JAPA 340: Topics in Japanese Literature

JAPA 340-DL2: Contemporary Japanese Fiction
(Fall 2026)

Online

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Section Information for Fall 2026

Food, the Body, and Mortality in Postwar Japan

This course examines the intersections of food, the body, and mortality in Japanese literature from the postwar period to the present. Through novels and short stories by award-winning authors including Yukio Mishima, Kenzaburō Ōe, Haruki Murakami, and Sayaka Murata, students will explore how representations of eating, hunger, and ritualized meals illuminate cultural, social, and psychological concerns while reflecting the historical realities of their time.

The course situates literary works within broader social and historical contexts—including postwar scarcity, urbanization, changing family and gender structures, and periods of economic growth and stagnation—to examine how social conditions, literary form, bodily experience, and language interact in shaping individual and collective understandings of the body.

Drawing on social theory and sociolinguistic approaches, the course further develops students’ analytical perspectives by examining how narrative techniques and linguistic choices reflect and shape cultural attitudes toward embodiment, care, identity, and social hierarchy. Through close readings and contextual analysis, students will consider how literature both represents and challenges evolving ideas about the body and human relationships in modern Japan.

*This course is part of the Mason Core curriculum and fulfills requirements for Literature.

This is an online asynchronous section.

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Course Information from the University Catalog

Credits: 3

Study of selected topics in Japanese literature in English translation. Content varies. Notes: May be repeated when topic is different with permission of department. Offered by Modern & Classical Languages. May be repeated within the degree for a maximum 6 credits.
Mason Core: Mason Core, Literature
Specialized Designation: Topic Varies, Non-Western Culture
Recommended Prerequisite: ENGH 101 or equivalent, or permission of instructor.
Schedule Type: Lecture
Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

The University Catalog is the authoritative source for information on courses. The Schedule of Classes is the authoritative source for information on classes scheduled for this semester. See the Schedule for the most up-to-date information and see Patriot web to register for classes.