Issues in Cross-Cultural History:

CHINESE CIVILIZATION

History 230, Spring Semester 2007
(4 Credits)

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

What is this course? The topic of this course is Chinese civilization. This course counts toward the General Education Cross-Cultural requirement, which among other things means that it is interdisciplinary. The primary disciplinary perspective, however, is historical. Various aspects of Chinese society and culture, including politics, economics, philosophy, the fine arts, popular mores, and religion, will be examined in historical context (i.e., the processes of change and continuity in time).

What will class meetings be like? The course will meet once a week for three hours. In general, lectures will constitute one-third to one-half of each class. Frequently, a video or some other non-lecture presentation will be given. Also important, however, will be student discussion.

What will be expected in general of each student? The workload of the course reflects both liberal arts expectations in general and historical method in particular. Attendance at all class meetings is, of course, expected. Some 2200pp. of reading will be required, both assigned and for research. Writing will include a research reports as well as various shorter assignments. Discussion time will be regularly provided for. Finally, three in-class exams will be given.

COURSE OBJECTIVES (WHAT DIFFERENCE THIS COURSE SHOULD MAKE):

1. To become familiar with major elements of Chinese life and thought as it has developed from prehistoric times to the present, since Chinese civilization is one of the world's oldest and most populous cultures.
2. To evoke understanding of and sensitivity to Chinese culture on its own terms, since cultures are distorted yet recognizable expressions of the culture-making dimension of our God-given human nature and since "the glory and honor of the nations" (e.g., China) will be brought into the new Jerusalem (Rev. 21:26).
3. To further develop skills in analytical reading, critical thinking and writing, and rresearch through course assignments and activities, since such liberal arts skills are key tools for learning how, with the apostle Paul, to "take every thought captive to obey Christ" (2 Cor. 10:5).
4. To further develop practice of historical method beyond the level of the Western civilization sequence through deeper attention to such issues as context, sources, and interpretation while engaged with course material, since historical method can be a tool for living "wise as serpents and innocent as doves" (Mt. 10:16).

COURSE OUTLINE:

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:

1. Reading:

• Cheek, Timothy.  Mao Zedong and China's Revolutions: A Brief History with Documents.  Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2002.  ISBN 0312256264
• Ebrey, Patricia Buckley.  China: A Cultural, Social, and Political History.  Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2006.  ISBN 0618133879
• Ebrey, Patricia Buckley, ed.  Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook.  2nd ed.  New York: Free Press, 1993.  ISBN 002908752X
• Jensen, Lionel M. and Timothy B. Weston, eds. China's Transformations: The Stories Beyond the Headlines. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2007. ISBN 074253863X
• Spence, Jonathan D.  To Change China: Western Advisers in China.  New York: Penguin Books, 2002 (1969 original ed.).  ISBN 0140055282
• Various handouts or online or reserve materials

2. Assignments:

A. THREE EXAMS on course material will together constitute 45% of the course grade.

1. A geography exam will be given in class on Jan. 18 (Th.). 

• It will be worth 5% of the course grade.
• The exam will ask you to indicate on outline maps various physical and cultural features of China; it will also ask you to describe and reflect upon various aspects of China's geography.
• Study maps will be provided, and the assigned reading for Jan. 16 provides the materials that will be elaborated upon in class.

2. A midterm exam will be given in class on Feb. 27 (Tu.).

• It will be worth 15% of the course grade.
• The exam will consist of a long essay question and one or two short essay questions.
• A blue book will be required for the exam.  (These are available in the NWC bookstore.)
• A study sheet for the exam will be distributed a week before the exam (Feb. 20).
• On exam day, no textbooks or other course material should be used during the exam (on penalty of voiding the entire exam) except for one 8 ½ x 11 inch exam sheet of outlines and notes (typed or handwritten, both sides if necessary).  This exam sheet must be handed in with the exam blue book.

3. A comprehensive final exam will be given during the scheduled final period: May 9, Wed., 2-4 p.m.

• It will be worth 25% of the course grade.
• The exam will consist of several essay questions (long and short).
• A blue book will be required for the exam.  (These are available in the NWC bookstore.)
• A study sheet for the exam will be distributed a week before the exam (May 1).
• On exam day, no textbooks or other course material should be used during the exam (on penalty of voiding the entire exam) except for one 8 ½ x 11 inch exam sheet of outlines and notes (typed or handwritten, both sides if necessary).  This exam sheet must be handed in with the exam blue book.

