OVERVIEW.
By reading from the diverse selections in this unit, students have the opportunity to consider the role of ancient philosophies, universal themes, Western influence, and historical change in these works. Students should recognize that not all literary works make explicit political or cultural statements and that they must be approached on their own terms. In order to enrich their understanding, students investigate the historical background for selected works, as well as author biographies.
By reading from the diverse selections in this unit, students have the opportunity to consider the role of ancient philosophies, universal themes, Western influence, and historical change in these works. Students should recognize that not all literary works make explicit political or cultural statements and that they must be approached on their own terms. In order to enrich their understanding, students investigate the historical background for selected works, as well as author biographies.
FOCUS STANDARDS
- RL.9-10.2: Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze in detail its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.
- RL.9-10.3: Analyze how complex characters develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or develop the theme.
- RL.9-10.5: Analyze how an author's choices concerning how to structure a text, order events within it (e.g., parallel plots), and manipulate time (e.g., pacing, flashbacks) create such effects as mystery, tension, or surprise.
- RI.9-10.1: Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
- RI.9-10.4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language of a court opinion differs from that of a newspaper).
- W.9-10.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas, concepts, and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
- W.9-10.7: Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.
- W.9-10.10: Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes, and audiences.
- SL.9-10.1: Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions with diverse partners on grades 9-10 topics, texts, and issues, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
OBJECTIVES
- Explore ancient and modern works of literature from Asian countries, particularly China, India, and Japan.
- Consider how Asian literature both draws on and questions cultural traditions.
- Consider how certain Asian authors integrate Western literary influences into their cultural contexts.
LITERARY TEXTS
ART, MUSIC, and MEDIA
MEDIA
MEDIA
- Chinese Poems of the Tang and Sung Dynasties: Read by Lo Kung-Yuan in Northern Chinese, Peking Dialect (Folkways Records, 1963)
- Akira Kirosawa, dir., Rashomon (1950)
- Zhang Yimou, dir., Curse of the Golden Flower (2006)
YUE MINJUN (China)
Yue Minjun is a contemporary Chinese artist known for his self-portraiture. Critics have labeled his practice as part of the Cynical Realism movement in China, alongside artists Fang Lijun and Liu Wei, though this is a label that he refutes. Often depicting laughter in a variety of multiplicitous poses or landscapes, Yue’s Pop aesthetics are influenced by Surrealism in their use of bright colors and bizarre, dreamlike imagery. He offers his works as a form of social and political critique, confronting Chinese history while conversing with the Western canon. “I always found laughter irresistible,” the artist has said of his signature smiling figures. Born in 1962 in Daqing City, Heilongjiang Province, China, Yue studied art at Hebei Normal University in the 1980s and is a painter, sculptor, and printmaker. Yue currently lives and works in Beijing, China. |
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KOSAL KHIEV (Thailand)
Kosal Khiev was born in a refugee camp in Thailand, grew up in the United States, and discovered spoken word poetry while serving 14 years in prison for attempted murder. Upon release, he was deported or "exiled" to Cambodia, a country he had never before seen. There he was chosen as the poet to represent Cambodia at the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. Khiev's first book is Finding Home, and his story as a poet and Khmer-exiled American is featured in the documentary film "Cambodian Son" and the webseries "Verses in Exile." |
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IMAGE GALLERY 1: Japan
IMAGE GALLERY 2: China
IMAGE GALLERY 3: South Asia and Himalayas