JAPAN 75
Anime
Description: Lecture, three hours; discussion, one hour. Discussion and analysis of seminal works of Japanese animation, or anime, created from 1980s to present. Engagement with works in variety of styles, and that deal with broad range of themes. Reading and discussion of recent scholarship on anime produced by scholars working in diverse modes, from philosophical to anthropological. Letter grading.
Units: 5.0
Units: 5.0
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Most Helpful Review
Fall 2024 - Super fun and pretty easy class, would definitely take again! Professor Emmerich really changed the way I look at media, especially anime. You watch two anime movies each week that relate to a certain topic, and then you discuss them in class. I thought hearing everyone's opinions and thoughts about the symbols and messaging of the films was fun. He really encourages you to try and make connections throughout the film, or to find something that seems small at first, but really means a lot in the context of the story. There are also weekly writing assignments (he only takes the highest five out of nine) where you discuss one of the anime from that week, and two papers that are essentially longer versions of the weekly assignments. Technically, you don't need to watch every film (I personally skipped a few), but I would recommend watching as many as possible to get the most out of the class. Discussion sections were mandatory, and were basically extensions of lecture. I feel like your TA could make or break this course since they do the grading. Tyler was my TA and he was awesome, would definitely recommend him! Overall, this was one of my favorite classes I've taken here and was pretty laid back all things considered, I would highly recommend taking it if you can!
Fall 2024 - Super fun and pretty easy class, would definitely take again! Professor Emmerich really changed the way I look at media, especially anime. You watch two anime movies each week that relate to a certain topic, and then you discuss them in class. I thought hearing everyone's opinions and thoughts about the symbols and messaging of the films was fun. He really encourages you to try and make connections throughout the film, or to find something that seems small at first, but really means a lot in the context of the story. There are also weekly writing assignments (he only takes the highest five out of nine) where you discuss one of the anime from that week, and two papers that are essentially longer versions of the weekly assignments. Technically, you don't need to watch every film (I personally skipped a few), but I would recommend watching as many as possible to get the most out of the class. Discussion sections were mandatory, and were basically extensions of lecture. I feel like your TA could make or break this course since they do the grading. Tyler was my TA and he was awesome, would definitely recommend him! Overall, this was one of my favorite classes I've taken here and was pretty laid back all things considered, I would highly recommend taking it if you can!
Most Helpful Review
Spring 2020 - I took this class in Spring 2020, the first quarter offered completely online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall this wasn't a difficult GE, though the workload (mainly the amount of writing) was disproportionately high. As a result of the quarantine/new online format, lecture times were modified to be once a week, and what were originally meant to be in-class screenings were now the responsibility of the students to watch in their own time. Despite the lectures being online, they were never recorded and attendance was taken for part of a participation grade. Grading was 10% participation, 10% weekly quizzes, 30% online assignments (mostly posting responses on the forum), 20% research project proposal, 30% final research paper. Every week we were required to watch an assigned anime movie, with the lecture later that week discussing the movie, its context and impact, and possible interpretations. Additionally, we needed to submit 1) a written response to the movie and 2) a response to another student's response. I don't know if it was the quarantine draining my motivation or just my inability to write, but I personally found coming up with these weekly responses the most difficult part of the class. Most, if not all, of the grading is done by your TA, so if you end up with a chill TA the class should be a breeze. In addition to the screening and responses, there was also weekly reading, with anywhere from 1 - 5 articles/excerpts from books assigned. Quizzes, taken on CCLE, were not terribly difficult, but there would be an occasional hyper-specific question on either the week's anime or readings. Professor Kanesaka himself was extremely accommodating during this time, and made the final paper completely optional (and guaranteed those who submitted would get at least an A- on the assignment). His lectures, though a little dry at times, were informative, and I feel I really learned a lot in this class.
Spring 2020 - I took this class in Spring 2020, the first quarter offered completely online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall this wasn't a difficult GE, though the workload (mainly the amount of writing) was disproportionately high. As a result of the quarantine/new online format, lecture times were modified to be once a week, and what were originally meant to be in-class screenings were now the responsibility of the students to watch in their own time. Despite the lectures being online, they were never recorded and attendance was taken for part of a participation grade. Grading was 10% participation, 10% weekly quizzes, 30% online assignments (mostly posting responses on the forum), 20% research project proposal, 30% final research paper. Every week we were required to watch an assigned anime movie, with the lecture later that week discussing the movie, its context and impact, and possible interpretations. Additionally, we needed to submit 1) a written response to the movie and 2) a response to another student's response. I don't know if it was the quarantine draining my motivation or just my inability to write, but I personally found coming up with these weekly responses the most difficult part of the class. Most, if not all, of the grading is done by your TA, so if you end up with a chill TA the class should be a breeze. In addition to the screening and responses, there was also weekly reading, with anywhere from 1 - 5 articles/excerpts from books assigned. Quizzes, taken on CCLE, were not terribly difficult, but there would be an occasional hyper-specific question on either the week's anime or readings. Professor Kanesaka himself was extremely accommodating during this time, and made the final paper completely optional (and guaranteed those who submitted would get at least an A- on the assignment). His lectures, though a little dry at times, were informative, and I feel I really learned a lot in this class.
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