13th Asian Studies Conference Japan, June 20-21, 2009
Michael Watson
The program for this year's ASCJ is now online. The conference will be
held in Sophia University--our first time on the Yotsuya main campus.
With 47 sessions and some 180 speakers, this is the largest ASCJ ever.
It is also a good year for pre-modern and early modern studies. Topics
include:
Session 8 (papers on medieval literature and history by Erin
Brightwell, Csaba Olah, and Daniel Schley)
Session 12: Conceptual Change and State Formation in Early Modern and
Modern Japan (papers by Douyoung Park, Andre Linnepe, and Michael
Burtscher, discussed by Yuri Kono)
Session 16: Intersections of Religion and Literature in Pre-modern
Japan (papers by Ignacio Quiros, Molly Vallor, Sayoko Sakakibara, and
David Gundry, discussed by Haruko Wakabayashi)
Session 20: Changing Conceptions of the Enduring in Edo Japan (papers
by Niels van Steenpaal, WIlliam Fleming, and Yulia Frumer, discussed
by Kate Wildman Nakai)
Session 25: Performing Texts: Interaction and Interpretation in
Medieval Ritual Practices (papers by Kigensan Licha, Benedetta Lomi,
Fumi Ouchi, and Carmen Tamas, chaired by Iyanaga Nobumi, discussed by
Fabio Rambelli)
Session 31: Conceptions, Modes and Structures of Noh in Films,
Objects, Poetry and Music (papers by Pia Schmitt, Titanilla Matrai,
Mariko Anno, Judy Halebsky, discussed by Susan Blakeley Klein and
Reiko Yamanaka)
Session 34: Over One Thousand Years of Koshiki: Points of View on the
History and Performance of a Buddhist Ritual Genre (papers by Steven
G. Nelson, David Quinter, Lori Meeks, Michaela Mross, discussed by
Niels Guelberg)
Session 36: (Roundtable) Representations of Travel and Cultural
Otherness in Japanese Arts and Literature (organized/chaird by Robert
Tierney)
I look forward to seeing many of you there.
Michael Watson
===================
13th Asian Studies Conference Japan, June 20-21, 2009. (X-posting
welcome.)
The thirteenth annual meeting of the Asian Studies Conference Japan
(ASCJ) will be held on the Yotsuya campus of Sophia University on
Saturday and Sunday, June 20-21, 2009. ASCJ is a regional conference
of the Association for Asian Studies (AAS).
The conference features 47 sessions (panels, roundtables, and
individual papers) on a wide range of subjects. All sessions are
conducted in English. For a full list of speakers and paper titles,
see the program:
http://www.meijigakuin.ac.jp/~ascj
This year ASCJ is pleased to welcome Robert Buswell of the Center for
Buddhist Studies, UCLA, Past President of the Association for Asian
Studies (2008-09). Professor Buswell will give the keynote address on
Saturday, June 20. The title of his talk is: "Korean Buddhism in East
Asian Context."
Online registration will end on June 10:
http://www.meijigakuin.ac.jp/~ascj/register/
For those who register online, the conference fee is 4,000 yen (2,000
yen for graduate students). This can be paid by credit card or by
domestic bank transfer. After June 10, registration must be done at
the conference at the onsite rate of 5,000 yen. The reception fee is
3,000 yen.
Registration and distribution of materials will open at 9:15 a.m. on
June 20. The conference will begin promptly at 10:00 a.m. Please
address inquiries to the Executive Committee at: ascj...@gmail.com.
