MA Taiwan Studies

This module introduces history, theory and methodology in the study of Taiwan cinema through examining key works by major filmmakers from Taiwan and the Chinese diaspora as well as the socio-cultural condition of their production, distribution, exhibition and consumption. Special attention will be paid to issues such as the construction of local and national identities through film, national film historiography, as well as mainstream and alternative film practices.

This module aims to provide students with a broad knowledge base to understand Taiwan's culture and society. Because of its multifaceted cultural and ethnic mix and the complex colonial history, the module looks at Taiwan’s contemporary culture, unpicks the various dimensions of the complicated social change, and considers the colonial legacy and the impact of globalization. The focus of the module is placed on the highly contentious issue of identity politics of the post-war era. By exploring contemporary Taiwanese cultural change and social development, this course facilitates a solid understanding of the complexity of this place, offers an interesting reference point to think about China and Japan, and provides a better understanding of the greater East Asian society. Because most courses cover China, Japan and Korea, this module can connect the dotted line to form a more complete picture of East Asia.

This unique module provides an introduction to Taiwan’s international and domestic politics. Taiwan’s political democratization, its identity politics and its contested international status have all contributed to making its politics one of the most researched topics in the fields of East Asian and Chinese politics. The module seeks to examine the political processes that have shaped Taiwan since 1949, with particular emphasis on the last three decades. It also explores the evolution of Cross-Strait relations, their enduring rivalry, ongoing conflicts, and Taiwan's contested statehood. We focus on two core themes (1) an analysis of Taiwan’s domestic politics and (2) analysis of Cross-Strait and international relations. Units on Taiwan’s domestic politics will address a variety of issues, including the island’s democratic transition, Taiwan’s party and electoral politics and the quality of its democracy. The sessions on Taiwan’s external relations will examine Taiwan's international status and sovereignty, international relations, as well as the evolution of cross-Strait relations under the early administrations.

This module builds on Taiwan and International Politics Part 1 by delving more deeply into Taiwan’s international and domestic politics. Students will be encouraged to apply a range of theoretical approaches including comparative politics, sociology, and international relations to analyse the politics of modern Taiwan. The domestic politics part of the module will look at three interrelated themes of Taiwan’s electoral and party politics, politics of gender and its social movements. This will involve an examination of a range of topical election, social movement and party case studies. In the final five weeks of the module, the focus will return to Taiwan’s external relations. Topics will include Taiwan's strategies for navigating its increasingly isolated international space and mounting military threats from China, as well as Cross-strait soft power competition. Additionally, we will examine China's evolving policy aimed at bringing Taiwan into its orbit and the dynamics of the US-China-Taiwan triangle.

Special Theme (2024/25): The Cultural Politics of Chinese Food

We explore key themes in the anthropology of Chinese societies through the lens of food and its cultural politics. In China, food figures prominently in the formation and expression of cultural identities, majority-minority interactions, political power, gender, religious practice, and everyday social relations. Longstanding concerns about food security have increasingly given way to anxieties about food safety and dietary health and renewed interest in culinary tourism and heritage. Food also mediates the relationship between China and the world and shapes the experiences of Chinese in the diaspora. The course addresses current issues and debates surrounding food systems and food practices, as they pertain to Chinese societies and peoples. Topics covered include: food safety and social trust; the culture and politics of banqueting; cultural understandings of body, health and nutrition; food and urban space; food and diasporas; ethnicity and nationalism; meat production, consumption, and avoidance; and famine, memory and moral economies.

This module offers a textual and contextual survey of modern Chinese literature, exploring seminal literary works in connection with key political movements.

The module is designed to offer a critical overview of changes occurring in the late 20th century Chinese culture and society. The module will provide students with an overview of issues facing contemporary Chinese society.

This course provides an introduction to the post-1950 evolution of the main economies of the Asia-Pacific region (comprising Northeast and Southeast Asia). It looks at macroeconomic issues, with a particular focus on growth, trade and investment flows, and fluctuations in economic indicators since the middle of the 1990s.

This module addresses the historical emergence of the ‘Chinese nation’. It focuses on socio-cultural identity as well as the ideological frameworks which were employed by different political regimes to promote the concept of China as a modern nation state. It begins with an analysis of the changing relationship between the Han majority, the ruling Manchu elite and the other major ethnic groups forming the Qing empire (1644-1911). It subsequently examines the panoply of new intellectual currents at the turn of the twentieth century, and political responses to the volatile situation following the transition to the Republic of China. The module analyses the tension between socialist internationalism, modern nationalism and traditional Chinese values, while focusing on differing interpretations of ‘Chinese tradition’ during the early People’s Republic.

