Fall 2017

Meets the L&S Breadth Requirement in both Arts & Literature and Philosophy and Values.

Fulfills the L&S breadth requirement in Arts & Literature.

Fulfills the L&S breadth requirements in Philosophy and Values.

Discussion Sections

Islam has been a shaping force in many of the cultures and politics of Southeast Asia since the earliest days of global commerce predating Western colonialism.  The Islamic Revival that has swept through the Islamic world since at least the 1970s, and the rise of the internet have brought important changes to this region, which includes Indonesia--the nation with the world's largest Muslim population--Malaysia, Brunei, the southern Philippines and southern Thailand, with important Muslim communities on the Southeast Asian mainland.  This course offers a survey of the constructions, practices and contestations of gender against the background of trade, colonialism, and the current flows of cultural and financial capital through which bodies and subjectivities are articulated.  Through texts including ethnographic writing, literature, film and political discourse, we will explore the interface of indigenous customary practice ('adat), universalisms, nationalisms, and social justice to look at masculinities, femininities and hybrid sexualities.

Readings:  Atheist, a novel by A. K. Mihardja, Gender and Islam in Southeast Asia, Susanne Schröter;  selections from: Gender and Power in Indonesian Islam: Leaders, Feminists, Sufis and pesantren selves,  Bianca J. Smith and Mark Woodward, eds;  selections from Bewitching Women, Pious Men: Gender and Body Politics in Southeast Asia, Aihwa Ong and Michael Peletz, eds; I Am Muslim, Dina Zaman.  An Ocean of Jilbab, poetry by Emha Ainun Najib; "Delirium" a short story by Shahnon Ahmad.  Muslims and Matriarchs: Cultural Resilience in Indonesia through Jihad and Colonialism (selected chapters) by Jeffrey Hadler.

(This list of readings is tentative).

Crime Friction: Detecting Modernity in Southeast Asia & Empire

This seminar explores the history of modernity and empire in Southeast Asia through the figures of the bandit, policeman, detective, and writer/reader.  The first section explores histories and cultural myths and literary legacies of bandits, alongside the imperial vocabulary of dacoit/terrorist/bandit.  The second section focuses on police and surveillance techniques in city and empire, including censorship of print and visual media. The third  section focuses on the detective genre. We consider the translation and adaptations of Sherlock Holmes in Siam and Burma, and also why this genre was slow to catch on in Southeast Asia.  Most of our readings are on/about mainland Southeast Asia, but we will also read some comparative work on Hong Kong, Japan & Shanghai.  Our texts will be primarily historical and scholarly, but we will also read & view some primary sources including excerpts from Southeast Asian epic literature, Buddhist lore, and detective film & fiction.   A syllabus and reading list is available on request from pennyedwards [at] berkeley [dot] edu

Meets the Graduate Certificate in Global Urban Humanities elective requirement

Students may not take language courses at a lower level than they have been assessed at, nor than the level of other courses in the same language that they have successfully completed previously.

Burmese 1A focuses primarily on Colloquial (or Spoken) Burmese, with some excursions into the Literary Style, usually reserved for written communication.

Lessons include the following:

• Pose and respond to Yes-No questions.
• Pose and respond to Who, What, Where, When, Why questions.
• Read and write words in the Ah, Ee, U (Oo), Ay, Ae, Aw diacritic families.
• Read and write words in the Un, In, Oh diacritic families.
• Read and write words in the Ut, It, Et diacritic families.

You'll learn to speak in simulated conversations, where you get to be a shopkeeper in Bogyoke Market, a pilgrim on the way to Shwe Dagon, and a diner in a Mandalay restaurant.

You'll learn to read by studying fragments of poetry, passages from short stories, song lyrics, and political cartoons.

You'll learn to write by attempting your own poems, prose, song titles, and song lyrics.

Students may not take language courses at a lower level than they have been assessed at, nor than the level of other courses in the same language that they have successfully completed previously.

The Filipino 1A Beginners’ class emphasizes the four basic skills:  listening, speaking, reading, and writing.  The course uses the functional approach in learning a language.

The students focus on basic conversational skills in Filipino.  At the end of the course, they should be able to use Filipino in introduction, greetings and situations such as shopping, telling the time, counting, going to the market; and asking and giving directions.  They should also be able to use Filipino in: describing people, objects, and places.

The teacher shall use Filipino and English with the aid of pictures and other teaching materials.  However, English may be used in explaining grammar rules and discussing Philippine culture.  Classroom techniques shall include games, songs, pair- work, role- plays and writing exercises.

Students may not take language courses at a lower level than they have been assessed at, nor than the level of other courses in the same language that they have successfully completed previously.

Five hours of lecture per week online in synchronous time. Prerequisites: None.  Do you know the words nanay (mother), tatay (father), sinigang (sour soup), masarap (delicious), and kawawa (poor you)? Would you like to better communicate with your grandparents who speak Filipino and only have a limited knowledge of English? You may be a heritage learner, or a person who has a proficiency in or a cultural connection to the language he/she is studying. Filipino 1X WBL is an elementary Filipino class designed for heritage learners. It is the first course in the elementary Filipino for Heritage Learners sequence (Filipino 1X and Filipino 1Y). This course builds on the students’ passive vocabulary to harness four basic skills:  listening, speaking, reading, and writing.  The functional-situational approach in learning a language is used in this class. 

Discussion Section

Students may not take language courses at a lower level than they have been assessed at, nor than the level of other courses in the same language that they have successfully completed previously.

Two years of Filipino/Tagalog or consent of instructor. 

