Lecture

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Religious activity is a central feature of social life in contemporary Taiwan, a condition with deep historical roots. In fact, these sorts of performances of belief contributed to the construction of modern Taiwanese identities as religion became a contested field of action following Taiwan’s colonization by Japan in 1895, and its recolonization by the Republic of China in 1945. In this talk, drawn from his book Becoming Taiwanese: Ethnogenesis in a Colonial City, 1880s-1950s (Harvard Asia Center, 2019), Dr.

In the last decade, technological advancements have enabled a boom in the use of computer assisted language learning (CALL) for Japanese language learning. Recent research (Zimmerman and McMeekin, 2019) shows how new directions are breaking ground, moving beyond the drill-based behaviorist/structural approach of previous decades into areas of inquiry that focus on more integrative and even ecological approaches to technology use.

Communist revolution in the 20th century was reliant on a profound change in individual consciousness. It is not surprising that communist ideology spoke forcefully and often about creating “new people.” Revolutionary China was no different. But how did Chinese communists at various levels, from Mao Zedong to village cadres, understand their work to transform individual consciousness? What did “Maoism” mean in the everyday?

Although India became independent in August 1947, community leaders were planning for an independent state long before. Focusing on the ways that Indian Dalit and women activists attempted to redefine ideas of democracy and unity to make Indian politics more open to them, Dr. Emily Rook-Koepsel will draw attention to minority attempts to reconceptualize universal citizenship, Indian identity, dissent, and principled democracy during a moment of uncertainty in India’s political life. Please join us on Tuesday, April 14 at 2 PM on Zoom (online).

Join us for a lecture by Dr. Rosalind Galt, "Return of the PONTIANAK: Southeast Asian Horror as Postcolonial Cinema."
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Japanese video games have had a significant impact on the medium worldwide. Dr. Rachael Hutchinson considers how ‘Japan’ has been packaged for domestic and overseas consumers through these games. Ultimately, she argues that Japanese artists have expressed similar ideas in the video game medium as in older narrative forms such as literature and film.

Forty years ago, Margaret Thatcher declared that “there is no alternative.” State socialism was dying and capitalism, restructured as neoliberalism, was ascendant. The collapse of state socialism in 1991 seemed to hammer the last nail into socialism’s coffin and vindicate Thatcher’s prophecy. Fast forward to today—socialism is back. However, the road to socialism is not easy. Today’s socialists cannot simply be dreamers. They must also be realists.

There has been a resurgence of the Left since the 2008 Great Recession. A class-based politics, dormant for so long, has finally returned to mainstream political discourse. But what is this Left? What are its goals, possibilities and limitations? How will it organize itself for the politics of the 21st century? This live interview with Jodi Dean will discuss her book trilogy that provokes us to rethink and even revisit the Left with a renewed vision of communism, a efficacy of the political party, and the ethics and spirit of comradeship.