This course explores post WWII Japanese music, literature, artistic media, and hi-tech products. Investigates social themes ranging from post-holocaust Japanese hedonism to childhood fantasies by looking at Manga comic books, Animation, and popular music, as well as fashion and style, popular technology, consumerism, and environmental issues. Explores the evolution of pop culture and its impact on society.
In My Japanese 308 class We learned about the importance of pop-culture within Japanese society. We also were able to find cultural similarities and differences of United States and Japan in pop-culture. We identified and analysed particular aspects of otaku culture in Japan, such as manga, anime, and drama. We were able to make connections with traditional elements of Japanese culture and modern perspectives of current artists'. Some of the elements included are: the depictions of young, innocent girls and women and their roles within today's entertainment industry, the immersion of religion and fantasy in popular manga themes; it's influence among young people living in Japan, and how the culture has directly been impacted with the progression of technological media within the entertainment industry. I learned that the people's perspectives of certain controversial topics in Japanese society have gradually changed due to otaku influences. Here is a sample of one of my assignments relating to,and reflects what I learned in this course.