Â鶹ÒùÔº

ASIA 1700 Introduction to Tibetan Civilization
T/Th 12:30-1:45
Instructor TBD, contact Lauren Collins with questions (collinlk@colorado.edu)

Explores the dynamic history of Tibet from its early empire to the present. An area in Asia the size of Western Europe, Tibetan cultural and ethnic communities span parts of China, Nepal, Bhutan, Mongolia, northern India, and Pakistan. Shaped by the geography of the Hindu Kush, Karakoram, and Himalayan mountain ranges, Tibet is known as the watertower of Asia, home to the headwaters of almost all of Asia¡¯s major rivers. Long a crucial ecological and geopolitical region, Tibet is also home to rich artistic, literary, philosophical and religious traditions. This course offers interdisciplinary perspectives on Tibetan civilization and identity, including arts and literature, intellectual transformations, Tibetan society, and the role of Buddhism in Tibetan society and politics.

ASIA 2000 Gateway to Modern Asia
2 sections - Honors Section T/Th 9:30am-10:45am; T/Th general section 2:00-3:15pm
Lauren Collins (collinlk@colorado.edu)

Introduces main themes, intellectual approaches used in Asian Studies through a transdisciplinary perspective that focuses on interactions and links between geographic regions and national boundaries. Presents Asia as a concept, a powerful imaginary geography, and historically dynamic construct that has shaped / been shaped by global patterns of economic development, nation building, war and diplomacy, colonialism, and aspirations for better lives.

ASIA 2500 Catastrophe and Resilience: Asian Experience of Climate Change
TTh 9:30am-10:45am
Shae Frydenlund (shae.frydenlund@colorado.edu)

This reading-intensive undergraduate course has two central aims: to survey key themes in Asian climate and society, and to explore new scholarship related to anthropocentric climate change and impacts in Asia, particularly from a community perspective. Climate and society broadly defined, is an interdisciplinary field with contributions primarily from climate sciences, paleo-climate, anthropology, environmental studies, archeology, geography and history.

ASIA 4200 Memory and the Politics of Heritage in Asia
T/Th 11am-12:15pm
Lauren Collins (collinlk@colorado.edu)

This course explores the uses of memory and heritage in the present-day politics of Asia. We will examine how the past ¨C historical events, heritage sites, shared memories ¨C fuels environmental and nationalist movements, diplomatic disputes, grassroots activism, nostalgic tourism, and popular media. The course delves especially into the legacies of colonialism and conflict in the region, highlighting how communities today negotiate competing goals of justice and reconciliation in the wake of historical trauma, heritage preservation, and environmental protection. Engages with films, graphic novels, public art, photography, museums, monuments, archaeological sites, and more.

ASIA 4500 Urban Asia
TTh 12:30pm-1:45pm
Shae Frydenlund (shae.frydenlund@colorado.edu)

Together we will explore change in urban Asia, the geography of Asian cities, and the challenges of urban life through a transdisciplinary and thematic approach using books, academic articles, documentaries, and literary materials. Using the conceptual lenses of postcolonialism/decolonialism, political economy, and modernity, we will delve into the complexities of urbanization in Asia. The course is organized around four core texts that provide an in-depth study of slums, poverty, migration, and urban utopianism in four Asian cities.

ASIA 4700 Heroes, Madmen and Poets: Tibetan Literary Culture Through the Ages
T 5pm-7:30pm
Instructor TBD, contact Lauren Collins with questions (collinlk@colorado.edu)

This course surveys an array of Tibetan literary masterworks from ancient times to the present. Â鶹ÒùÔº read English translations of Tibetan materials that are informed and contextualized by modern scholarship. Rather than focus on doctrinal works that comprise the majority of Tibet¡¯s textual corpus, this course explores Tibet¡¯s great narrative traditions, in both prose and verse, from folktales and trickster stories to heroic warrior epics to the aftermath of enlightenment in Buddhist biographies. Through this literature, students become familiar with the various cultural, intellectual, and historical movements that have shaped the Tibetan literary landscape. This is a discussion-based seminar where students take active roles in directing the conversation towards the topics of their greatest interest. In lieu of quizzes and exams, students will rely upon Tibetan symbolism, tropes, episodic elements, and other literary devices to construct an original narrative, which is workshopped with their peers over the course of the semester.

