March 21 deadline approaching to register for EASC's 50th anniversary conference

The East Asian Studies Center will celebrate our 50th anniversary with a conference on Friday, April 8 from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the Ohio Union's Great Hall Meeting Room, 1st Floor (registration required). Speakers will present on "The Role of East Asian Studies in the 21st Century."

Abstract: Recent events––both positive and negative––have reminded us of the critical role of East Asia and East Asian studies in the 21st century. China, Japan, and Korea remain at the forefront of public attention across the globe, and yet, the landscape that surrounds us is ominous. A 2109 Chronicle of Higher Education article reported that global emphasis in higher education is diminishing nationwide. Foreign language programs are being closed, the number of students in foreign language courses is dropping, and international enrollment is on the decline. The ramifications of this diminished engagement with the world beyond the US borders are potentially disastrous. We at Ohio State University’s East Asian Studies Center believe that it is time for all of us to ask what contributions we can make to the field during this time of crisis; how we can make a difference in this increasingly complex and interconnected world; and where we should go from here. These questions are particularly important for our graduate students as they prepare to be the next leaders of East Asian studies.

This event is free and open to the public. The deadline to register is March 21.

Dafna Zur to present on Korean tongyo on April 13

The Institute for Korean Studies will present a lecture by Dafna Zur, Stanford University, on Wednesday, April 13 from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. online (registration required). Prof. Zur will present "When Songs Don’t Work: Western Tonalities and Korean Breath in Korean Tongyo."

Abstract: In the 1920s, colonial Korean children had different opportunities and materials to sing. Newly established missionary schools adapted hymns for children, and the colonial schools run by the Japanese regime considered song time to be essential to children’s development. Against this background, original Korean sung poems, or tongyo, emerged. These were short poems written by prominent literary figures that were set to music by Korean composers who studied western music in Japan. These composers saw themselves writing against the musical ecology of their time of Christian hymns (ch’ansongga) and Japanese school songs (changga). This paper examines tongyo by two seminal figures, Yun Kŭgyŏng and Chŏng Sunch’ŏl. Through an analysis of music and poetry, the paper illuminates how they imagined tongyo might deliver modern subjectivity. By comparing the two composers, the paper unveils the challenges of fitting western tonalities to the Korean language, and thus seems to complicate the broad assumption about tongyo as pure aesthetic and profoundly national forms.

Yuanchong Wang to present on calendar as a marker of progress in China on April 15

The Institute for Chinese Studies will present a lecture by Yuanchong Wang, University of Delaware, on Friday, April 15 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. online and on campus (registration required). Prof. Wang will present "Calendar, Revolution, and State-Building in Post-1949 China." Prof. Joshua Hill, Ohio University, will serve as commentator.

Abstract: Calendar constituted an essential section of the statecraft in China after 1912 when the nascent Republican China adopted Gregorian calendar and jumped on the latest bandwagon of the globalization of time. In the following three decades, from Beijing to Shanghai, from Manchuria to Shaanxi, calendar became a distinct marker of progress, civilization, and modernity in the everyday life of China and served as a tool for competing regimes in the politically divided nation to promote state-building agendas. This trend continued after the People’s Republic was founded in 1949. The post-1949 calendar followed the Communist calendar in the 1940s, when the Communist Party was active in Northwestern China, that combined solar and lunar calendars and helped to promulgate Marxism-based revolutionary ideas in remarkable vernacular language among intellectuals in rural areas where reading sources were scarce. After 1949 the Communist calendar became the exclusive state calendar and played a key role in promoting state-building agenda on modernization, promoting literacy in vast rural areas, dissemination the Party-dictated revolutionary ideas, realizing wartime and domestic social mobilizations, and engaging anti-US and anti-imperialism propaganda in the Cold War context.

"Bombing Hiroshima" essay, video featured in Origins

"Bombing Hiroshima" written by Craig Nelson and narrated by Nicholas B. Breyfogle, is featured in Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective, a publication by the history departments at The Ohio State University and Miami University.

Abstract: The atomic age began between heartbeats at 8:15 a.m. on August 6, 1945, when the Japanese city of Hiroshima was leveled by an atomic bomb. Three days later, the United States dropped a second bomb on Nagasaki, marking the first time humanity broke atoms in anger.

U.S. Central Intelligence Agency to recruit at Ohio State on March 22

The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency will be on campus Tuesday, March 22 to recruit from Ohio State's deep pool of student talent.

Have you ever wondered what kind of career opportunities are available with CIA? The reality might surprise you. Join one (or more) of the following events to learn more about the Agency, the diverse array of career paths available, the hiring and clearance process, and insights into how to craft an eye-catching application.

Registration is required. U.S. citizens or dual citizens are encouraged to attend.

OPEN TO ALL STUDENTS (GRAD AND UNDERGRAD)
10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Career Paths with CIA – From Analysts to Auditors and So Much More

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Career Paths with CIA – From Analysts to Auditors and So Much More

TARGETING STUDENTS WITH EAST ASIAN LANGUAGE SKILLS OR AREA EXPERTISE (GRAD AND UNDERGRAD)
2:45 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
CIA Careers Leveraging Your East Asian Languages or Studies Degree

TARGETING STUDENTS FOR AUDITING CAREERS (GRAD AND UNDERGRAD)
11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Auditing Careers with CIA

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Auditing Careers with CIA

Strong candidates for auditing careers will bring knowledge and skills in finance, accounting, business management, IT, or information systems.

Click on the link below to learn more about the events and/or to register on Handshake. Contact Addie Cheney with any questions.