SATURDAY JUNE 20
9:15- Registration
10:00 A.M.-5:30 P.M. Sessions 1-24
5:45 P.M.-6:30 P.M. Keynote Address
6:40 P.M.-8:20 P.M. Reception
SUNDAY JUNE 21
9:15- Registration
9:30 A.M.-9:50 A.M. ASCJ Business Meeting
10:00 A.M.-5:15 P.M. Sessions 26-47
SATURDAY JUNE 20, 10:00 A.M.-12:00 NOON
Session 1
Discovering Diversity within Filipino Communities in Modern Japan,
Organiser/Chair: Mariko Iijima, Sophia University
Discussant: Shun Ohno, Kyushu University
Session 2
City, School, Enterprise, and Government: the Changing Landscape of
East Asian Societies in the 19th and Early 20th Centuries
Organizer/Chair: De-min Tao, Kansai University
Discussant: Masato Kimura, Shibusawa Ei’ichi Memorial Foundation
Session 3
Old Responsibilities Never Die; They Just Fade Away? Approaching War
Responsibility in Modern and Contemporary East Asia
Organizer: May-yi Shaw, Harvard University
Discussant: Katsumi Nakao, J. F. Oberlin University
Session 4
Microhistorical Approaches to Understanding Japanese Modernity
Organizer/Chair: Atsuko Aoki, Brown University/Rikkyo University
Discussant: Mark E. Caprio, Rikkyo University
Session 5
An Apology for "Drop Dead Cute ": The Global Context of Japanese
Contemporary Popular Culture and Aesthetics
Organizer/Chair: Dong-Yeon Koh, The Korea National University of Arts
Discussant: Marie Thorsten, Doshisha University
Session 6
Individual Papers on Asian Politics and History
Session 7
Un-(dis-)covering Bodily and Linguistic Spaces in Oba Minako and
Tawada Yoko’s Oeuvre
Organizer/Chair: Danuta Lacka, University of Tokyo
Discussant: Yoichi Komori, University of Tokyo
Session 8
Individual Papers on Japanese Culture and History
SATURDAY JUNE 20, 1:15 P.M.-3:15 P.M.
Session 9
Gender and Migrants of Japanese Ancestry in Japan
Organizer: Hugo Cordova Quero, Center for Lusophone Studies, Sophia
University
Chair: Alberto Fonseca Sakai, Josai International University
Discussant: Keiko Yamanaka, University of California at Berkeley
Session 10
Culture, Tradition and Challenges in Japanese Music Education
Organizer/Chair: Mari Shiobara, Tokyo Gakugei University
Discussant: Hiroki Ichinose, Tokyo Gakugei University
Session 11
Forgotten Words: Revisiting Colonial Indonesian Literature
Organizer/Chair: Nobuto Yamamoto, Keio University
Discussant: Caroline Sy Hau, Kyoto University
Session 12
Conceptual Change and State Formation in Early Modern and Modern Japan
Organizer/Chair: Doyoung Park, University of Illinois at Urbana-
Champaign
Discussant: Yuri Kono, Tokyo Metropolitan University
Session 13
Individual Papers on Contemporary Japanese Cultural Production
Session 14
Economics, Security, and Leadership: Northeast Asian Integration in
the Post-Cold War Era
Organizer/Chair: Joel R. Campbell, Kansai Gaidai University
Session 15
Soseki’s City
Organizer: Dan O’Neill, University of California at Berkeley
Chair: Angela Yiu, Sophia University
Discussant: Kyoko Kurita, Pomona College
Session 16
Intersections of Religion and Literature in Pre-modern Japan
Organizer/Chair: Molly Vallor, Stanford University/Rikkyo University
Discussant: Haruko Wakabayashi, Historiographical Institute, the
University of Tokyo
SATURDAY JUNE 20, 3:30 P.M.-5:30 P.M
Session 17
Education and the New Second Generation of Immigrants in Japan: The
Case of Japanese Brazilian Migrants
Discussant: Yoshikazu Shiobara, Keio University
Session 18
Contested Identity: Gender, Nation and "Chineseness " in Ming-Qing
Fiction and Drama
Organizer/Chair: Fumiko Joo, University of Chicago/University of Tokyo
Discussant: Yasushi Oki, the University of Tokyo
Session 19
Individual Papers on Asian Cultural History
Session 20
Changing Conceptions of the Enduring in Edo Japan
Organizer: Yulia Frumer, Princeton University
Chair: William Fleming, Harvard University
Discussant: Kate Wildman Nakai, Sophia University
Session 21
Meaning Behind Eating in Contemporary Japan
Organizer/Chair: Chrissie Tate Reilly, Monmouth University
Discussants: Elizabeth Andoh, independent scholar
Session 22
Postwar Social Movements across Japan and the United States:
Connections and Conflicts
Organizer: Yuko Kawaguchi, University of Tokyo
Discussant: Yosuke Nirei, Indiana University South Bend
Session 24
Parodic Positions in the Japanese Literary Tradition
Organizer: Marc Yamada, Brigham Young University
Chair: Jack Stoneman, Brigham Young University
Discussant: Indra Levy, Stanford University
Session 25
Performing Texts: Interaction and Interpretation in Medieval Ritual
Practices
Organizers: Benedetta Lomi, SOAS, Fumi Ouchi, Miyagi Gakuin University
Discussant: Fabio Rambelli, Sapporo University
KEYNOTE ADDRESS
"Korean Buddhism in East Asian Context "
Robert Buswell
President of the Association for Asian Studies (2008-09)
Center for Buddhist Studies, UCLA
6:10 P.M.-6:55 P.M.
