Bachelor of Arts [B.A] [Japanese Language and Culture] From Washington University

Language study is fundamental to this process, and our Japanese language program, featuring an intensive and highly interactive classroom experience, fosters natural fluency and cultural competence from the earliest stages. Graduates can expect to attain advanced proficiency in speaking, listening, reading, and writing.Japanese majors will acquire a broad knowledge of Japanese society and culture and a solid foundation in the major landmarks of Japanese literature spanning fourteen centuries. And their education will be reinforced by various study-abroad opportunities-- most notably the Kyoto Consortium for Japanese Studies (KCJS), which affords an unparalleled access to Japan's great cultural mecca.Japanese (Nihongo) is a fascinating and challenging language. Engaging with the intricacies of spoken and written Japanese will open you up to new dimensions of social and cultural experience. The intensive, interactive classroom experience, with class size limited to 15 students, is aimed at fostering natural fluency and cultural competence from the very beginning stages of study.Your studies will introduce you to the full range of Japan’s 1500-year history, with its unique mix of Buddhism, Confucianism, aristocratic elegance, earthy traditions, warrior culture, and high-tech modernism. You will be exposed to enduring works of literature, art, and drama – the inspiring poetry of the Imperial court, the plays of bunraku puppet theater, the wide-ranging novels and stories of modern Japan, and examples of Japan’s internationally-known popular culture.