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Gerlinde GoschiI really like this idea for a lesson. I think I will incorporate it in my middle school course I like the lessons on female behavior code and virtue written by Ban Zhao. While today many women still "sacrifice their own freedom and happiness for their family and children" as you write, many wives and mothers today in modern countries, do the contrary, juggle many roles simultaneously. In LA today, the more common case among women is the impressive juggling act they perform as professionals while raising children and caring for their families. I am planning on creating a lesson comparing the roles of women during different periods in history in China (Ban Zhao) and the US (the 20th-21st century). Thank you for the idea!
Gerlinde GoschiLike many of the comments above, I, too, was fascinated by the life of “one of the most famous and exemplary women in Chinese history,” as Prof. Yunxiang Yan stated, Ban Zhao. The seven lessons for women were a bit shocking to me. Just like my colleagues who wrote here, I have not learned about Ban Zhao prior to this course. Her impact on the history of China is important, especially the lessons for women on female behavior code and virtue. While at first glance they seem outrageous for a woman living in the 21st century, many women in countries and cultures today live by the same virtues. I would love to combine Ban Zhao’s writing with a research project that inquires about women who live today by these and in what countries?
Gerlinde GoschiFirst, I would like to thank Dr. Dube, Catherine, and the professors for a very informative and thought provoking course. I really enjoyed learning about the history of East Asia from a gender perspective. It was a very interesting view, a lens I have not looked through before. One of the most impactful lectures for me personally was Professor Yasar’s from USC and his analysis of Yasujiro Ozu’s film, Late Spring. Ozu is very effective in emphasizing the happenings that are not at all obvious while leaving much to the imagination. Prof. Yasar mentions the unique cinematographic style of Ozu with a suggestion for a lesson which had me pondering until now. The powerful scenes in the movie would present a great lesson for today’s middle and/or high school students as watching them requires a lot of patience. I believe the challenges these students would be faced with (black and white, slow, subtitles, weird acting) will be beneficial for this age group to overcome today. I will incorporate this into my curriculum.
Prof. Yunxiang Yan’s presentation fascinated me mainly because his explanation of the relationship of this course and the movie Crazy, Rich Asians. The clever title instantly became very clear to me. As part of the zuoren, it is important to be sensitive to someone else’s needs and to proactively help them. As Prof. Yunxiang Yan explains women suffered from inequality in traditional Chinese familism. In the movie, Rachel needs to win Nick’s mother’s approval. According to our presentation, Rachel loses a game of Mahjong on purpose to allow Nick’s mom to win. This is part of zuoren which Rachel understands and which Nick’s mom ultimately appreciates. Prior to this course, I have not been aware of zuoren I reluctantly admit.
These two presentations helped me understand the rich history of East Asia through the lens of traditions of gender, especially through the eyes of females. I am planning to incorporate this perspective not only into my lessons, but challenge my students into debates. I enjoyed the forum discussions and many resources my colleagues have posted and am very grateful to have made new friends and seen old ones! I am always grateful to participate in these seminars as I leave with a wealth of new materials, ideas, and resources! Thank you!
Gerlinde GoschiProf. Miyake introduced us to the Heian literary genre that included the 31 syllable poem, the tanka. The authors of these poems were often women who took advantage to learn during this period. I can incorporate one of these poems into my lesson about poems. Students would be able to compare the 5-7-7-8 poem to the haiku which I teach every year. I would use the poem from Prof. Miyake’s presentation as an example and then allow students the freedom to create their own.
Love. Topic unknown
What is it that fades
Without a change in color?
It is the flower
In the heart of those who love
In this world of ours
Gerlinde GoschiI was surprised to learn that the Korean Cultural Center supports field trips by giving a stipend to classes to come visit. This is a great opportunity for my class as well as my school because it seems there are not enough funds for field trips and the cost of them are so high that teams of teachers at my school have come up with creative ideas to make them happen. One year, instead of taking a bus, we walked to the metro station and took the metro to our destination. I am excited to propose this field trip to the administration team at my school.
Gerlinde GoschiI enjoyed our visit to the Korean Cultural Center. Our docent was very kind and knowledgeable. It is a well known fact that Seoul is a very popular spot for plastic surgery. Our docent mentioned it as well. I couldn’t help but think of Prof. Robin R. Wang’s lecture and her article “Ideal Womanhood in Chinese Thought and Tradition” and what the ideal Confucian woman would think about it? I think this would be interesting to compare in a class discussion. It would be just a general discussion about how different is it?
Gerlinde GoschiThis was my third time visiting this museum. The first time, I went through the exhibits studying the artifacts and photos. The second time, I spent a lot of time in the museum’s library looking and reading through the many volumes of testimonies and historical writings. This third time, however, my colleagues and I had the honor of being led by a docent who was a survivor of an Internment Camp. Our docent was a child during his stay in the camp and recalled amazing details of everyday life at the camp and relocation process. One story that struck me was the unwillingness of the US government to give those Japanese soldiers who volunteered to fight in WWII in Europe for the USA relatives in the internment camp their freedom. That stunned me! But, this happened and it was accepted during that era in history.
