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
Spring 2022 - "Why would you take an anime course at UCLA?" Emmerich said this in our first lecture, and man did he prove it right throughout the course. This was one of the best experiences I've ever had as a student. The grading is based on 5 discussion posts based on the weekly viewings, but you can post up to the full 10 weeks and the highest 5 counts for your grade. Alongside this was two 5-page papers. While it is pretty much up to the TA on how your grade is, I didn't see a bad experience from anyone else that took this class. Emmerich is a phenomenal professor and makes me wish I majored in Japanese to take more classes with him. Someone who truly cares about his students, as well as his content, this was a great class that'll hold a lot of sentiment.
Spring 2022 - "Why would you take an anime course at UCLA?" Emmerich said this in our first lecture, and man did he prove it right throughout the course. This was one of the best experiences I've ever had as a student. The grading is based on 5 discussion posts based on the weekly viewings, but you can post up to the full 10 weeks and the highest 5 counts for your grade. Alongside this was two 5-page papers. While it is pretty much up to the TA on how your grade is, I didn't see a bad experience from anyone else that took this class. Emmerich is a phenomenal professor and makes me wish I majored in Japanese to take more classes with him. Someone who truly cares about his students, as well as his content, this was a great class that'll hold a lot of sentiment.
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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