香川大学 Moodle

This course explores Japanese prose fiction (short stories) that has been translated into

English. Japanese authors have written stories in response to the society they were living in.

Social issues such as the environment, technology, and inequality and discrimination have all

been creatively addressed in Japanese prose, and many have been granted a wider readership

through translation.

In this course, students will read short stories written by Japanese authors and translated into

English. Students will learn how to analyze and interpret stories and discuss them in terms of

their sociohistorical and sociocultural context and meaning. Students will offer their

interpretations through ‘book club’-style discussions. The final class will allow students to

present about literature from their culture or Japan’s. This course is aimed at both Japanese

students who wish to discuss their literature to non-Japanese speakers, and international

students looking to for an introduction to Japan’s literature.