RECEPTION: 7:00 P.M.-8:40 P.M.
SUNDAY JUNE 21, ASCJ Business Meeting, 9:30 A.M.-9:50 A.M.
SUNDAY JUNE 21, 10:00 A.M.-12:00 A.M.
Session 26
Pan-Asianism: A Documentary History of an Ideology
Organizer: Dick Stegewerns, Oslo University
Chair: Sven Saaler, Sophia University
Discussant: Christopher W.A. Szpilman, Kyushu Sangyo University
Session 27
Redrawing the Map: Displacement and Geography in Song-Yuan Literary
and Visual Discourses
Organizer: Shuen-fu Lin, University of Michigan
Chair: Benjamin Ridgway, Valparaiso University
Discussant: Lara Blanchard, Hobart and William Smith Colleges
Session 28
All for the Empire: Our Learning, Our Body, Our Labor, and All!
Organizer/Chair: Helen Lee, Yonsei University
Discussant: Leslie Winston, Waseda University
Session 29
Early Twentieth-Century Japanese Women’s Schools as Sites of
International Exchange
Organizer: Sally A. Hastings, Purdue University
Chair: Anne Walthall, University of California Irvine
Discussant: Anne Walthall, University of California Irvine
Session 30
Japan and the Soviet Specter: Reconsidering the Image of the Soviet
Union in Japanese Politics and Foreign Policy
Organizer: Akira Watanabe, Keio University
Chair: Shingo Yoshida, Keio University
Discussant: Mizuki Chuman, Keio University
Session 31
Conceptions, Modes and Structures of Noh in Films, Objects, Poetry and
Music
Organizer: Pia Schmitt, Waseda University
Chair: Judy Halebsky, Hosei University
Discussants: Susan Blakeley Klein, University of California
Reiko Yamanaka, Institute of Nogaku Studies, Hosei University
Session 32
Competitive Collaboration in Haute Finance: Japan and the West in the
Interwar Period
Organizer/Chair: Katalin Ferber, Waseda University
Discussant: Kobayashi Hideo, Waseda University
SUNDAY JUNE 21, 1:00 P.M.-3:00 P.M
Session 33
Individual Papers on Gender in Asia
Session 34
Over One Thousand Years of Koshiki: Points of View on the History and
Performance of a Buddhist Ritual Genre
Organizer/Chair: Michaela Mross, Komazawa University
Discussant: Niels Guelberg, Waseda University
Session 35
How Japan Works: Patterns of Diversification in the Labor Market
Organizer/Chair: Volker Elis, German Institute for Japanese Studies
(DIJ)
Discussant: Yukiko Yamazaki, Tokyo University
Session 36
Border Crossing, Social History, and Japan’s Foreign Relations during
the Early 20th Century
Organizer/Chair: Evan Dawley, U.S. Department of State
Discussant: William Steele, International Christian University
Session 37
Producing Japanese Visual Modernity, 1920s-1930s
Organizer: Kari Shepherdson-Scott, Duke University
Chair: Chinghsin Wu, University of California, Los Angeles
Discussants: Nancy Lin, University of Chicago; Olivier Krischer,
University of Tsukuba
Session 38
Individual Papers on Showa Culture
Session 39
Representations of Travel and Cultural Otherness in Japanese Arts and
Literature
Chair/Organizer: Robert Tierney, University of Illinois at Urbana
Champaign
Session 40
Buddhism and Local Modernization
Organizer/Chair: Alexandre Benod, University of Lyon 3 (IETT)/Keio
University
Discussant: Yoshihide Sakurai, Hokkaido University
SUNDAY JUNE 21, 3:15 P.M.- 5:15 P.M
Session 41
Reorienting Transcendence: Religion in Modern Japan
Organizer/Chair: Viren Murthy, University of Ottawa
Discussant: Nakajima Takahiro, the University of Tokyo
Session 42
Individual Papers on Migration and Gender
Session 43
The Diplomacy of the Gaimudaijin: Socio-Political Changes in Japanese
Foreign Policy from the Manchurian Incident to Pearl Harbor
