ASIA 32901

About this course

This course examines social and cultural change in Japan from the end of World War II to the present through the study of food, family, work, and everyday life. Through film, recent television dramas, and literature, the course explores how food practices and the social relationships surrounding them have changed alongside postwar economic development, changing gender roles, economic insecurity, demographic change, and shifting expectations about marriage, family, and work. Students examine how cooking and eating reflect broader social values and institutions, as well as changing relationships within households, workplaces, and communities. Visual and literary works by major Japanese filmmakers and writers, including Yasujiro Ozu, Juzo Itami, and Kiyoshi Kurosawa, and socio-historical documents provide perspectives on the relationship between everyday experiences and broader social transformations in Japan since 1945.