Project 3 Ideas and Topics

Due on 4/23-4/28, either paper, wiki page, or work of art

10:25 Class

11:25 Class

Grading:

Make at least 2 links to your page:

• From your name (above to the page)
• From somewhere else on the wiki (highlight a word, link to your page)

You will be graded on several aspects of your project

• Mechanics (grammar, execution, etc...)
• Thesis (does the project/paper have a point?)
• Relevance to our class (relation of the individual to his/her society)
• Originality

Topics:

History & Culture

• The Japan-US Mutual Security Treaty
• The SDF forces
• The Japanese Red Army
• Yukio Mishima
• The Bubble Economy
• Choose any of the sidebar articles from the Wiki and analyze it
• AUM
• Hanshin Earthquake

Haruki Murakami

• Choose any 2 of the interviewees (victims) and compare their interviews to see how normal people in Japan react to the idea of responsibility to the group vs. duty to oneself.
• Choose any one of the AUM members and one victim and compare their thoughts, especially with an emphasis on being outsiders/insiders, duty to the group, etc...

*** For this option (if doing a wiki page), please provide a link from both names on the Underground page.**

Superflat

• Choose any one piece of art from Takashi Murakami or another artist in his stable and talk about how its composition or themes or media help illustrate the tensions between mainstream culture and underground culture
• Choose any member of Superflat (other than Takashi Murakami) and talk about their work and how it strives to outsiderness
• Choose any other visual artist and compare him/her to Murakami or any of the Superflat artists.

Music

• Choose any one Japanese underground music artist or band and talk about how they illustrate the tensions between mainstream culture and underground culture.
• Write a music review of the CD I gave you. For a few examples of the kind of writing I'm looking for, go to:
  • Pitchfork
  • Popmattters