Office of Student Support Services located in the University’s Hight House. 

Academic Integrity and Behavior:  All students are subject to the academic integrity and behavioral expectations of the University.  See the Campbell University Bulletin, Undergraduate Studies, and the Campbell University Student Handbook 

Introduction and Course Objectives: 

     From long before the legendary travels of Marco Polo, the peoples of the west have been fascinated with East Asia.  To a significant extent, this fascination has been motivated by interest in trade and wealth. However, a sense of adventure and a legitimate desire to spread the Christian faith were also important factors in the initiation of early contacts. Intellectual giants of the Society Of Jesus (Jesuits) such Francis Xavier and Mateo Ricci harnessed the best that Renaissance Europe had to offer in their quest to Christianize China and Japan.  

     American involvement in East Asia was a natural extension of its western expansion to the Pacific Coast and beyond.  The American Clipper ships set world speed records along trade routes to Asia at a time when other world powers such as Britain, France and Germany were seeking to carve out colonial empires.  The issue of free trade in China vs. closed spheres of influence led to the U.S. promulgating the Open Door policy. The opening of Japan to foreign commerce by Commodore Mathew C. Perry reflected American interest in the Far East and the need for coaling stations to support early steamers.  With the acquisition of the Philippines during the Spanish - American War, the United States became a colonial power with national interests in the fate of the region.  President Theodore Roosevelt even won a Nobel Prize for settling the Russo – Japanese War. 

     The entry of the United States into WW II following the attack on Pearl Harbor began America’s march to super power status.  A notable part of that march involved the role of the U.S. in Asia. The dropping of the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima by the Enola Gay on August 6, 1945 marked the beginning of the Atomic Age and eventually led to the strategy of mutual assured destruction that dominated the Cold War. The occupation of Japan and the rehabilitation of that nation under the guidance of General Douglas McArthur, the Korean War and finally the Vietnam War all impacted both Asia and the U.S.  President Richard Nixon’s trip to China in 1975 signaled a major turning point, not only in the conflict in Vietnam, but in the Cold War, as well, and laid the groundwork for the eventual dissolution of the Soviet Union.  

     Today, the United States is part of a world economy in which China and Japan are major players.  It behooves us to be knowledgeable of these nations and the geographic, political, cultural and social factors that have shaped them.  In studying them, we will find societies that have developed separately and independently of the West.  In a very real sense, they can be considered alternative civilizations.  We will encounter very marked differences and some surprising similarities in development. In the process of learning about these similarities and differences, we will also learn a great deal about ourselves. Hopefully, we will learn enough to avoid some of the more egregious misunderstandings that have plagued past East – West relations. 

     Specific objectives for the course include the student becoming knowledgeable of: 

1. Major events and personalities.
2. Major political philosophies and religions.
3. Developmental forces and trends.
4. Significant geopolitical factors.
5. Key elements of the traditional oriental worldview.
6. Western, particular American, images of and attitudes toward East Asia and its peoples.

 

Organization of the Course:  See the attached schedule of lecture topics, assignments, quizzes and exams. 

Course Requirements: 

     Attendance:  To successfully complete a course of study, students must attend 85% of the classes offered.  In the case of Hist 352, that means attending at least 12 of the 14 three-hour class meetings held during the semester. 

     Tardiness:  Classes will begin promptly at 6:30 p.m.  Students who arrive up to 15 minutes late or leave less than 15 minutes early will be counted as tardy.  A student who is counted tardy twice will be considered to have accumulated the equivalent of one absence. Students who arrive more than 15 minutes late or leave more than 15 minutes early will be considered absent for the entire three-hour class. 

     Prohibitions:  Cell phones must be turned off during class. Students are expected to pay attention in class, not read or study unrelated material.  

     Quizzes:  Seven short quizzes will be given (see attached schedule), usually consisting of ten to 15 identification, matching and fill-in-the-blank questions drawn from the material covered in the previous class meetings and assigned reading. 

     Exams: Two take-home examinations will be given, a mid-term and a final.  Each will consist of identification and essay questions with the possibility of a few multiple choice/fill-in-the-blank questions. 

     

       Reports:  The student will be required to submit four reports, three on DVDs/VHS tapes and one on the supplemental text, Red Star Over China by Edgar Snow.  

      a.  DVDs/VHS Tapes.  A considerable number of historically creditable, and occasionally dramatically excellent, DVDs and VHS tapes about China and Japan have been produced in recent years.  Several of these have been selected for incorporation into the course and placed on reserve in the Carrie Rich Library.  Students are required to view three of these and submit written scholarly reviews of two to three pages each in length, as indicated below. Additionally, several students will be selected to make brief (5 to 10 minute) aural presentations to the class on the material they viewed. 

      1. Report Due on September 5, 2007.  Select one: Hero, China’s First Emperor, Confucius, or The Great Wall of China.  

      2. Report Due on September 26, 2007.  Select one: Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire, Shogun: Supreme Samurai or Madame Butterfly. 

      3. Report Due on November 7, 2007.  Select one: The Last Emperor, American Experience: War Against Japan or 55 Days (The Boxer Rebellion). 

      b. Book Report. The book report (5 to 10 pages in length) on Red Star Over China is due on November 28, 2007. To aid students in their reading of Red Star Over China a set of questions has been attached.  The student’s report should address most if not all of these questions.  One or more students will be selected to make an aural report to the class on Red Star Over China. 

Grading Policy: Grades will be awarded on a ten-point scale and weighted as indicated below: 

  a.  Quizzes       20%

             b.  Written DVD/Tape Reports                                       15% total

      c.  Written  Book Report     15%

      d.  Aural Reports        5% each

      e.  Mid-Term Exam     25%

f.   Final Exam                                                                 25%

g.  Class Participation          5%

                                                               

Pronunciation:  The student is responsible for learning recognizable pronunciations of the names and places studied.  A variety of phonetic systems have been devised to produce Romanized transliterations of sounds which compose the names of people, objects and locations. While convention will dictate pronunciations in may cases, observing the following guidelines will certainly help. 

1. Geographic Names:  Consult the list of geographic names in the back of your dictionary for proper pronunciations.
2. Chinese Words:  Two systems of transliteration are in use.  The older and still occasionally encountered one is the Wade-Giles system.  The newer system is the Pinyin.  A Wade-Giles and Pinyin pronunciation guide is contained in the front of your textbook. For the purposes of this class, the Pinyin system will be used to the maximum extent possible.
3. Red Star Over China. Please note that Red Star Over China uses the Wade-Giles system.  It was the only recognized transliteration system that existed at the time it was written.
4. Japanese Words:  The sounds used the Japanese language are quite similar to those in English with the exception that the “L” sound is absent.  The accent is generally on the middle syllable and all letters are pronounced.  Vowels are pronounced with what Americans would describe as a Boston accent.

              

                 a = as in saw

                 e = as in fend or send

                 I = as in trip or sit

                 o = as in home

                 u = as in ugly

   

      There is some variation in Japanese pronunciation from North to South.  Generally         speaking, the Tokyo accent clips or compresses vowels while the accent of the southern

       islands tends to draw out vowel sounds much as they are in our own Southeast.

Geographic Locations.  Geographic names and locations can be confusing especially as different transliteration systems lead to different spellings of place names.  Additionally, place names are frequently changed to reflect social and political changes. For example, Canton is now called Guangzhou and Peking is now called Beijing.  Students may find that Google can be a convenient gazetteer in that hits can be frequently found for both old and new names as well as old and new spellings.