JAPN-3041: Modern Japanese Short Stories 

Course Description: This class will expose the student to some of the best examples in the genre of short stories (tanpen shosetsu) in modern Japanese literature, with an emphasis on the postwar period. Focusing on short stories will allow the student to sample in one semester a greater variety of styles and idiomatic structures than longer works like novels would, and the student will enjoy being able to finish more stories. Particularly goals of this class include enhanced skill in reading modern Japanese, improved comprehension of literary Japanese as demonstrated through precise and eloquent English translation, and a more sophisticated understanding of the dynamics of modern Japanese culture through appreciation of the content of the stories. Course readings are in Japanese. Particular texts and authors vary by semester.