In this writing assignment, you will compare, contrast, and make connections between and among Chinese and Japanese traditions. You may optionally include Theravada traditions in Southeast Asia. You need only cite materials from the course–no outside research is permitted. Please cite your sources following a standard academic style (Chicago, MLA, or APA); if bibliographic information is missing from sources, you may cite them by title as found in the syllabus or module. If you need help with citations, Auraria Library has an excellent online tool to help you format your citations correctly: https://guides.auraria.edu/religiousstudies/citations Links to an external site. (Remember, of course, that the tool, like all technological marvels, is prone to making errors. Be sure to check the output of the citation generator against the model for the source you’re citing, whether it’s a book, article, podcast, video, blog…)
You have your choice of three prompts. Each requires you to make a thesis and argument, support your claims with evidence from sources, to write clearly, and to cite your sources. Your essay must be a minimum of 1,000 words. There is no upper limit on the word count, though clarity and conciseness are valuable skills to practice. Prompt 2 comes with a 1.05x score multiplier and requires more engagement with primary sources. Prompt 3 comes with a 1.1x score multiplier and requires in-depth use of primary sources and connections on multiple aspects of each tradition.
Prompt 1: How do Chinese and Japanese traditions share concepts and ideas between and among each other, and how do we identify them as distinct traditions, despite their sharing of terminology, concepts, practices, etc.? Be sure to note what ideas, concepts, and terms are held in common among the traditions (for China: Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism; for Japan: Shinto, Ainu traditions, and Buddhism) and show how each tradition is distinctive, uses terms differently, and has its own terminology. Use as many Key Words as necessary and cite examples from primary sources, secondary sources, course lectures, podcasts, and videos from the course modules.
I will be providing the files for the readings that need to be used as citations in the paper