2009/10/16

Today's Topics

Last week, we decided to discuss the following two topics: Homosexuality in Japan and sempai / kohai relationships. Here are some questions we may want to discuss in relation to each topic:
  • Homosexuality in Japan
    • Do you have an acquaintance who you know is gay?
    • Is it risky for homosexuals in Japan to be open about their sexuality?
    • Is homophobia stronger in Japan or in other countries? (We would need concrete examples in order to try to compare the extent of homophobia.)
    • Should gay couples be able to marry?
  • Sempai / kohai
    • Are there sempai / kohai relationships in this class?
    • Does either the sempai or the kohai benefit more than the other?
    • Does sempai / kohai depend on age or length of time in a group?
    • What types of groups have stronger sempai / kohai relationships?
    • Are sempai / kohai relationships as strong now as they used to be?
    • Are sempai / kohai in Japan similar to or different from relationships in other countries?

2 comments:

The Author said...

I know I'm not in class, but if you need any ideas for the first topic, the 10th anniversary of the Laramie, Wyoming beating was a couple Mondays ago. Matthew Shepard was tortured and killed outside of Laramie; witnesses say that he was targeted because he was gay. Locally, there've been beatings of people who are/were gay or thought to be gay. If that helps for the first topic...just in case conversation falls a little short. :-)

Kirk Masden said...

Thanks so much! It's nice to hear from you and I appreciate the contribution. I'll try to remember to bring this up in class.