ARS12201 Anthropology of Japan I

Hiroshima University Syllabus

Japanese

Academic Year 2026Year School/Graduate School School of Integrated Arts and Sciences Department of Integrated Global Studies

Lecture Code ARS12201 Subject Classification Specialized Education

Subject Name Anthropology of Japan I (日本の文化人類学 I)

Subject Name
（Katakana）ニホンノブンカジンルイガク I

Subject Name in
English Anthropology of Japan I

Instructor SEKI KOKI

Instructor
(Katakana) セキ　コウキ

Campus Higashi-Hiroshima Semester/Term 2nd-Year,  Second Semester,  3Term

Days, Periods, and Classrooms (3T) Tues5-6：IAS K110

Lesson Style Lecture Lesson Style
(More Details) Face-to-face

In principle, this class is conducted in person. The online participant is allowed only when there is unavoidable reason.

Credits 1.0 Class Hours/Week 2 Language of Instruction E : English

Course Level 3 : Undergraduate High-Intermediate

Course Area（Area） 23 : Arts and Humanities

Course Area（Discipline） 11 : Cultural Anthropology

Eligible Students 学部生

Keywords Japanese society, precarity, family and self, local community, school, workplace and salaryman, State and bureaucracy, citizens and civil society

Special Subject for Teacher Education 　 Special Subject 　

Class Status
within Educational
Program
(Applicable only to targeted subjects for undergraduate students)
Criterion referenced
Evaluation
(Applicable only to targeted subjects for undergraduate students) Integrated Global Studies
（Knowledge and Understanding）
・The knowledge and understanding of the important characteristics and basic theoretical framework of individual academic disciplines.
（Abilities and Skills）
・The ability to collect and analyze necessary literature or data among various sources of information in individual academic disciplines.
（Comprehensive Abilities）
・The ability to think in an interdisciplinary way to discover issues based on ethical research practices and subjective intellectual interests, and propose a plan to solve them.

Class Objectives
/Class Outline      Contemporary Japan faces multiple forms of precarity. Concretely, these include the fragility of social ties—bonds and connections—the weakening of local communities and regions, the increasing instability of employment, and the retrenchment of state welfare provisions. Such forms of precarity sometimes manifest in phenomena such as solitary deaths and high suicide rates. Amid the growing social vulnerability and sense of stagnation, individuals and the self are likewise compelled to internalize instability.
     This course examines, from an anthropological perspective, why and through what historical processes Japanese society and the individual have arrived at the present predicament. Tracing the formation and transformation of Japanese society and the Japanese self from the modern period to the present, we will explore how these developments have shaped contemporary conditions. In particular, we will focus on the institutions that surround us—family, community, school, company (workplace), the state (bureaucracy), and civil society—and consider how they have structured Japanese self-consciousness, identity, and society as a whole. In the end, the class will propose a possibility of alternative sociality that is needed for Japan today and in future.
     At the same time, the course pays special attention to urban space as a key site of modern self-consciousness and identity formation. From the perspective of urban anthropology, we will examine the formation and transformation of urban space particularly after the World War II, changes in residential patterns and human relationships, the expansion of suburban areas, and the evolving relationship between city and countryside.
     Through this course, students will cultivate a multifaceted perspective that contributes to a deeper understanding of contemporary Japan.

Class Schedule lesson1 Perspective toward Japanese society
lesson2 Self in family and "my-home-ism"
lesson3 Community and its norm
lesson4 Workplace, Kaisha, and culture of "salarymen"
lesson5 School and disciplined society
lesson6 Nation and bureaucracy
lesson7 Citizen and civil society
lesson8 Integration
lesson9
lesson10
lesson11
lesson12
lesson13
lesson14
lesson15

term paper will be assigned at the end of the term

Text/Reference
Books,etc. will be instructed at the beginning of the class

PC or AV used in
Class,etc. Text, Handouts, Visual Materials, moodle

(More Details)

Learning techniques to be incorporated Discussions

Suggestions on
Preparation and
Review This class should be enrolled together with "Anthropology of Japan II". Taking only "Anthropology of Japan I" is not permitted. For the students, middle to advanced level of English proficiency would be required.

Requirements Students should read the assigned reading material every week before each class. Presentation of the readings, and discussion based on them will be also required.

Grading Method Evaluation will be made based on active participation, reading and presentation of the assigned materials, and term paper.

Practical Experience

Summary of Practical Experience and Class Contents based on it

Message

Other

Please fill in the class improvement questionnaire which is carried out on all classes.
Instructors will reflect on your feedback and utilize the information for improving their teaching.