Gerlinde GoschiThis is a great idea for a lesson or discussion. I would add in my class a couple of pictures from today's historical moments or events happening today and ask students to compare it to the pictures of the smiling faces in the prison camps. Do photos depict what the eyes of the viewer tell him/her? This is a provoking question that will stimulate a lot of good discussion and debate in class. Students would first take notes on a graphic organizer and then participate in a class discussion with the pictures as evidence.
Gerlinde GoschiIn this session Prof. Tran enlightened me about the history of women and gender in China. I learned a lot about the female heroes and the important difference they made. In “Sources of Chinese Tradition,” He Zhen’s advice to women is a universal one which extends past her period. “As long as you depend on others, you cannot be free. …” He Zhen continues by asserting that this leads to the oppression of females and concludes that the dependence of one person on others is “not at all a good idea.” This is true today as well. He Zhen that practicing communism will allow one to grow her own food naturally and hence allow a person to be independent. He Zhen was way ahead of her time. The article shows that she was the radical feminist as Prof. Tran said whose ideas and philosophies transcended time.
Gerlinde GoschiIn this session Prof. Wang has clarified for me the relationship between Yin and Yang and the beauty of its interdependence and the complementation of one another. Prof. Wang identifies the problem of yingyang gender identification as the thought and belief that the yin and yang can be defined or pinpointed. Instead it should be looked at as a change depending on the context. It should be thought of as it being fluid and in constant flux. It is not even necessarily a balance between the two but rather a coexisting of the two. My favorite quote of the morning:
“In public … be a Confucian.
At home … be a Daoist.
At death … be a Buddhist.”
Gerlinde GoschiI’ll be able to use the stories by You Jin in many of my lessons. I love the positive messages within the stories as young students as well as older ones are able to relate to these. I would bring the morals of stories like An Orchid in Bloom during carpet time in my class. For example, in this story, the teacher goes out of her way to help Lan Hua,a girl who uses vulgar language in class and breaks the rules. This is a very common situation for many teachers. Lan Hua’s teacher goes out of her way to put her in a leadership position. This causes a transformation in Lan Hua and she doesn’t use vulgar language or breaks the rules anymore. Instead of reading a story,I would retell An Orchid in Bloom to my younger students and ask them what they learned?
Gerlinde GoschiThank you to Prof. Bernards for the wealth of resources he shared with us today. I now want to watch all the movies and start reading Chinese literature regularly as well as incorporate it into my classes. I am a fan of the director Zhang Yimou. I watched a few of his films including To Live and Flowers of War, which I both recommend to my colleagues. To Live (released in 1994) is a great story and a powerful movie that takes the audience through the Chinese Civil War, the Great Leap Forward, and the Cultural Revolution and explores the hardships, trials and challenges a family perseveres through. I think the book To Live by Yu Hua would be interesting to read and I am grateful for the suggestions by Prof. Bernards. The author of the book Waiting, Ha Jin, wrote about the book: “Yu Hua writes with a cold eye and a warm heart, His novels are ingeniously structured and exude a mythical aura. Though unmistakably Chinese, they are universally resonant.” This is true, I believe, of the film Late Spring directed by Yasujiro Ozu. Many of the scenes remind the audience of experiences in one’s own life and its daily tribulations.
Gerlinde GoschiProf. Yasar mentioned that the German director Wim Wenders produced the documentary Tokyo-Ga about the Japanese director Yasujiro Ozo. In my research about this, I came across this excerpt of Wender’s narrating voice “ If there were still sanctuaries in our century … if there was something like a holy treasure of cinema for me, that would be the work of Japanese director Yasujiro Ozu. He made 54 films. Silent movies in the 1920s, black and white films in the 1930s and 1940s and finally color film until his death on the 12th December 1963, on his 60th birthday.” This next analysis done by Wenders reminds me of the one done by Mauricio F. Castro in his the article Vanished Men, Complex Women: Gender, Remembrance, and Reform in Ozu’s Postwar Films: “ Although these films are distinctly Japanese, they are also global. In them I recognized all families, in all countries in the world, as well as my own parents, my brother and myself. Never before and never again was film so close to its essence and its purpose. Showing an image of the human in our century. A useable, true and valid image, one in which he cannot only see himself but rather learn something about himself.” (https://wimwendersstiftung.de/en/film/tokyo-ga-2/#) I would incorporate the documentary and the Wenders comments into a lesson that allows students to research these elements.
Gerlinde GoschiWhat an amazing message Naomi Kawase sends to the world in her TED Talk. I was moved by her eloquence, strength, humility, elegance and beauty. I think this is a must see for all students today. Our colleague mentioned how she tries to bring in positive message to girls in her classes. What better way, I would dare say! I will definitely incorporate her talk into my classes. As Prof. Yasar ended his session … no one can top that!
Gerlinde GoschiI loved her talk as well. I am trying to find a movie I could watch as I think it would be as beautiful as her TED talk. These true connections are so important, especially, for us teachers. I know that most of us know the names of our students. However, if you teach many classes, you have to know so many names. It is so important to know them though. Just like connecting with students on a personal level to encourage them is so vital. This is a very elementary remark, but I thought of it when I watched her video in class.
