This class draws on theories of narrative from Western and Asian art and literature to explore various exemplars of Japanese narrative art. Lectures will survey the history of visual storytelling in Japan from the seventh to twenty-first centuries, emphasizing close visual and textual analysis. Lively class discussions explore a range of issues concerning narrative in Japan, including visual modes of storytelling in the scroll format, concepts of literary and pictorial genres in the premodern period, and the functions of picture scrolls as tools of persuasion, repositories for nostalgic visions of the classical past, vehicles for the mythologization of religious institutes, and stages for satiric representation. The objects to be analyzed range from twelfth-century Genji scrolls to modern animation, with special emphasis on illustrated texts. All are welcome to attend. Estimated cost of materials: $50 or more, but less than $100. III. 2, 3