B. A BIOGRAPHICAL REPORT will constitute 20% of the course grade.

1. The report TOPIC is up to the student, so long as it is on a significant PERSON (deceased) in China’s recent or more distant past. See the list of suggested people (Mao Zedong is excluded) linked at Course Links or Synapse Content.
2. The TASK of the report is to provide a) an annotated bibliography of English-language sources on the biographee, b) a critical synopsis of the biographee's life, and c) a critical discussion of the biographee's historical significance in relation to Chinese civilization (i.e., in relation to this course, "so what?").
3. A TOPIC STATEMENT is due in class on Feb. 6 (Tu.). The topic statement should be no more than 1 page, may be handwritten or typed, and should a) indicate in a paragraph who is your biographee and b) provide a PRELIMINARY BIBLIOGRAPHY of at least 3 sources.

• Depending on the topic, useful sources could include book-length biographies; biographical articles in specialized reference works; specialized online materials; articles in periodicals and scholarly journals; sections in books about topics in which the biographee was significant; primary materials by the biographee or about the biographee (written during or not long after their lifetime); maps; illustrations; etc.  Also, do check the assigned reading for this course, browsing ahead as necessary and checking, for example, the relevant Suggested Reading section in the Ebrey text.  For other suggested resources, see various links, including a list of resources at NWC, at Course Links or Synapse Content.  NWC Reference Librarians are also ready to help you.  Note: avoid general reference works, e.g. Encyclopedia Britannica or World Book, and also avoid Wikipedia, as sources (these can be used, however, to point you to more reliable or detailed sources).
• Your preliminary sources should be listed in Chicago/Turabian form, the standard form for historical scholarship; for guides to and examples of this bibliographic form, see the links at Course Links or Synapse Content.

4. The COMPLETED REPORT should consist of the following:

• The annotated bibliography should consist of 4-10 sources.  Some topics may be difficult, but thoroughness is a virtue that, in this instance, will be rewarded.  Don't forget to plan ahead for what you may need to obtain by interlibrary loan.  Each item listed should be annotated in 2 or more sentences: a) at least one sentence should indicate in a summary way the nature of the relevant contents of the particular item (i.e., convince a reader that you have actually examined the item you list), and b) at least one sentence should in some manner assess the usefulness of the material (e.g., how does one source compare to another? how detailed is the source? does the information seem accurate, and why? does the source give clues as to its sources? does the item have a discernible point of view or even bias?). The bibliography should be listed alphabetically by author in Chicago/Turabian form; see the links at Course Links or Synapse Content, and consider how Cheek does his bibliography, pp. 237-242.  The bibliography should be typed single spaced, with each entry separated from the next by double spacing, and would normally be 1-2 pp. in length.  It should be the last section of the report.
• The critical synopsis and historical significance section should precede the bibliography section. Based on the sources listed in the bibliography, the synopsis should provide a 1200-1500 word/4-5 pp. report that critically addresses the following questions about the topic: a) what are the most important biographical details about the biographee? b) what interpretive controversies, if any, have there been about the biographee? c) in what way is the biographee historically significant for understanding either the society or culture of China? The synopsis-significance section of the report should be typed double-spaced, and end/footnotes should be used for all quotations and also to indicate by sentences or by paragraphs the source(s) of information. The end/footnotes should be in Chicago/Turabian form; see the links at Course Links or Synapse Content, and emulate the notes following each chapter in Jensen & Weston.

5. The COMPLETED REPORT, with a title page indicating the topic as title, your name, the due date, and your e-address, is due by midnight, MAR. 20 (Tu). Your paper should be submitted as a Microsoft Word file through Synapse (when in your Synapse account, click on the link to this course, then click on assignments, then click on the appropriate paper, then, in the drop box, search for your Word file, select it, and send it in).  If you encounter trouble in submitting the paper through Synapse, consult with the folks in the Computer Center, especially Paul Beltman (he oversees Synapse).  A graded copy will be returned to you by e-mail attachment.  LATE PAPERS WILL BE PENALIZED (see my late paper policy under the Course Miscellany section at the end of this syllabus)!
6. In writing your report, remember that in addition to the instructor the WRITING CENTER is an excellent resource.
7. The most important FACTORS IN EVALUATING THE REPORT include 1) do you in fact meet all the stipulations of the assignment? 2) does your paper indicate thorough research within the limits of the assignment and the course, particularly as evidenced by the substantive nature of the sources included in the bibliography? 3) how lucid and cogent is your report? 4) how accurate is your content? and 5) how thoughtful and insightful is your analysis, particularly in the use of sources and in addressing the "so what?" aspect of the assignment?

C. TWO ESSAYS will together constitute 18% of the course grade.

1. A FILM ESSAY is due by midnight, Feb. 13 (Tu.).

• It will be worth 9% of the course grade.