This course is designed to develop students’ understanding of key moments in modern Japanese history from the collapse of the Tokugawa hegemony (the 1850s) to the end of World War II (1945) in regional and global context. The module examines social and political epochs such as the rise of the Meiji government, the social and political contexts of modernisation, the process of nation-building, the establishment of an overseas empire and the rise of militarism, and the Sino-Japanese and Pacific Wars.

The module examines modern and contemporary Japanese fictional works across literature and popular culture. The texts and audiovisual sources (manga, anime) selected all offer alternative visions of Japan, challenging notions of a supposedly homogeneous and monolithic modern country. Through careful analyses of primary sources, the module reflects on fictional representations of peripheral identities in literature, such as rural communities, social, ethnic, and cultural minorities, but also on the representations and consumptions of popular media related to so-called “subcultures”, including manga and animation as well as their fandom.

This module is directed to students planning to conduct research on various aspects of social and cultural life during a period of residence in the region of their interest – and particularly recommended to students who are also learning a language as part of their programme.

This module introduces students to some of the most prominent themes of East Asian mythology. From mythical culture bearers and warring monkey kings to mischievous fox spirits and perfidy sensing goats, we will examine the origins of various myths, their sources and evolution over time, as well as their historical and cultural significance.

The module is designed to offer a critical overview of Japanese cinema, and its progression from the beginning to the present day. It will look at how actors and directors are involved in the industry.

This course is designed to provide students with a theoretically informed and comparative introduction to key issues in the contemporary international politics of East Asia. East Asia is defined as the states of the Northeast Asia (in particular, China, Korea, Japan and Taiwan), and the two main external actors, the United States and Soviet Union/Russia who played a key role influencing the region’s international relations. East Asia presents fascinating case studies in the study of international relations by bringing together the world’s three largest economies (US, China, Japan), three of the UN Security Council’s permanent members (US, Russia, China) and two divided nations (China/Taiwan and the two Korea).

This course examines the origins, characteristics and dynamics of the political systems of Northeast Asia (Japan, South Korea, Taiwan) and how they cope with the dilemmas of economic and social sustainability. This module will examine why the economic and social dilemmas of affluence” are particularly acute in Northeast Asia given their recent histories as miraculous economies (characterised by “growth with equity”). It will also reveal whether Northeast Asia is generating its own distinctive responses to these dilemmas.

The module provides an introduction to Chinese language with emphasis on practical written and spoken Chinese. It covers some simple newspaper articles and internet texts.

The module provides students with a basic knowledge of Chinese and practice of using Chinese in a variety of everyday situations. It allows students to interact with Chinese speakers in Chinese.

The module provides students with a general knowledge of Chinese and practice of using Chinese in a variety of general situations. It allows students to interact with Chinese speakers in Chinese.

This is a basic introductory language acquisition module for absolute beginners in the written and spoken language. The module covers several basic constructions of the language, enabling students to acquire basic skills in reading, writing, comprehension and speaking. At the end of this module, successful students will be able to function at Lower A1 of CEFR or Band 1 of HSK.

This module aims to introduce students more basic vocabulary and grammar points at beginner and elementary level. At the end of the semester, successful students are expected to be able to read and write simple texts and communicate on basic everyday topics and function at A1 of CEFR or Band 2 of HSK.

This module is an introduction to the grammar and basic vocabulary of Classical Chinese, the standard written language of China from around the seventh century BCE through the early twentieth century CE. The majority of this module will be based on reading, translating, and discussing philosophical, political, literary, and historical anecdotes from the Spring and Autumn (770-481 BCE) through the Han (206 BCE-220 CE) periods, as they served as the foundation for the language.

This module aims to introduce students more basic vocabulary, grammar points, and sentence structures at elementary level. At the end of the semester, successful students are expected to be able to read and write simple texts and communicate on basic everyday topics and function at Lower A2 of CEFR or Band 3 of HSK.

This module is for students who have successfully completed Chinese 2A or equivalent to progress in the learning of Chinese. It will introduce more basic vocabulary, grammar points, and sentence structures at elementary level. At the end of the semester, successful students are expected to be able to read and write simple texts and communicate on basic everyday topics and function at A2 of CEFR or Band 4 of HSK.

