Multicultural Japan

Catalog description

This course explores multicultural experiences in Japan by examining the interactions between Japanese people on the one hand and two indigenous peoples (the Ainu and the Okinawans), three immigrant communities (Chinese, Korean, and Brazilian communities), and hafu or people of mixed heritage on the other. Contrary to the time-honored myth of being a monoethnic, monocultural, and monolingual society, Japan has been a multiethnic, multicultural, and multilingual nation for most of its history. Students will learn about the life experiences of those minority groups in Japan and about the ways their cultures have enriched Japanese culture. In the past three decades, due to an acceleration of globalization and a relaxed immigration policy, Japan has become more accepting of foreign workers from around the globe including the descendants of those Japanese who emigrated to South America more than a century ago. The number of foreign residents in Japan has more than doubled in the decades with Chinese and Koreans now accounting for less than half of them. In response, Japan has been promoting the idea of Tabunka Kyosei Shakai (Multicultural Coexistence Society), where people of diverse cultural backgrounds can coexist harmoniously. Key topics of the course include globalization, recent immigration policy changes, various immigrant groups, multiculturalism, Japanese colonialism, and Japanese diaspora. The course uses video clips, newspaper articles, and other reading materials to understand a multicultural/transcultural Japan. Students will have opportunities to compare Japan and their own country and to reflect on the cultural diversity of their own society. The course is taught in English with no knowledge of Japanese assumed; there are no prerequisites.