Course Description
Readings: Haruo Shirane, Early Modern Japanese Literature, An Anthology, pp. 1-20
This course focuses on fiction, drama, poetry, and other forms of literary writing produced during the Tokugawa or Edo period (1603-1868). The Edo period has often been described as a period when Japan was a “closed country” (sakoku 鎖国), with few connections to the outside world, but I will argue in this class that this was simply not the case. Instead, the Edo period was an era of intense interest in and vibrant exploration of the wider world, and we will use literature relating to the motif of travel as a way of discussing this issue. Participants in this class will examine a wide range of textual genres, including narrative fiction, diaries, poetry, and drama. Topics include landscape literature, encounters with the foreign, supernatural tales, translation, and the fantasy travels that are described in the vast body of Japanese literature of the imagination.