This module is for students who have successfully completed Chinese 2B or equivalent to progress in the learning of Chinese. It will introduce more vocabulary, grammar points, and sentence structures at higher elementary level. At the end of the semester, successful students are expected to be able to read and write short texts, communicate on everyday topics; and function at Lower B1 of CEFR or Lower Band 5 of HSK.

This module is for students who have successfully completed Chinese 3A or equivalent to progress in the learning of Chinese. It will introduce more vocabulary, grammar points, sentence structures and linking words at lower intermediate level. At the end of the semester, successful students are expected to be able to read and write short texts, communicate on familiar topics; and function at B1 of CEFR or Band 5 of HSK.

This module is for students who have successfully completed Chinese 3B or equivalent to progress in the learning of Chinese. It will consolidate grammar points, sentence structures and linking words at lower intermediate level and enable students to progress to intermediate level. At the end of the semester, successful students are expected to be able to read and write short texts, communicate on familiar topics; and function at Lower B2 of CEFR or Lower Band 6 of HSK.

This module is for students who have successfully completed Chinese 4A or equivalent. It will introduce more vocabulary, set expressions and linking words enabling students to progress in reading, writing and speaking from lower intermediate level to intermediate level.  Upon successful completion of this module, students are expected to be able to read and write texts on a wide range of subjects; interact with native speakers on familiar topics with a degree of fluency and function at B2 of CEFR or Band 6 of HSK.

In this module students will learn how to communicate effectively and appropriately in a variety of contexts, styles, and modes. On completion of this module students should be able to communicate in both concrete and abstract topics, including unfamiliar ones, using complex oral and written texts.

In this module, students will learn how to communicate in very simple Japanese on concrete and familiar everyday topics. Both spoken and written Japanese will be taught from the very first day. On completion of this module, students should be able to convey very simple information about themselves, their family and friends, their belongings etc., and ask questions about others. They will also learn to socialise with Japanese-speaking people in familiar everyday contexts. From the beginning, they will be exposed to Japanese cultures as reflected in various situations and expressions used therein.

In this module, students will learn how to communicate in simple, but structured Japanese on concrete and general everyday topics. Both spoken and written Japanese will be taught, including more Kanji characters than those covered at Japanese 1A. On completion of this module, students should be able to convey simple information about them with some elaboration when asked, and to continue the conversation by asking about others

In this module, students will learn to communicate in simple tasks that require a direct social exchange of information on relating to matters of immediate needs, events, activities, and experiences. Students also practice in describing aspects of their background and matters in area of their immediate and academic interests. The module aims to develop elementary level of interactional competence by using productive (speaking/writing) and receptive (reading/listening) skills in Japanese. In addition to the four skills mentioned above, acquiring transferable skills such as translation to and from Japanese/English also form a part of learning Japanese at this module. They will also learn to engage in everyday activities in simple Japanese such as talking about self, talking about holidays, or talking about future plans and receiving and making invitations.

In this module, students will learn to communicate in simple tasks that require a social exchange of information relating to matters of immediate needs, events, activities and experiences. Students also practice in describing aspects of their background and matters in area of their immediate and academic interests. The module aims to develop elementary level of interactional competence by using productive (speaking/writing) and receptive (reading/listening) skills in Japanese.

The objective of this module is to prepare students to understand the main points on familiar matters regularly encountered in contexts such as university, leisure, etc. Students will also learn fundamental Japanese customs and cultures and appreciate the importance of intercultural understanding and diversity. 

The objective of this module is to prepare students to understand the main points on familiar matters encountered in contexts such as university, leisure, etc. It builds on knowledge gained in the pre-intermediate level. Students will also learn fundamental Japanese customs and cultures and develop intercultural understanding and diversity.

In this module, students will learn how to communicate effectively and appropriately in a variety of contexts, styles, and modes. Students engage in communication on both personal and social topics, using complex oral and written texts. They also learn Japanese customs and culture and compare them with those they are familiar with, appreciating the importance of intercultural understanding and diversity. 

In this module, students will learn how to communicate effectively and fluently in a variety of contexts, styles, and modes. Students engage in the communication with the speakers of Japanese to develop a deeper understanding of Japanese society and culture and compare them with those they are familiar with, appreciating the importance of intercultural understanding, diversity, and global citizenship.