Organizer/Chair: Tosh Minohara, Kobe University
Discussant: Haruo Iguchi, Nagoya University
Session 44
Reflection of Modern China in Foreign Eyes: A Study of Journals,
Novels, Critics from the Perspective of Cultural Interaction and Cross-
Culture Understanding
Organizer/Chair: Chen Yu, Kansai University
Discussant: Jian Zhao, Tokiwakai Gakuen University
Session 45
Wishes and Choices in Life and Living: Family, Home and Work in
Changing Japan
Organizer/Chair: Kristina Iwata-Weickgenannt, German Institute for
Japanese Studies, DIJ
Discussant: Glenda Roberts, Waseda University
Session 46
The War of Another: Natsume Soseki, Shiga Naoya, Shimazaki Toson
Organizer: Chien-Hui Chuang, Osaka University
Chair: Irina Holca, Osaka University
Discussant: George Sipos, Chicago University/Ritsumeikan University
Session 47
Explored, Exploited, and Exposed: Mapping Histories and Traditions of
Mountaineering in Japan
Organizer: David Fedman, Hokkaido University of Education
Chair: Takehiro Watanabe, Sophia University
Discussant: Karen Wigen, Stanford University
For a full list of speakers and paper titles, see the online program:
http://www.meijigakuin.ac.jp/~ascj
===================
Thomas Conlan
I have found the common translations of Buddhist sogo offices as
"bishop" or "archbishop" to be confusing and anachronistic. After
discussing this issue with Jackie Stone, we have come up with a
preliminary attempt to translate sogo offices in a more systematic
fashion as follows:
Senior primary prelate (daisojo)
Primary prelate (sojo)
Junior primary prelate (gon sojo)
Prelate (daisozu)
Junior prelate (gon daisozu)
Lesser prelate (shosozu)
Junior lesser prelate (gonshosozu)
Macrons are omitted for ease of email transmission. Criticisms and
comments are most welcome.
Best wishes,
Tom Conlan
Bowdoin College
Lewis Cook
"prelate" and "primate" in English, apropos the translation of
"sojo," etc.? (And all that follows.) Might we not better rely on
footnotes, as needed, for scholarly purposes, and some free-fall
version of the vulgate for the rest?
L Cook
Robert Borgen
translate Buddhist offices, I also think that translations should be
consistent and at least a little euphonious. "Primary prelate"
sounds like the start of a tongue twister ("The primary prelate
prepared to preside over the principle preacher's presentation").
Furthermore, if "dai" is "senior," why is "gon," not "sho," junior?
And why are both sojo and sozu "prelates"? Furthermore, whereas
"prelate" suggests a position within the church hierarchy, "sojo" and
the like, at least originally, were "sokan," i.e. "monk officials"
appointed by the government and responsible for overseeing the
behavior of their clerics. One translation I've considered is
"superintendent of monks." One could fill out the ranks by adding
the necessary adjectives and start from "greater head superintendent
of monks" and work one's way down to "provisional lesser
superintendent of monks." Granted, these aren't models of euphony
either, but I think they may be reasonably accurate and consistent.
Or maybe Lewis Cook is right and it's a lost cause.
Robert Borgen
Richard Bowring
You might want to look at the discussion I have of this problem on
the first 6 pages of my book. Using 'prelate' (which would be a good
Latin translation for 'sensei') instead of 'bishop' et al still
suggests an organised single Church, which is precisely what Buddhism
in Japan was not. I fear the problem is intractable.
