When East Meets West: Buddhism During the Colonial Period

Description
Did you know that the popular image of Buddhism in the West has its roots in Asian reinterpretation of and Western fascination with Buddhism during the nineteenth- and early twentieth-century? Before its introduction to the West, particularly to the US, Buddhism became "prepackaged" as a rational, humanistic, ritual-free religion of direct Enlightenment experience as the result of Asian encounter with the West. This course will explore the history of Westerners' discovery of Buddhism as well as modernizing efforts made in various parts of Asia during the colonial period. Emphasis will be on the cases of Sri Lankan, Japanese and Tibetan Buddhism. In addition, the rhetoric of scientifically compatible Buddhism, the influence of German philosophy and Christian missionaries, Buddhism's rise to the World Religions and the "secondary" Orientalism among Asians will be closely examined. This course is designed to appeal to students interested in modern Asian history, Buddhism, and/or religion and modernity

Course Requirements/Evaluation Criteria
1. Attendance and Participation: You are expected to come to class on time and attend the class regularly. You should also complete the reading assignment before coming to the class and to be ready to take an active role in the class discussion. Under normal circumstances, students who miss more than two classes will not receive an evaluation. In case of absence, you must make every effort to contact the instructor and inform your absence prior to the class.

2. Weekly Online Reflection and Comment: You will be asked to write a weekly online reflection of 300-500 words. Similar to the style of a book review, you should discuss what you understood to be the key issues and comment on overall strength and weakness of each week's assigned reading. The reflection should include at least one discussion question for the class. You are also encouraged to read other student's reflections and leave at least two short comments (50-80 words each) on someone else's reflections. You will need to post your weekly reflection and question on our course website discussion board [http://athena. hampshire.edu/S294681] by midnight on Tuesday while your comment can be posted as late as 1:00 PM on Wednesday. This is a crucial component for the success of our seminar. Therefore, students should take this requirement very seriously. Students who fail to post more than two weekly reflections will not receive an evaluation.

3. Two Papers: You will be asked to write one short paper (4-6 pages) and one long research paper (8-12 pages). For both short and long papers, you will choose a topic of your own in consultation with the instructor. The first paper due on March 21st should concern mainly Buddhism in Europe, America and South Asia during the colonial period whereas the second paper due on May 7th should focus on Buddhism in East Asia and Tibet. You can choose to turn any one of the two papers into a long research paper and submit it on either of the two due dates. The paper will be evaluated based on accurate factual descriptions of the material as well as the level of critical reflection, well thought-out argument and clear and logical development of your thesis. All writing should be typed and free of spelling, stylistic, and grammatical errors. If you think that you will benefit from receiving outside help, please take advantage of the services provided by the Writing Center. Keep in mind that late papers will not be accepted, and plagiarism is strictly prohibited.

4. Class Presentations: Throughout this course, you will be paired up with other student(s) and invited to make two 35-40 minute long class presentations to the rest of the class. Presenters are expected to articulate and extend some of the key issues in our reading. You will have lots of latitude as far as what and how to make your presentation although the use of multiple media (e.g. power point, youtube, film, photo, music, bodily demonstration, drawing, map, handout, etc.) is strongly recommended. Your group will be evaluated not just the content of your presentation but also the effectiveness of your teaching performance. Therefore, try to meet with your group early and make your presentation as much interactive, creative and intellectually stimulating as possible. It is also possible to link your class presentations to the topics of your short and long papers.