INDO 1110 Beginning Indonesian 1- DILS
M/W/F 1:25-2:15
Instructor TBD, contact Lauren Collins with questions (collinlk@colorado.edu)

Beginning Indonesian 1. Reading assignments will include reading, listening and grammar, which students will demonstrate during class sessions, in which they will offer reading summaries, answer questions and practice speaking.

INDO 2110 Intermediate Indonesian 1- DILS
M/W/F 11:15-12:05
Instructor TBD, contact Lauren Collins with questions (collinlk@colorado.edu)

Continuation of Intermediate Indonesian 1. In the second year, students will be exposed to more active communication.

CHIN 3333 Race and Ethnicity in Chinese Literature: Sinophone Culture, Diaspora, and Identity
TTh 9:30am - 10:45am
Evelyn Shih (Evelyn.shih@Colorado.edu)

Surveys Sinophone thought and culture through close reading and discussion of selected works of Chinese-language fiction in translation. Â鶹ÒùÔº will learn about the historical contexts of migration, racial and ethnic conflict, and colonialism in which this literature was produced. Hyphenate identities such as Chinese-Malaysian and Asian-American will take center stage as we bring more complexity to the idea of "Chineseness." Taught in English.

ASIA 4001 CLAC Co-Seminar: In this CLAC class, we will practice engaging with original language texts in Chinese from the course through translation and discussions of translation work. You will bring in a short piece of translation each week to workshop, which will lead up to a portfolio of revised translations. These exercises are meant to help you engage more deeply with the language and style of the authors we are studying, and to prepare you for more lively, artful engagements with the Chinese language in the future. We will discuss everything from literary aesthetics to social media language and translation theory.

CHIN 3361 Women and the Supernatural in Chinese Literature 
MWF 12:20-1:10 PM
Katherine Alexander (Katherine.Alexander@colorado.edu)

In ¡°Women and the Supernatural in Chinese Literature,¡± taught in English, we will engage closely with poetry, short stories, plays, and excerpts from novels. We explore liminal spaces occupied by supernatural women, encountering fictional incarnations of nature spirits, foxes, ghosts, and immortal maidens, mainly from the perspectives of male literati fiction writers of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911). How do concepts of gender in pre-modern China affect the way such literature conceives of women as supernatural beings? Do spaces beyond the norm afford women broadened roles, or do they replicate the social and political structures that govern the mundane? Finally, can these Chinese works help us examine our own assumptions about gender, society, and literature?

ASIA 4001 CLAC Co-Seminar: (W 2:30-3:20 PM) This co-seminar provides us with a space to delve more deeply into an aspect of ¡°Women and the Supernatural in Chinese Literature¡± which the main class does not have time to go into: the practical religious aspects of ¡°the supernature¡± as it relates to female deities or their female devotees. Each week, we watch an episode of the Taiwanese television series¡¶Í¨ì`ÉÙÅ®¡·. Deeply reflective of its contemporary Taiwanese context, the show is also rooted in millenia-old traditions of female mediumship, ghost lore, Daoist magic, and lay Buddhist pious practices. This fun TV series allows us to explore serious questions about the role ¡°the supernatural¡± plays in the lives of women, both fictional and real, and in society more broadly, in both the Chinese past and the Taiwanese present.

CHIN 3381 Chinese Travel Literature
TTh 11:00am ¨C12:15pm
Antje Richter (antje.richter@colorado.edu)

In this course we explore the world of travel writing in China. Widely different forms of travel, whether real or imaginary, have inspired a broad spectrum of travel literature in China: from landscape poetry describing a hike through ragged mountains to travelogues about an official moving across the country, from factual geographical and environmental reports to fantastical novels about intercultural and interspecies encounters of the strangest kind. Often, these narratives not only delineate the paths of travelers in the outside world, but also how they experienced their journeys, combining rich geographical and cultural descriptions with autobiographical, philosophical, or religious reflections. We are going to read and analyze examples of this tradition in English translations and discuss their implications against the background of Chinese literary history and in the context of our own travel experiences, whether literary or in real life. Our interpretations will be supported by modern critical approaches to travel literature. This class will consist of discussions about our readings, lectures providing historical, cultural, and literary background, as well as students¡¯ presentations.

