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Course Info for HIST - 326 - 01, Spring 2026
Class number: 2793 Title: Mapping Disasters in Japan Department: History
Career: Undergraduate Component: Seminar Session: Regular
Instructor's Permission Required: No Grading Basis: Regular Units: 1.00
Enrollment limited to 15 Current enrollment: 15 Available seats: 0
Start date: Tuesday, January 20, 2026 End date: Friday, May 8, 2026 Mode of Instruction: In Person
Schedule: MW: 10:00AM-11:15AM, 70VS - SEM Instructor(s): Said Monteiro, Daniel
Prerequisite(s): None
Distribution Requirement: Meets Humanities and Global Requirements
Course Description:
This discussion-based seminar delves into issues of preparedness, destruction, reconstruction, and resilience that emerge from calamities caused by human and non-human factors. Beginning with early modern conceptions of disasters, we make our way through moments of profound transformation in Japanese history. Notably, we explore the memories and representations of the 1855 Ansei Edo Earthquake and the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake that shook the country's capital, and conclude with the ongoing impact of the triple disaster (earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear meltdown) that hit northeastern Japan on March 11, 2011. With a diversity of readings across disciplines, you will acquire new insights not only in cultural historical methods, but also anthropology, architecture, and media studies.