Academic Year	2026Year	School/Graduate School	School of Integrated Arts and Sciences Department of Integrated Global Studies
Lecture Code	ARS12201	Subject Classification	Specialized Education
Subject Name	Anthropology of Japan I (日本の文化人類学 I)
Subject Name （Katakana）	ニホンノブンカジンルイガク I
Subject Name in English	Anthropology of Japan I
Instructor	SEKI KOKI
Instructor (Katakana)	セキ　コウキ
Campus	Higashi-Hiroshima	Semester/Term	2nd-Year, Second Semester, 3Term
Days, Periods, and Classrooms	(3T) Tues5-6：IAS K110
Lesson Style	Lecture	Lesson Style (More Details)	Face-to-face
In principle, this class is conducted in person. The online participant is allowed only when there is unavoidable reason.
Credits	1.0	Class Hours/Week	2	Language of Instruction	E : English
Course Level	3 : Undergraduate High-Intermediate
Course Area（Area）	23 : Arts and Humanities
Course Area（Discipline）	11 : Cultural Anthropology
Eligible Students	学部生
Keywords	Japanese society, precarity, family and self, local community, school, workplace and salaryman, State and bureaucracy, citizens and civil society
Special Subject for Teacher Education		Special Subject
Class Status within Educational Program (Applicable only to targeted subjects for undergraduate students)
Criterion referenced Evaluation (Applicable only to targeted subjects for undergraduate students)	Integrated Global Studies （Knowledge and Understanding）・The knowledge and understanding of the important characteristics and basic theoretical framework of individual academic disciplines. （Abilities and Skills）・The ability to collect and analyze necessary literature or data among various sources of information in individual academic disciplines. （Comprehensive Abilities）・The ability to think in an interdisciplinary way to discover issues based on ethical research practices and subjective intellectual interests, and propose a plan to solve them.
Class Objectives /Class Outline	Contemporary Japan faces multiple forms of precarity. Concretely, these include the fragility of social ties—bonds and connections—the weakening of local communities and regions, the increasing instability of employment, and the retrenchment of state welfare provisions. Such forms of precarity sometimes manifest in phenomena such as solitary deaths and high suicide rates. Amid the growing social vulnerability and sense of stagnation, individuals and the self are likewise compelled to internalize instability. This course examines, from an anthropological perspective, why and through what historical processes Japanese society and the individual have arrived at the present predicament. Tracing the formation and transformation of Japanese society and the Japanese self from the modern period to the present, we will explore how these developments have shaped contemporary conditions. In particular, we will focus on the institutions that surround us—family, community, school, company (workplace), the state (bureaucracy), and civil society—and consider how they have structured Japanese self-consciousness, identity, and society as a whole. In the end, the class will propose a possibility of alternative sociality that is needed for Japan today and in future. At the same time, the course pays special attention to urban space as a key site of modern self-consciousness and identity formation. From the perspective of urban anthropology, we will examine the formation and transformation of urban space particularly after the World War II, changes in residential patterns and human relationships, the expansion of suburban areas, and the evolving relationship between city and countryside. Through this course, students will cultivate a multifaceted perspective that contributes to a deeper understanding of contemporary Japan.
Class Schedule	lesson1 Perspective toward Japanese society lesson2 Self in family and "my-home-ism" lesson3 Community and its norm lesson4 Workplace, Kaisha, and culture of "salarymen" lesson5 School and disciplined society lesson6 Nation and bureaucracy lesson7 Citizen and civil society lesson8 Integration lesson9 lesson10 lesson11 lesson12 lesson13 lesson14 lesson15 term paper will be assigned at the end of the term
Text/Reference Books,etc.	will be instructed at the beginning of the class
PC or AV used in Class,etc.	Text, Handouts, Visual Materials, moodle
(More Details)
Learning techniques to be incorporated	Discussions
Suggestions on Preparation and Review	This class should be enrolled together with "Anthropology of Japan II". Taking only "Anthropology of Japan I" is not permitted. For the students, middle to advanced level of English proficiency would be required.
Requirements	Students should read the assigned reading material every week before each class. Presentation of the readings, and discussion based on them will be also required.
Grading Method	Evaluation will be made based on active participation, reading and presentation of the assigned materials, and term paper.
Practical Experience
Summary of Practical Experience and Class Contents based on it
Message
Other
Please fill in the class improvement questionnaire which is carried out on all classes. Instructors will reflect on your feedback and utilize the information for improving their teaching.

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