This course examines the interrelationship of concepts and practices of what we may term "revolutionary womanhood" and "revolutionary culture" (in the spheres of literature, cinema, arts, mass print media, and cultural associations and institutions) in different modern national, anti-imperialist, and socialist movements of the early to mid-20th century across East Asia. "Revolution" and "woman" were key terms, representing "new" subjectivities, collectivities, and arenas for imagining/enacting the transformation of the political, social, and cultural realms in China, Japan, and Korea. When brought together under different frameworks of "revolutionary womanhood" what new possibilities emerged for these imagined and real transformations? We will explore the expressions and meanings of "revolutionary womanhood" in different cultural genres and media, examine the historical contexts of each revolutionary moment/movement, and engage with scholarship on the intersections between ideas and practices of revolution, culture, and gender. While attentive to particular local contexts, we will also explore the intra-regional circulation of concepts of "revolution," "culture" and "woman" and their changing meanings across the period in East Asia. We will also engage in further comparative analysis with other revolutionary cultures transnationally, including but not limited to pre- and post-1917 Russia, Europe and the U.S., with which ideas and practices of "revolution" and "new womanhood" in East Asia had deep practical and imagined connections. In this sense, we will explore the transnational (or internationalist) dimensions and visions of revolutionary women's cultures in East Asia.

All primary works will be in English translation, but students with knowledge of Chinese, Japanese and Korean are encouraged to read works in the original languages. Students whose research interests include histories of 19th and 20th century revolutionary movements and cultures and questions of gender outside of East Asia are very welcome to join the course.