More Anime College and University Courses Being Offered 284
Ninja Master Gara writes "Anime News Network reports New York University is offering a new courses on the anime industry and culture. Anime is slowly expanding from University Clubs into mainstream college courses, many of which begin at the 'What is anime?' level. Several Universities and Community Colleges already offer similar courses, or incorporate anime into existing studies." If any school decides to offer a course on the Gundam series, I'd be happy to teach a class.
Ought to be an advanced course (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Anime Sucks (Score:0, Insightful)
it had to happen (Score:5, Insightful)
i am not arguing that people need not be given a grounding in the arts, far from it.. but lets face it folks, this is POP ART.. i doubt that other than the history of anime, this "course" can teach you anything that you and your friends can't learn by just sitting in front of the tube for a few brews and talking about it..
the point i am trying to make is that there is a LOT of art history out there.. stuff that people take for granted.. stuff that people don't BOTHER to learn...
Colleges are offering this kind of course to make you pay for a course that will not mean anything on your transcript (unless you are going into the anime field) and is nothing but grade padding.. in the same vein you may as well take a course in Britney Spears
don't get me wrong
Suchetha
Did the author just hit Google with... (Score:5, Insightful)
Anyway, I wonder how much they will be teaching what they think anime should be, versus what it really is? I ask as I've read this book on Takarazuka Revue [amazon.com] which describes it basically as a hot-bed of azn lezbo tranny pr0n, whereas everyone Japanese who I've spoken to (including my wife, who studied at the associated drama school and college) says it's just fantasy escapism, especially because the average real-life Japanese man is so crap, the otokoyaku[*] provide an idealised view of what men could be.
[*] Obligatory Japanese word inserted to pretend I know what I'm talking about.
Anime's roots (Score:3, Insightful)
gotta love how cultures mix and bounce things around.
You are WRONG sir! (Score:4, Insightful)
Why is anime any different. There is a wealth of ways one could approach the class. First you could look at the original artwork, in it's native culture. Then you can look at the citizen's response to it. Or you could examen foriegn audiences and their interest in the genre.
There is probably a great deal to learn, the best way to become wise is to teach yourself how to think, not what to think.
"Only when you are looking for them will the Red spades and Black Diamonds appear" - Ray (Christopher Lloyd, Interstate 60)
Re:Anime Sucks (Score:4, Insightful)
Anime 101 (Score:3, Insightful)
Sure, anime hasn't been very mainstream up until recently, but I have seen some absurd art classes in my life. I'm not lying, but I have seen classes advertised as being "Studies of Hungarian Art from the 13th Century". Well, a class on anime can't do much worse, can it?
The Dumbing Down of education (Score:0, Insightful)
Re:You are WRONG sir! (Score:2, Insightful)
there are enough geeks out there who you can get with and learn (like one of the people who replied to this thread said
compare that with spending $800 to sit in a class for a structured lesson.. which would YOU pick?
Suchetha
Why are they doing this? (Score:4, Insightful)
I could see them offering a course that uses anime as a sort of 'case study' for some real academic field, the way art majors examine a particular period or movement and fit it into their overall study of art.
Unfortunately, that's not what seems to be happening here. This looks like another pop-culture cop-out course.
I know people will get upset and point out that entertainment and pop-culture are worthy of study. That's true, but it should be serious study. If you want to teach a 100-level course on pop-culture, keep it broad and stress the basic themes and concepts of pop-culture with a variety of examples. If you want to focus on a specific medium/time-period/region combination, make an upper-level class that takes a specific academic perspective and targets a particular major.
In other words:
bad: Sociology 110 -- Sit-coms
good: Sociology 428 -- Sit-coms and wartime escapism in America
Re:Bachelor of Arts in Anime coming soon (Score:1, Insightful)
Re:what about (Score:1, Insightful)
There is a phenomenal amount of anime that is not only prescient, but superior, in a literary sense, to just about any mainstream entertainment this sorry-ass culture can muster.
Oh, and for you capitalist types, there are anime franchises that have financially beaten domestic animation beyond recognition so many times, accurate records were rendered impossible decades ago. Think ELEVEN FIGURES. Think fan bases in the HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS.
Joke's not quite so funny any more, is it, smartass?
Re:Stupidest class ever. (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:sure, this is usefull (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Bachelor of Arts in Anime coming soon (Score:2, Insightful)