HIS 3765: Family, State and Patriarchy in East Asia (2026-2027)

View all HIS classes

This course explores the deep interconnections between family, state power, and patriarchy in East Asia, from the age of Confucian classics to the present. The study focuses on the introduction of the main belief systems (Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism) and how their practice shaped marriage, family, inheritance, and gender roles in ancient history of China, Korea, and Japan. We will also examine how states tried to intervene in family life—through ideology, education, legal codes, and family planning policies as well as the ways in which patriarchy had been challenged and transformed in tradition and modern times. Typically offered: Autumn.