Asian popular cultures: Bollywood, manga, hallyu and beyond

The unit will explore and examine the images and ideas that circulate about Asia in the world. You will gain appreciation of the conceptualisation of the 'idea' of Asia, not just as a geopolitical entity but, as a vital 'site' that is imagined and seen as generative of imagination. 'Asia' exists not only as a landmass between Europe and the Pacific, but also as an imaginary: imagined entity and identity. It is a relational idea that is created in opposition to Europe, and also in terms of neighbouring nation-states/regions within Asia. This unit will explore the fluidities of meaning and flows of culture within and outside Asia. It will prepare you to negotiate questions of Asian ethics and aesthetics, authenticity and identity, voice and representation, Otherisation and Asian Super-powerdom. Studying a diverse range of texts (fiction, films, and new media cultural forms), they will learn how to understand these powerful imaginaries in a comparative framework. They will build critical analytical skills in Asian studies that will help in understanding how Asia is created, determined and negotiated through active, ever-mobile cultures in the face of hegemonic discursive and representational practices. There will be a special focus on Australia's relationship with Asia.