2027-2028 Elective Courses

You’re used to the challenging academic standards and probing critical thinking that characterize a liberal arts education. And you’ll find that abroad with AKP. AKP mirrors its thirteen consortium institutions in disciplinary diversity and commitment to excellence among its courses. Thanks to the Visiting Faculty Fellows program, AKP recruits some of the finest professors from the consortium, allowing you to take classes that will foster a deeper understanding of Japan’s long and complex cultural history.

AKP students will take two elective courses per semester during the afternoons. The credit amount for each course will be equal to one standard semester-long course in the US.

In addition to the AKP elective courses listed below, AKP students may, if interested, take one of their two electives each semester by cross-registering for a course offered by the Kyoto Consortium for Japanese Studies (KCJS), also housed at Doshisha University. Courses taken at KCJS will receive the same credit as AKP electives and will appear on your AKP grade report. Note that the ability to cross-register may be affected by class size limitations, time conflicts, or conflicts with class-related field trips. Enrollment in a desired course is not guaranteed.

For information about KCJS electives, see their elective course page. For more information about cross-registration, please contact the AKP US Office.

Fall 2027

AKP-Doshisha Joint Seminar

Professor Hideko Abe, Colby College, RD

 

This seminar, which is open to both AKP and Doshisha students, focuses on issues in comparative culture. The class format includes panel presentations, discussions, group projects, and a series of guest lectures by Japanese and foreign experts from the Kyoto area who will address various aspects of American and Japanese culture from a multi-disciplinary perspective.

Family, Childhood, and Home in Japan
Professor Michelle Janning, Whitman College

 

This sociology course focuses on contemporary Japanese cultural constructions of family roles and relationships. The course is informed by material culture and design studies, with projects and field trips dedicated to studying how home objects and family spaces in Japan tell the story of contemporary Japanese family life. Topics include toys and play culture, sex and romance, weddings and marriages, fertility and childbearing, childhood, transitions to adulthood, parenthood, family dissolution, alternative housing, and aging and intergenerational relationships in Japanese cultures of carework.

Kyoto and the Visual Arts of Japan
Professor Catherine Ludvik, Kyoto Sangyo University

 

This course takes students on an exploration of the magnificent visual arts of Japan, from the enigmatic excavated works of the prehistoric period, through the imposing Buddhist arts and breathtaking sliding screen paintings defining traditional architecture, to the vibrant contemporary art scene. Through a sweeping historical survey highlighting the forms and functions of representative artworks in their respective contexts, you will examine such issues as the relationship of Japanese art to Chinese and Korean art, patronage, the ritual and visual functions of Buddhist icons, the translation of concepts into artistic forms, as well as representational strategies and modes of viewing.

Contested Natures: Culture, Power, and Political Ecology in Japan’s Anthropocene

Professor Marc W. Los Huesrtos, Pamona College

 

This seminar examines how Japanese societies have shaped and been shaped by the natural environment from prehistory to the Anthropocene. Drawing on environmental science, cultural history, policy analysis, and literature, students investigate the deep connections between ecological conditions and cultural expression across the Japanese archipelago. The course content ranges
from scientific concepts (biodiversity, hydrology, nutrient cycling, climate dynamics) and to the cultural, political, and economic forces that determine how those concepts are applied, contested, or ignored.

 

Music of Japan from Past to Present
Professor Brooke McCorkle Okazaki, Carleton College

 

Japanese music encompasses a wide variety of genres, from traditional Gagaku court music to anime soundtracks. But how does this music relate to the history of Japan? This class will examine the creation and consumption of Japanese music from the Heian period to the present day, focusing on how music has functioned within Japan’s cultural and political milieu. Lectures, readings, and listening assignments will provide historical and conceptual contexts for the field trips to traditional music performances. Through the study of Japanese traditional music and theater as well as later genres such as jazz, rock, and pop, students will engage with broader historical trajectories in society. During our class time, we will discuss how our direct experiences of music relate to political and cultural issues prevalent in Japan today. No pre-existing knowledge of music is required, but you must be eager to listen and learn about music and Japanese cultural history.

Spring 2028

Japanese Language, Gender, and Sexuality
Professor Hideko Abe, Colby College

The field of language, gender, and sexuality is one of the most interdisciplinary areas of study in sociolinguistics. This course explores ideas about gender and sexuality as they emerge through linguistic practice and embodied behavior. Drawing on the interdisciplinary pedigree to provide a wider perspective and range of tools for the study of gender, sexuality, and linguistic practice, this course examines: (1) how we evaluate issues of gender inequality in language (how linguistic presentations put a clue to the place of women and sexual minority groups); (2) how gender roles are played out in the structure of human interaction and society; (2) how we analyze various explanations for differentiated language use among people of diverse gender and sexuality; (3) how the normative ideology of language affects how we perform gender and sexuality; and (4) the historical development of gendered speech from Heian to Reiwa.

Japan Encounters the World: France as a Foreign Mirror, 1700–1960
Professor Virginie Dozer, Pomona College

This course examines Japan’s evolving encounter with France (and with Western modernity more broadly) from 1700 to 1960. Japan is our protagonist. France appears as a lens: a powerful, fascinated, sometimes distorting mirror through which Japanese artists, writers, diplomats, and thinkers saw themselves, challenged themselves, and ultimately reshaped themselves.

AI in Japan
Professor David Kauchak, Pomona College

AI (Artificial Intelligence) is a broad field with the goal of creating computational systems that emulate human or human-like behaviors. In this course, we will explore AI through the lens of Japan, focusing on four main areas: popular media, robotics, computational analysis of the Japanese language, and the ethics of AI. We will explore the history of manga, anime, and video games in Japan and how recent advances in AI are impacting these media forms. We will see how robotics shaped the industrialization of Japan and the cultural impact that robotics has had, particularly Japan’s focus on humanoid robots. We will understand how computers can process and interpret human language by examining characteristics of the Japanese language using computational tools. Finally, we will conclude with an exploration of the ethical questions
around AI and AI use, particularly comparing how adoption and views differ between Japan versus other parts of the world.

Religion, Tradition, and Temple-Tourism in Kyoto
Professor Catherine Ludvik, Kyoto Sangyo University

Filled with over two thousand temples and shrines, the ancient capital of Kyoto provides the ideal setting for the study of Japanese religions. Temples and shrines, however, are not only sites of faith, but locales where religion, tradition, culture, and tourism intersect. Against this vibrant and complex background accommodating diverse modes of religious practice and sightseeing, this course explores selected aspects of Shinto, Buddhism, and the New Religions of Japan in historical as well as contemporary context. We will examine present-day attitudes to religion, lived by many as inherited tradition, in conjunction with the enormous popularity of the city’s temples and shrines that function as promoters of cultural identity and World Heritage tourism.

Interested in our past offerings?

Thanks to AKP’s Visiting Faculty Fellows program, each AKP term is unique in terms of its electives. While it’s hard to predict what might be offered next, you can click on the button below to see what kind of faculty and specialities we’ve brought to AKP in the past!

Past elective courses