China Stories: Traditions and Transformations

Catalog description

What is a good China story? Is this the story China should tell about itself to the world? Is this about cultural self-perception, understanding the world, cross-cultural communication, or simple propaganda? More importantly, how can we tell China stories from perspectives inside and outside China? Narrative fiction is one of the most effective ways to engage with the Chinese past and the Chinese present. In this course, Students will be introduced to various genres including philosophy, religious allegory, romance, political satire, and science fiction. Instead of presenting China as a monolithic civilization, this course uses stories—from the premodern originals to their modern iterations in print and on screen—to understand “the world of China” and “China in the world” from ideological, ethnic, cultural, and geo-political perspectives. Prerequisite: None. Fulfillment: Core HPC/IPC; GCS Major/minor; GCS Elective: Chinese Literature, Art, and Media.