Richard Bowring
robin d. gill
--
"Rise, Ye Sea Slugs!"
Thomas Conlan
nearly all the ecclesiastical terms used in English have institutional
connotations that differ profoundly from the situation in Japan.
Offering no translation, and instead footnoting each sogo office may
work best, but I wanted to attempt something in English.
Often particular sogo offices are translated in such as way that makes
it difficult to express the hierarchy, and I think that this mattered
more than the content of the office per se, particularly in the Heian
through Muromachi eras.
Yes, prelate remains a problematic term. I refrained from 'primate'
however, because to write of "The primate Monkan" would be too
distracting to too many readers. Too many simian overtones (perhaps I
am overly sensitive to the bad pun, however). But I am not overly
happy with prelate, nor the fact that I use it for both sojo and sozu.
I will think about the idea of 'superintendent of monks" although the
translation does become a bit unwieldy, and it may work better in an
earlier historical context.
To reiterate, I simply wanted to express this hierarchy in a way that
would work in English. I tried a functional translation that expresses
the hierarchy in its totality. I originally translated gon as
provisional, but that word is misleading, for it implies that the
office was more temporary or provisional than was actually the case.
That led to 'junior'. I felt that giving a sense of the relative rank
of each position mattered more than ensuring that dai was invariably
translated as 'senior' and 'sho' as junior although others may
disagree. No ideal options exist and I continue wrestle with what is
in fact the least bad option.
I will continue exploring and thinking about this issue; thank you all
for your insightful comments.
Tom Conlan
Alexander Vovin
think there are two other still to be addressed.
First, these translations are rather meaningless -- no offense meant
-- to someone like myself who comes from a Greek Othodox denomination
background. In addition, I hope I did not infringe on any copyright
issue here, but just out of interest I presented the list to the class
of German students of mine (mostly Protestant and most of them with
good command of English) about two hours ago, and they could do no
more sense of it than I did. This, I humbly trust, brings us to the
point that even within the Christendom, the translation tags are not
universal.
Second, imho, I think we should differentiate between
literary-oriented and academically-oriented translations. In the
former, everything that can be translated for the smoother consumption
of the reader probably should be translated. In the latter, we can
take the liberty with footnotes and commentaries. Overall, however, as
one of my teachers taught me many years ago, any translation of a
title that is more than three words (excluding articles and
prepositions for less flective languages) is extremely awkward. I am
afraid I share his views today (:-).
Best wishes,
Sasha Vovin
============
Alexander Vovin
Interim Chair and Professor (2008-2009)
Department of the Japanese Language and Literature
University of Bochum, Germany
Professor of East Asian Languages (on leave 2008-2009)
Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures
University of Hawai'i at Manoa, USA
========================
iustitiam magni facite, infirmos protegite
Morgan Pitelka
Surely the issue here is not whether these terms resonate for us as
individuals but what they accomplish for Tom and Jackie in specific
research and writing contexts. The historic and institutional nuances
of titles like "prelate" could be quite useful for someone who wants
to be comparative or make certain points about power and hierarchy in
Buddhist organizations. I hope we are not just writing for the members
of this list, all of whom read Japanese primary texts and secondary
scholarship and therefore can make sense of untranslated or lightly
glossed terms such as sogo office names. I think we should applaud Tom
and Jackie for trying to deal with these terms in a systematic way and
hope they will use these translations, or similar ones, if they find
them to be useful analytical and communicative tools.
Morgan
*****************
Morgan Pitelka
Associate Professor and Chair
Asian Studies Department
Occidental College
Swan Hall S115, M8
1600 Campus Road
Los Angeles, CA 90041
mpit...@oxy.edu
*****************
andrew edmund goble
Reischauer's Early Japanese History Part B has a shot at translation, under Sogo (macrons omitted).
The "high priest" seems quaint, but perhaps some variation on his suggestions might be less problematic than the recent suggestions?
