This course analyzes the historical context in which Asian American literary texts have been adapted into films. This context illustrates how representations of Asian Americans have evolved from the stereotypical images of the 1920s to the self-representations by Asian American writers and filmmakers today. We examine various literary genres, such as novels, plays, and short stories, including Mohsin Hamid's novel, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, Le Ly Hayslip's memoir, When Heaven and Earth Changed Places, and David Henry Hwang's play, M. Butterfly.

We explore how the literary form translates into a visual medium by modifying the story and characterization for the screen. For example, dramas adapt to screen format more easily than novels. We examine the strengths of each medium, including the scope of the literary text and the spatial-temporal capabilities of cinema.
Days: TU TH  12:30-01:50 PM

This course introduces histories of Korean Americans from the early 20th century to the present. We will investigate how social, cultural, political, and economic forces in the United States, in Korea, and around the world impact ways in which Korean Americans develop their identities and communities. The first half of the course examines autobiographical accounts on early migration to the U.S., ethnographic study on racial identity, history of U.S.-Korea military and cultural relations, immigration factors, and intergenerational religious practices. We will further study how Korean Americans have and continue to negotiate intersections of race, class, gender, sexuality, in projects of political and community organizing, adoptee social movements, undocumented youth, and fluidity in “ways to be Korean” consciousness-work throughout the Korean diaspora.

Class meetings will primarily be dedicated to discussion and small group work, with occasional media screenings and possible guest speakers.
Days: TU TH  02:00-03:20 PM

This upper-division undergraduate course is designed to introduce students to the study of gender in Asian American Studies, with a specific focus on women. Using intersectional frameworks, we will examine how Asian American women have experienced, challenged, and acceded to power. Additionally, we will learn about individual Asian American women, whose activism and ideas help us to better understand the world and the choices we have in making it.
Days: TU  09:30-12:20 PM

This course will focus on several fictional texts produced during the twentieth century. We will examine how gender and gender relationships were being reconstructed and renegotiated as China was pursuing her modernity. The reading will proceed in a roughly chronological order (in terms of the historical period each work covers). Emphasis will be on close reading and critical thinking. There will be mid-term and final examinations (both are in class), and pop quizzes. Class attendance and discussion participation will count considerably toward a student’s final grade. Students are also expected to view a movie based one of the novels.

Days: TU TH  02:00-03:20 PM

This course is an overview of the linguistic features of modern Japanese. Its main goal is to provide students a systematic introduction to the nature and characteristics of the language, including: Genealogical tree of the Japanese language; Orthography (What are various writing systems used in modern Japanese?); Phonetics and phonology (How can we describe the sounds of Japanese words?); Morphology (How are Japanese words constructed and organized?); Regeneration of lexicon (How are new words created?); Syntax (How are Japanese sentences structured?); Semantics.

Through this course students will also explore the structure of the Japanese language and its historical development in conjunction with socio-cultural factors. Upon completion of this course, students should understand the idiosyncratic behavior of Japanese as a language.

(same as 65440 LSCI 165B, Lec A)

Days: MO WE  12:30-01:50 PM

This course surveys social, cultural, and political aspects of contemporary Korea.  We will examine and interpret some of the key cultural institutions and social changes including family and gender relationships, the impact of Korean War and national division, rapid industrialization and its legacies, social movement, labor and marriage migration, and popular culture and culture industry.  We will also explore the life and society of North Korea and issues of North Korean refugees in South Korea. As part of class activities, we will follow closely some of the current events and interpret them in light of what we learn in class for the purpose of enhancing the students’ critical skills to analyze Korean society.  Course materials include scholarly articles, films, and literature.

(same as 26118 GlblClt 103A, Lec A;   and 64520 Intl St 179, Lec B)

Days: MO WE  12:00-12:50 PM

This course centers around a simple idea, that is, life is a series of decision-making, and once we make our decision, we’d better stick to it but also need to take its consequences. Decision-making inevitably requires sacrifice because by choosing one option over other possible ones, we cannot help but sacrifice those our decision leaves out. Furthermore, full commitment to our decision often takes precedence over other obligations we might have and thus forces us to sacrifice them as well. No matter how much carefully and sincerely we attempt to make the right decision by taking every single factor into consideration, it produces unintended effects that might hurt others around us. By drawing on literary texts coming from or set in Korea, the course intends to lead students to think about the inevitable sacrifice embedded in our decision-making, and question and answer how much responsible we should be held for it.

Days: TU TH  02:00-03:20 PM

How are masculinities conceived of and represented in traditional Chinese culture before Western influence began to infiltrate China? This is a central question to be explored in this class. Another issue to examine is the diverse and historical nature of the Chinese conceptualizations of masculinity. The reading will focus on various historical materials fictional and non-fictional (including novels, short stories, historical writings, memoirs, etc.). Written assignments include mid-term and final exams plus pop quizzes.

Days: TU TH  12:30-01:50 PM

This is a small upper-division literature seminar about love, feminism and modern Japan. The theme is “voice.” We focus on seven women authors, reading more than one work by each to explore their distinctive voices. Which authors talk about feminism in a way that resonates with UCI students in 2025? How do they define “love”? “freedom?” “equality?” Sometimes Japanese feminists approach issues like abortion, care-work, sex-work, queer and trans issues, and sexual pleasure in ways that feel familiar and easy to debate. Other times, political and cultural contexts like Marxism, anarchism, colonialism, and ultra-nationalism reveal approaches to the same issues that feel totally new. Assignments include weekly reading quizzes, mid-term and final lists, and two recorded contributions to class audiobooks.

(same as 22810 Com Lit 130, Lec A;   and 25165 Gen&Sex 170, Lec A)

Days: TU TH  03:30-04:50 PM

In this course, students will learn about the history and theory of Sinophone Cinema in a globalized world. In addition to understanding the importance of Chinese language cinema for film studies, students will also familiarize themselves with current debates about prestige culture, genre, markets, globalization, alienation, urbanization in the Sinosphere. We will look at Sinophone cinema from a number of perspectives: we will be focusing on the cinema of Taiwan, the People's Republic of China and Hong Kong.
Days: TU TH  02:00-03:20 PM

This is a small upper-division literature seminar about love, feminism and modern Japan. The theme is “voice.” We focus on seven women authors, reading more than one work by each to explore their distinctive voices. Which authors talk about feminism in a way that resonates with UCI students in 2025? How do they define “love”? “freedom?” “equality?” Sometimes Japanese feminists approach issues like abortion, care-work, sex-work, queer and trans issues, and sexual pleasure in ways that feel familiar and easy to debate. Other times, political and cultural contexts like Marxism, anarchism, colonialism, and ultra-nationalism reveal approaches to the same issues that feel totally new. Assignments include weekly reading quizzes, mid-term and final lists, and two recorded contributions to class audiobooks.
Days: TU TH  03:30-04:50 PM

Emphasis/Category: Locating Asias (Nation, Culture, and Diaspora)
This course surveys social, cultural, and political aspects of contemporary Korea.  We will examine and interpret some of the key cultural institutions and social changes including family and gender relationships, the impact of Korean War and national division, rapid industrialization and its legacies, social movement, labor and marriage migration, and popular culture and culture industry.  We will also explore the life and society of North Korea and issues of North Korean refugees in South Korea. As part of class activities, we will follow closely some of the current events and interpret them in light of what we learn in class for the purpose of enhancing the students’ critical skills to analyze Korean society.  Course materials include scholarly articles, films, and literature.
Days: MO WE  12:00-12:50 PM