ASIA 4001 CLAC Co-Seminar: In this co-seminar we will explore how famous tourist sites in China and the culture of traveling are represented in Chinese language internet sources. While the parent course focuses on literary texts about travel (including fiction) in translation and situates them in their own time, the co-seminar will explore how the history and myth of famous Chinese tourist attractions¡ªsuch as the site of the Battle at Red Cliff or the whole area of Mount Tai¡ªlive on today on the Chinese internet. We will consider how different types of Chinese language websites differ in their approach and language, especially when it comes to official websites vs. personal postings (blogs, travel diaries etc.). In this respect, the co-seminar shares an important goal with the parent course: to develop the ability to critically read, analyze, and communicate about travel texts.

GEOG 3822 Geography of China
TTh 12:30pm - 1:45pm
Tim Oakes (toakes@colorado.edu)

Surveys the world's most populous country, examining physical and historical geography, urbanization and regional development, agriculture, population, energy, and the environment. Seeks to situate China's development in a broader Asian and global context.

HIND 1010 Beginning Hindi/Urdu
10:10am - 11:00am
Nidhi Arya (Nidhi.Arya@Colorado.Edu)

Provides a thorough introduction to the modern Hindi language, emphasizing speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills. This course is proficiency-based. Activities aim to place the student in the context of the native-speaking environment from the very beginning. Â鶹ÒùÔº will be provided with opportunities to participate in local South Asian cultural events.

HIND 2110 Intermediate Hindi/Urdu 1
Nidhi Arya (Nidhi.Arya@Colorado.Edu)

Emphasizes speaking, listening, reading and writing skills and culturally appropriate language use.

HIND 3110 Advanced Hindi/Urdu 1
M-Th 12:20pm 1:10pm
Nidhi Arya (Nidhi.Arya@Colorado.Edu)

Emphasizes speaking, listening and conversational fluency in Hindi, with a focus on cultural appropriate expression and practical knowledge.

JPNS 3611 Speaking the Truth: Women's Counter-narratives of Korea and Japan
MWF 11:15-12:05
Marjorie Burge (marjorie.burge@colorado.edu)

*Cross-listed as KREN 3611. This course explores the rich history of women¡¯s ¡°counter-narratives¡± in the literatures of premodern Korea and Japan. Heian-period Japan (794-1185) generated the earliest canon of women¡¯s writing in the world, spurred by the widespread use of a vernacular script known as kana. Much of this early Japanese women¡¯s writing was actively composed as a counterpoint to narratives created by male writers. While women¡¯s writing was slower to emerge in Korea, its efflorescence coincides with the spread of a vernacular script (han¡¯g?l) during the Chos?n period (1392-1910), and many women¡¯s texts were composed as a way of disseminating ¡°truth¡± that could serve as a counter to male-produced narratives already in circulation. This course juxtaposes texts produced by/for Japanese women with texts produced by/for Korean women in order to explore the notion of ¡°women¡¯s writing¡± as a category in the premodern East Asian world.

ASIA 4001 CLAC Co-Seminar: will be offered focused on manga adaptations of texts from the main course

RLST 2202 Islam
T/Th 9:30am - 10:45am
Aun Hasan Ali (aun.ali@colorado.edu)

Introduces students to foundational Islamic concepts, texts, core practices, historical narratives and intellectual, spiritual and literary traditions. Topics covered include: the figure of Muhammad; the Quran; the emergence of distinct Muslim identities; Hadith; Sharia; Islamic theology; Islamic philosophy; science in Islamic civilization; Islamic mysticism; the impact of colonialism and modernity on the Muslim world; gender and sexuality; and political Islam.

RLST 2610 Happiness and Nirvana: Karma and Enlightenment in India
Tue/ Thurs
Loriliai Biernacki (LORILIAI.BIERNACKI@COLORADO.EDU)

This course will focus what happiness is and how one becomes happy, based on what we find in a variety of religious traditions from India-- Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainsim. We address questions such as how do ideals of happiness match up to enlightenment? Is enlightenment (nirv¨¡?a) the same thing as happiness? Does the goal of happiness change over the centuries? Does the definition of what enlightenment is vary across time and across religions? For instance, is happiness different for the wealthy and those with high standing, brahmins and warriors, in contrast to the poor and those of low caste? We will look also at some of the ancient beliefs of Indian culture: karma, dharma and rebirth, for instance, and how these frame what it means to attain enlightenment, nirvana, and happiness; and how one achieves ultimate happiness and also ordinary happiness in the context of ancient and modern India.