One of the most commonly asked questions when meeting a new person is: "What do you do for fun?" Although the question is perhaps cliché, the answer usually teaches us a lot about a person's identity as an individual, their values, and the broader cultures and communities in which they participate. This course adopts arts and leisure activities as its focal point to better understand the traditional cultures of China and Japan. Why were some art forms valued as “high arts” while others were disdained? What can we learn about moral frameworks by studying board games, gardening, or alcohol consumption? What were the benefits and consequences of having good taste in traditional Chinese landscape paintings, Peking Opera, or the "otaku" culture of Akihabara? And how did activities like tea ceremonies, ikebana (flower arrangements), and sumō help to shape modernity in East Asia?

In seeking answers to these and other questions, we will not only build foundations for the appreciation of Japanese and Chinese arts and leisure activities, but also a deeper understanding of the historical cultures and societies in which these activities emerged and flourished.

This course serves as a general introduction to the culture and history of China, from prehistory to the 21st century. We will survey a wide variety of important developments in political history, philosophy, religion, and culture, drawing from textbooks by leading scholars in the history of China and a wide variety of primary sources (in translation): things actually written by, painted by, or created by historical people whose civilization we are studying. By engaging with these sources, we will deepen our understanding of Chinese civilization, with a focus on the following themes:

1) The social, political, and cultural worlds shaping the experiences of Chinese people

2) The issue of identity – how peoples in China have conceived of themselves, and how

     these identities were expressed through art and literary texts

3) Cultural communication and interaction among Chinese and neighboring states.

Since this is an introductory course, no prior study of China or knowledge of Chinese language is required or assumed. Throughout the semester, through lectures and regular participation in class, we will work together to deepen our understanding of Chinese civilization!

What did "music" (yue 樂) mean in premodern China? What was it like? What cultural and social functions did it serve? What can primary source texts (in translation) teach us about music makers of various social classes and backgrounds, and how music served as a medium of communication and distinction among them? What can extant sheet music teach us about the values and priorities of the traditions that produced it?

In this course, we will seek answers to these and other questions as we survey the history of music in premodern China, from archeologically-excavated instruments of the Shang and Zhou periods (1600 BCE–256 BCE) to the still-living operatic traditions of the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368–1912). Our goal throughout the semester is to build conversancy with a variety of musical traditions and genres that flourished at different moments in premodern China, and develop a repertory of tools and skills with which to engage in the study (and appreciation) of this music and the men and women who made it.