The topics that have intrigued me the most during this class were everything to do with gender. Oppa and gendered honorifics were particularly interesting to me because I like learning about gender differences in other cultures. In addition to the readings, it was interesting to hear people’s different opinions concerning gender in class. The dispute over oppa was particularly interesting because I got to hear people’s different views on the subject. I really enjoyed having a smaller class size because everyone began to feel more comfortable voicing their opinions in class than they might have in a larger classroom. Going into this class, I wasn’t sure what linguistics really was. Now I feel like I have a much more comprehensive knowledge about the subject and field.

-Audrey Andrews

This is a picture of a Korean Presbyterian church in Eugene. This church is on Taney Street, near Malabon Elementary School. I think the sign is written in both Korean and English to make visitors of different cultures welcome. Even if you are not Korean, you could feel comfortable entering this church knowing that it is not exclusive. On the other hand, if you are a Korean person in Eugene, you could take comfort in knowing that there is a place of worship that welcomes you. Because the church was not open, I wasn’t able to go inside, but I looked at the church online to see if there were any more pictures.

This one depicts a beautiful arrangement of fruits, vegetables, and flowers laying at the alter inside the church. While I am not completely sure the occasion that this arrangement was made for, Presbyterians will place flowers in honor of a person or for special occasions like Easter.

So far, I have only been taking notes in a notebook in class instead of on a laptop. I think this has helped me focus and remember the class content. The only times that lecture is not clear is when Professor Idemaru goes really fast and I’m not able to write down everything on the slides. This is hard because with some of the more difficult content I need to write down all of the details and bullet points, but they go by too fast.

-Audrey Andrews

Hi class!

My name is Audrey, nice to meet you! I am a sophomore here at the UO, and one thing I value are my jobs. They are both very important and enriching for me, as I get to work with kids and new college students. As a City of Eugene Parks and Rec employee, I have the opportunity to spend time with middle school students at an after school program called “BEST”. As a First Year Interest Group Assistant, I get to be a part of freshmen’s first term in their new college! Both jobs are exciting in different ways. Below is a picture of me and all the other FAs at the end of an eight hour training we had a couple weeks ago. The picture is small, but I’m in the top row on the left!

The reason why I am interested in Eastern Asian languages and societies is because I know nothing about it! Growing up in the North American public school system, I was taught all about American and European history and culture. I never got the chance to learn about anywhere in Asia, let alone Eastern Asia. I am very excited to be in this class because it’s a chance to learn something I never have before, and from what I’ve already learned from our three classes, I am thrilled for the rest of the term!

So far, I like the structure of the course, however I struggle a little bit with the differences between Chinese, Japanese, and Korean because I have never studied these languages before. Looking at the differences between them has been a little confusing to me because of my lack of experience. I like the way Professor Idemaru teaches because she checks for understanding with the iClickers. This works with my own learning approach because I like to quiz myself and check for my own understanding. So far this class has not really changed how I study, but I do appreciate the reading quizzes because they encourage me to keep up with the reading assignments.