Asia is home to some of the world's ancient civilizations; it is also rapidly changing. Sewanee's Asian Studies Program tries to introduce students to Asia as a culturally rooted but dynamic region. Our courses introduce students to Asian civilizations' fundamental building blocks such as Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, Hinduism, family structure, symbolism, language and ethics. Through the curriculum, students come to appreciate the depth and vitality of these basic organizing principles, as well as their resonance in modern Asia. Yet, our faculty also instruct students in twentieth century Asia's economic dynamism, popular music, changing forms of art, and film.
The Asian Studies curriculum challenges students to understand Asia's rapid changes and cultural rootedness. One aspect of that change is geographic. No longer content to conceptualize "Asia" as a continent, the Asian Studies Program has begun to offer courses on "Asia" in other parts of the world, including the spread of Asian diasporas throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, and other parts of the world. We are able to offer both Chinese and Japanese language and literature, as well as related courses on film, popular culture, gender, politics, religion, history, and more.
You are welcome to come and learn more about Asia with our faculty. The Asian Studies Program offers major and a minor courses of study and a wide variety of courses (and study abroad) for students who wish to know more about Asia and its people.
