Week 1: Orientations

Th. Problems, Parameters

Study Maps of Japan and Edo-Tokyo

Week 2: Setting the Stage of Edo & Early Modern Japan

T. Foundations & Transformations of Edo
Th. Edo Culturescapes: Society, Body, and Play& MAP QUIZ

T. Early Modern Japanese Literature, chapter. 1;Edo Culture, chapter 1
Th. ER: "Sky & Water: The Deep Structures of Tokyo"

Study for Map Quiz

Week 3: Sakariba: Thriving Places

T. Spectales & the Carnivalesque
Th. Bathhouse Talk

T. Edo Culture, chapter 2; PopSite 1: Roaming Ryôgoku
Gennai, "Ryôgoku Bridge" (EMJL, 473-479) &
"A Theory of Farting" (EMJL, 512-519)
Th. ER: "The Bathhouse of the Floating World"
(Note: There is also a different translation of the preface
and the “Women’s Bath” section in EMJL, 749-759)

Begin PopSite & PopThought 1

Week 4: Ukiyo: The Floating World in Saikaku's Fiction

T. The Idea & Representation of the Floating World
Th. Saikaku's kôshoku-mono ("books on love")

T. Asai, “Tales of the Floating World: Preface” (EMJL, 28-33)
Th. Saikaku, “Life of a Sensuous Man” (EMJL, 43-57)

PopThought 1 Due by Class Time Tuesday

Week 5: Ukiyo: The Floating World in Saikaku's Fiction

T. Saikaku's kôshoku-mono ("books on love")
Th. Male-male Love

T. Saikaku, “Life of a Sensuous Woman” (EMJL, 82-120)
Th. Saikaku, “Great Mirror of Male Love” (EMJL, 120-127)

Prepare to discuss works of Saikaku in class

Week 6: Akusho: The Kabuki Theater as "Notorious Place"

T. Taking the Kink Out of Kabuki
Th. VIDEO: "Portrait of an Onnagata"

T. ER: "Sex, Art, and Edo Culture"; ER: "Bakufu versus Kabuki"
Th. VIDEO: "Portrait of an Onnagata"

Begin PopSite & PopThought 2

Week 7: The Aesthetics of Edo Kabuki

T. Street Knights & Tranvestites
Th. Edo's Aragoto Style in Shibaraku

T. Edo Culture, Chapter 11
Th. ER: "Just a Minute! (Shibaraku)"
Web links to "Shibaraku" and "Sukeroku"

PopThought 2 Due by Class Time Thursday
Begin Take-home Essay 1

Week 8: Ukiyo-e: Pictures of the Floating World

T. The Development of Edo Woodblock Prints
Th. Genre Prints: Actors, Courtesans, & Sumo Wrestlers

T. Edo Culture, Chapter 4
Th. Ukiyo-e Slideshow

Study for Keyword Quiz
Take-home Essay 1, Due Thursday 3/3

Week 9: Akusho: The Yoshiwara as "Notorious Place"

T. Founding the Yoshiwara
Th. Visiting the Yoshiwara

T. Yoshiwara, Chapters 1-2
Th. Yoshiwara, Chapter 3-4

Begin PopSite & PopThought 3

Week 10: Taste and Fashion in the Yoshiwara

T. The Idea of Iki and the Tsû in Edo)
Th. Wit & Fashion in the Pleasure Quarters

T. Edo Culture , Chapter 3; Yoshiwara, Chapter 5
Th. EMJL, chapter 16 (all): “The Playboy Dialect”; and
Kyôden, “Forty-Eight Techniques for Success with Courtesans”

PopThought 3 Due by Class Time Thursday

Week 11: Edo Satire

T. Kibyôshi in the Floating World
Th. Pleasure Quarter Humor

T. Harumachi, “Mr. Glitter ‘N’ Gold’s Dream of Splendor” (EMJL, 673-687)
Th. Kyôden, “Grilled and Basted Edo-Born Playboy” (EMJL, 687-710)

Week 12: Edo Erotica

T. Sex, Lies, and Ukiyo-e
Th. NO CLASS (I'm at a conference)

T.Sex and the Floating World, Introduction and Chapters 1-2

Week 13: Edo Erotica

T. Situating Sex and Embodying the Erotic in Edo Pornography
Th. Decoding Sexual Symbols

T. Sex and the Floating World, Chapters 3-4
Th. Sex and the Floating World, Chapter 5-6

Begin Take-home Essay 2

Week 14: Edo Sumo

T. The Origins of Sumo
Th. The Spectacle of Sumo

TTh. Web links; in-class video

Week 15: Making Sense of Edo Play & Pleasure

T.Legacies of Edo Culture

T. ER: "Edo: A Lifestyle Alive and Well in the Present Day"

Take-home Essay 2 Due by Class Tuesday