Andrew Goble
Andrew Edmund Goble
Associate Professor of Japanese History and of Religious Studies
Department of History
1288 University of Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403-1288
(541) 346-4800
FAX (541) 346-4895
Jacqueline Stone
posting about our translation of Sogo titles. Your suggestions and
criticisms were most illuminating. Just to clarify: As Tom specified in his
original post, ours is indeed a "provisional" translation; we are both well
aware of the near-intractable difficulties such terms present, and that
different contexts (and different scholarly preferences) will demand
different translations. We certainly did not intend to propose a definitive
version! However, as we had put some thought into coming up with English
equivalents that would be internally consistent and reflect the hierarchy of
Sogo positions, we decided to post them in case anyone else might find them
useful. I appreciate the helpful comments and will continue to wrestle with
this issue.
Jackie Stone
Princeton University
Dept. of Relgiion
Thomas Conlan
I would like to thank everyone for their helpful comments. I wanted
to add that, incorporating RIchard Bowring's and Michael Pye's
suggestions, an alternative and internally consistent translation of
the sogo hierarchy is as follows:
Chief sangha prefect (daisôjô)
Sangha prefect (sôjô)
Deputy sangha prefect (gon sôjô)
Sangha administrator (daisôzu)
Deputy sangha administrator (gon daisôzu)
Lesser sangha administrator (shôsôzu)
Deputy lesser sangha administrator (gon shôsozu)
Bowring's "prefect" has advantages over "prelate" or "priest" I think,
but probably other options exist as well. Furthermore, the question
of how to translate gon (as deputy, junior, or assistant) or for that
matter how to deal with dai (chief, head or not translate at all) will
require further consideration. Just wanted to provide another option
for your consideration.
Best wishes,
Tom Conlan
andrew edmund goble
Sounds like a boarding school.
Andrew
Haruko Wakabayashi
Haruko Wakabayashi
Ruppert Brian
I happened to be away and came upon this fascinating and useful discussion today. My apologies for
the lateness of my note. Thanks so much to Jackie and Tom for bringing this important problem to our collective
attention.
My sense is that Andrew's comment below is actually quite insightful. The sense of these terms may differ
greatly depending on the situation, the audience (and even the genre). The key point is that while consistency
of use is essential, it will always be a difficult task to offer translations that are more than pale equivalencies of
the original terms.
For my part, I tend to use great archbishop, archbishop etc. The problem I have with a term like
prefect is that its primary meaning in modern English is related to civil offices (any dictionary will confirm this,
I believe). For example, the OED online describes one meaning of prefect as "The head or governor of a Chinese or Japanese prefecture," which would seem to constitute a potential problem.
As for prelate, it suffers from similar problems to archbishop etc. That is, if we look, for ex., at the Shorter Oxford-
English dictionary, "bishop" is associated primarily with Episcopal (and Catholic) churches, although it has a secondary meaning of referring to the chief priest of any religion; likewise, "prelate" is associated primarily with high rank in
the ecclesiasty, and secondarily with chief priests "of a religion other than Christianity, esp. the Jewish religion."
In other words, neither prelate nor bishop is satisfactory, although both refer to positions within ecclesiastical hierarchies, and have secondary meanings associated with religions other than Christianity.
Finally, I just wonder whether introducing the Sanskrit sangha into the mix is actually useful. I can't imagine offering
a lecture, for example, in which I mention either the sangha prefect or sangha administrator. I tend to translate the
sogo with something on the order of "Official Monastic Hierarchy," although I can't say I'm convinced that's necessarily
the best possibility. There are also other offices noted, for ex., in Sogo Bunin, and those can be quite difficult to translate,
like Hokkyo ("dharma-bridge").
A final problem is related to the context of the translation. The connotations of English terms are actually different depending upon the area in which the audience resides; even the academic audience in England may have different
associations for "prefect" or "bishop" than those in the US or India, and even within the US they may possess slightly
different associations. All of these factors help remind us that we have an impossible task at hand, albeit one that is necessary, unless we want to banter around Japanese terms in every sentence we publish--and simply assume that our
readers "get it."
Sorry for the long e-mail.
Take care,
Brian Ruppert
Jacqueline Stone
Would anyone be able to give me, off list, an e-mail address for Prof. Jean-Noël Robert of the École Pratique des Hautes Études? Thanks very much for your assistance.
Sincerely,
Jacqueline Stone
Dept. of Religion
Princeton University