This course looks into the dynamics of literature and politics in Vietnam and the Philippines by asking the following questions:  How have writers articulated their beliefs on colonialism, human rights, gender and class through poetry and fiction? When does ideology inform literary techniques?  How can we study specific genres such as prison literature, guerrilla literature, and underground newspapers and literary magazines?

The course focuses on Southeast Asian Performance, specifically Indonesian dances, and Philippine theater and music.  Discussions shall be guided by the following questions:  How have geography, religion, social structures, customs, and beliefs shaped indigenous performing art forms?  How are performing traditions revitalized in contemporary times? How have experiences of colonialism and social movements informed the work of performing artists? How can we read/view these works today?

This new, interdisciplinary seminar invites you to explore African American voices and visions of the Vietnam war through oral history, music, fiction, poetry, cinema and other primary sources.

In this seminar we will examine contemporary Southeast Asian society and culture through the lens of contemporary Southeast Asian films from two countries -- Vietnam and the Philippines.  In discussions about the films in class we will seek to understand how these films mirror modern and traditional aspects of the societies in which they were produced.  We will also consider the films as examples of current world cinema and vehicles of storytelling.

Five hours of lecture per week online in synchronous time. This is an intermediate class. The students shall learn four skills in the use of Filipino: paglalahad (explaining); paglalarawan (description); pagsasalaysay (narrating a story); and pangangatwiran (argumentation). Vocabulary is expanded through dialogues and essays. Each lesson shall have three components: reading to increase vocabulary and study grammatical structures; doing a role-play; and writing a dialogue or a paragraph. Other techniques are games, songs, and pair work.

Kenneth Wong teaches intermediate Burmese using excerpts from short stories by Ma Sandar, essays by Ludu Daw Amar, contemporary poems, pop song lyrics, and YouTube clips. Students learn to read, write, and talk about familiar topics, ranging from memorable trips and meals to daily routines and future aspirations, in simple discrete sentences with proper conjunctions.

The first semester (1A) focuses primarily on Colloquial (or Spoken) Burmese, with some excursions into the Literary Style, usually reserved for written communication. Students learn to speak in simulated conversations: as a shopkeeper in Bogyoke Market, a pilgrim on the way to Shwe Dagon, or a diner in a Mandalay restaurant. Students will study fragments of poetry, passages from short stories, song lyrics, and political cartoons, and attempt to compose their own poems, prose, song titles, and song lyrics.

This course is intended to help students with an intermediate knowledge of Vietnamese improve their capacity to read advanced literary texts. It enhances the speaking and listening skills of students and their writing ability. The course also provides an introduction to the literature and culture of Vietnam. Readings vary from semester to semester and will include novels, short stories, and poems from the classical, colonial, and contemporary periods. The course may also include Vietnamese modern songs and movies.

An introduction to modern spoken and written Vietnamese, designed for novice learner without any experience with the language. The first semester emphasizes phonetic concepts, syllable formations and tonal distinctions along with simple sentence structures in everyday topics. Class activities focus on reading and writing skills, based on involving intensive drill on phonology to learn vocabularies and grammatical structures to formulate contextual conversation.

An introduction to modern spoken and written Vietnamese, designed for novice learner without any experience with the language. The first semester emphasizes phonetic concepts, syllable formations and tonal distinctions along with simple sentence structures in everyday topics. Class activities focus on reading and writing skills, based on involving intensive drill on phonology to learn vocabularies and grammatical structures to formulate contextual conversation.