• The essay should critically discuss and evaluate what important themes, ideas, and/or practices of traditional Chinese religions and philosophy are represented in the film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon?  Which source(s) from Ebrey's Sourcebook are most helpful in considering the film?

• When quoting from Ebrey or other course materials, indicate the page(s) quoted or referred to either in a Chicago style end- or footnote or as follows: (Ebrey, Sourcebook, p. 17).

• The analysis should be 4-5 pages, typed double spaced, with a header of the student’s name, the due date, an e-address, and a title (no title page is necessary).

• The paper should be submitted as a Microsoft Word file through Synapse (when in your Synapse account, click on the link to this course, then click on assignments, then click on the appropriate paper, then, in the drop box, search for your Word file, select it, and send it in).  If you encounter trouble in submitting the paper through Synapse, consult with the folks in the Computer Center, especially Paul Beltman (he oversees Synapse).  A graded copy will be returned to you by e-mail attachment.

• The most important factors in evaluating each essay include a) do you in fact meet all the stipulations of the assignment? b) how accurate, thorough, and supported by relevant course materials is your discussion? c) how lucid and cogent is your essay? and d) how thoughtful and insightful is your analysis?

2. A BOOK ESSAY is due by midnight, Mar. 29 (Th.).

• It will be worth 9% of the course grade.

• The essay should critically compare two Westerners discussed at length by Spence in To Change China in light of Spence's comment in the Introduction (n.p.), "they [the various Westerners] speak to us still, with a shared intensity, about the ambiguities of superiority, and about that indefinable realm where altruism and exploitation meet."  How did "altruism and exploitation meet" in each of your two chosen Westerners, and what did each seem to least understand about their Chinese context?

• When quoting from Spence or other course materials, indicate the page(s) quoted or referred to either in a Chicago style end- or footnote or as follows: (Spence, p. 17).

• The analysis should be 4-5 pages, typed double spaced, with a header of the student’s name, the due date, an e-address, and a title (no title page is necessary).

• The paper should be submitted be submitted as a Microsoft Word file through Synapse (when in your Synapse account, click on the link to this course, then click on assignments, then click on the appropriate paper, then, in the drop box, search for your Word file, select it, and send it in).  If you encounter trouble in submitting the paper through Synapse, consult with the folks in the Computer Center, especially Paul Beltman (he oversees Synapse).  A graded copy will be returned to you by e-mail attachment.

• The most important factors in evaluating each analysis include a) do you in fact meet all the stipulations of the assignment? b) how accurate, thorough, and supported by relevant course materials is your discussion? c) how lucid and cogent is your essay? and d) how thoughtful and insightful is your analysis?

D. TWO PRÉCIS will together constitute 6% of the course grade.

1. A précis is a critical abstract or summary.

2. You must do a total of 2 précis on two different chapters in Jensen & Weston.

3. Which 2 chapters you do are up to you, but with the following stipulations: whichever chapters you choose to do, each précis is due at the beginning of the class for which the précis is assigned reading.  That is, a précis for chapters #1, 2, 3, or 4 is due in class Apr. 17 (Tu.); a précis for chapters #5, 6, 7, or 8 is due in class Apr. 19 (Th.); a précis for chapters #10, 11, 12, 13, or 14 is due in class Apr. 24 (Tu.).  This way, some of you will be especially prepared to engage in in-class discussion about at least some of the chapters.  Précis handed in later than these specified class days will be considered late and not accepted.

4. Each précis will constitute 3% of the course grade.

5. Each précis should summarize accurately and thoroughly the selection and engage it critically in one or more aspect.  Possible lines of engagement include discussing the following: is any major Chinese tradition undergoing change connected with your chapter's topic? is another Chinese tradition likely to impact your chapter's topic? does your chapter's topic suggest that China's transformation is making it more Western (and is that "good")? what does your chosen chapter help us to understand about contemporary China? what other course materials does your chosen chapter connect with, and in what way(s)?

6. Each précis handed in in class should be 2 pages, typed double spaced, with a header of the student’s name, the date, the précis #, an RSC Box #, and, as a title, the chapter # and title from Jensen & Weston.

7. When providing page numbers (e.g., p.93), it will be assumed that you are meaning Jensen & Weston unless you specify otherwise as follows: (Ebrey, China, p. 274).

8. The most important factors in evaluating each précis include a) how accurate and thorough is your grasp of the chosen chapter? b) how cogent yet concise is your presentation? and c) how insightful is your critical engagement of the chapter?

E. DISCUSSION and CLASS PARTICIPATION will constitute 11% of the course grade.

E.1. DISCUSSION ASSIGNMENTS (DAs) will constitute 8% of the course grade