Course Information
Course title
Exploring Taiwan: Film and Social Culture in Taiwan 
Semester
104-2 
Designated for
 
Instructor
KUO JEN-FENG 
Curriculum Number
LibEdu1050 
Curriculum Identity Number
H01E05000 
Class
 
Credits
Full/Half
Yr.
Half 
Required/
Elective
 
Time
Friday 8,9(15:30~17:20) 
Remarks
The upper limit of the number of students: 65. 
Ceiba Web Server
http://ceiba.ntu.edu.tw/1042LibEdu1050_ 
Course introduction video
 
Table of Core Capabilities and Curriculum Planning
Association has not been established
Course Syllabus
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Course Description

In this course we look closely at several Taiwanese films over the past two decades, and through them we intend to understand what prominent phenomena and changes have been taking place in Taiwan’s social culture. As some of the films speak to the current socio-political conditions on this island, some reflect an emerging cultural trend, while others indicate social problems and propose what we can do in response. In any case, those films present themselves as various attempts to make conversations with Taiwanese society and Taiwanese people, and in this course we “read” those films as we also consider and discuss crucial social issues in Taiwan. 

Course Objective
待補 
Course Requirement
Each week the students will be asked to engage the recommended readings or films, most of which will be topics of class discussion. They will be encouraged to pursue readings/films beyond the recommendations. How the students respond to the discussions will be considered their overall performance in this course. 
Student Workload (expected study time outside of class per week)
 
Office Hours
Appointment required. 
Designated reading
Davis, Darrell. and Yueh-yu Yeh. Taiwan Film Directors: A Treasure Island. Columbia University Press, 2005.
Yip, June. Envisioning Taiwan: Fiction, Cinema, and the Nation in the Cultural Imaginary. Duke University Press, 2011. 
References
盧非易。《台灣電影:政治、經濟、美學1949-1994》。1998年,台北,遠流。 
Grading
 
No.
Item
%
Explanations for the conditions
1. 
Participation 
10% 
 
2. 
Midterm Report/Presentation 
30% 
Optional between the report, 2 reviews, and presentation 
3. 
Final Paper 
60% 
 
 
Progress
Week
Date
Topic
Week 1
2/26  Introduction 
Week 2
3/04  Taiwan in the 1980s: economic growth and socio-politics 
Week 3
3/11  Taiwan in the 1980s: social movement and “national” culture
Taiwan New Cinema: Prior to the emergence and healthy realism
Film appreciation & discussion: Good Morning, Taipei (1979) 
Week 4
3/18  Taiwan New Cinema: the movement and key members
Film appreciation & discussion: Terrorizers (1986) 
Week 5
3/25  Taiwan New Cinema: techniques
Film Appreciation & Discussion: Dust in the Wind (1986) 
Week 6
4/01  NO CLASS 
Week 7
4/08  Taiwan New Cinema in the 1990s: The Decline, the Second Wave, and film festivals
Film appreciation: Vive L’amour (1994) 
Week 8
4/15  STUDENT PRESENTATION WEEK 
Week 9
4/22  MIDTERM EXAM WEEK
The City: landscape, history, and collective memory; the body, being and emptiness 
Week 10
4/29  Identity Politics, Gender/Sexuality & Feminism 
Week 11
5/06  Identity Politics: Gender/Sexuality & LGBT Issues
Film appreciation: Drifting Flowers (2008) 
Week 12
5/13  Identity Politics: Ethnic cultures in Taiwan till the early 2000s 
Week 13
5/20  In Search for Root: Westernization/Modernization and Colonial History in Taiwan
Film appreciation: Viva Tonal – The Dance Age (Viva Tonal 跳舞時代,2003) 
Week 14
5/27  In Search for Root: Agriculture, Social Justice, and Documentary in Taiwan 
Week 15
6/03  Issues of immigrant spouses and migrant workers 
Week 16
6/10  NO CLASS 
Week 17
6/17  Film appreciation: The Other Side (對岸異鄉人, 2012) 
Week 18
6/23  FINAL EXAM WEEK
Epilogue: New trends, the new generation, and the future of Taiwanese films