Why do you use a language? Would you like to read more Filipino academic or literary texts, watch a Filipino soap opera of film without subtitles, or perhaps be able to translate and interpret? In this class, we will learn more about the Filipino language and Philippine society through short articles, essays, and literary texts.  These texts, available only in Tagalog/Filipino,  will also provide us with an overview of Philippine history and society.  Moreover, we will be working with examples of the changing orthography of the Filipino language through texts that range from 19^th-century Tagalog, 1950s Pilipino, and 1990s Filipino. Among our learning strategies are listening/watching authentic video/audio texts, and writing essays/creative work.

Students may not take language courses at a lower level than they have been assessed at, nor than the level of other courses in the same language that they have successfully completed previously.

This course emphasizes development of the full range of Hindi language skills: reading, listening, comprehension, the use of grammatical structures, and oral and written communication—through a variety of learning themes. Individual and small group activities, interactive work and multimedia-based activities reinforce language skills and provide the platform for adapting the curriculum to specific student learning goals. Use of graded exercises and readings drawn from Hindi literature, leads to the mastery of grammatical structures, essential vocabulary and achievement of basic reading and writing competence.

This course is designed for students who have already achieved an intermediate level of proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing Hindi. Its objective is to move students toward a greater level of fluency in each of these key areas. It introduces students to a variety of contemporary literary genres. Weekly readings and discussions will be on short stories, poems, and dramatic sketches from representative authors. These readings focus on various social, cultural, political, and historical aspects of Indian society. Students are encouraged to explore these issues in their written assignments as well as in their class discussions. Written assignments on themes suggested by the reading will be required. Students will also work on advanced grammar and special emphasis will be on vocabulary building, idioms, and problems of syntax. There will be advanced exercises in composition. The class will be conducted entirely in Hindi and students will acquire language skills sufficient to approach literary texts on their own.

Note: This course can be repeated for credit.

Various aspects of Indonesian/Malay language and literature, history and development of the language, classical literature, drama, oral literature, modern literature of Indonesia and Malaysia, and dialect studies. Applies various theoretical approaches to the study of the language and literature. 

Topic for Fall 2017 : Language, Lies and the ambiguity of reading.

Language instruction -- and especially advanced language instruction -- is generally conducted on the notion of legibility and a semblance of transparency.   Yet, ambiguity, concealment, imitative malfunction, and even outright dissemblance are all ingredients involved in the discursive act and contribute to the richness of a language. Irony, parody and humor often present some of the greatest obstacles to comprehension: is there a "grammar" of irony (or of parody, sarcasm, even humor) that would help us overcome this obstacle?  

This semester focuses on the act of reading in Indonesian. We will develop a set of methods and tools to help us read, analyze and interpret a variety of texts in Indonesian and/or Malay. We will approach the text as a link between author and audience against the broader social, cultural and political environment. Useful concepts will include: ethos, authority and intentionality, internal and external audience

Readings: we will begin by reading a selection of essays in contemporary Indonesian including material from journals such as Tempo and the newspapers.   From these we will look at the formation of arguments, assumptions made (whether shared or otherwise), local techniques of persuasion and what happens when persuasion begins to break down.   The bulk of the readings will be in Indonesian, some assigned, some chosen individually or by the group.

 Additional readings in English on language, literature and politics; 

Benedict Anderson, Language and Power
Alton L. Becker, Writing on the Tongue
Laurie Sears, Situated Testimonies

Lab

Prerequisite:  Sanskrit 100AB or equivalent. 

Sanskri101C introduces students to classical literary Sanskrit (sāhitya) and commentary, where available. An extended passage of a kāvya and/or an entire play (nāṭaka) is read. Works of Kālidāsa, Bhāsa, and the like are normally read. Developing strong reading skills is the focus of the class. Students develop skills to use hard copy and web based resources. Grammar is reviewed and explained as needed. Students are also introduced to current scholarship and trends in literary analysis. Students are expected to memorize at least one verse per class. Emphasis is placed on correct prosody and pronunciation. Submission of an annotated translation project, assigned in class, is required. Course content changes every semester and may be repeated for credit.

Students may not take language courses at a lower level than they have been assessed at, nor than the level of other courses in the same language that they have successfully completed previously.

This is an introductory course designed for students who have little or no knowledge of Thai language, either spoken or written. The emphasis of this course is on verbal skills and conversation. Students will be introduced to the language through conversation practice on common themes that they will likely encounter in everyday life, along with vocabulary and  grammar  around such themes. Phonetic transcription system will be relied on while students are being  introduced to the Thai alphabets and syllable construction rules. The class is enhanced with audio visual accompaniment, songs,  video, role play, occasional field trips. The material and class discussion is designed to expose students to the world of the Thais.

Heritage students who speak Thai well and are familiar with Thai alphabet must meet with instructor  for  evaluation for possible placement in Thai 1B, a beginner course, in the spring semester. 

Pre-requisite: None.

Students may not take language courses at a lower level than they have been assessed at, nor than the level of other courses in the same language that they have successfully completed previously.

Students may not take language courses at a lower level than they have been assessed at, nor than the level of other courses in the same language that they have successfully completed previously.

An introduction to modern spoken and written Vietnamese, including intensive drill on basic phonology and grammar. The first semester emphasizes phonetic concepts, syllable formations and tonal distinctions along with simple sentence structures in everyday topics. By the end of the second semester, students should be able to function successfully in ordinary Vietnamese conversation and read simple texts of moderate difficulty.

Students may not take language courses at a lower level than they have been assessed at, nor than the level of other courses in the same language that they have successfully completed previously.

A second-year course in Vietnamese vocabulary and syntax with intensive drills on short colloquial expressions and auditory recognition of speech patterns. First semester course stresses phraseology, sentence building, rules of composition and development of students' communicative skills. By the end of the second semester students will learn to speak and write simple compositions and will have a cursory introduction to Vietnamese literature and sample readings from contemporary Vietnamese writers.

Intermediate Thai