High School Literature Unit: Supernatural Japanese Literature

“All Japanese stories are ghost stories.”

That’s the Big Idea behind this literature unit and the theme we’ll keep coming back to as we explore some of (in my opinion!) the most interesting works of Japanese literature. These works span centuries — some are quite recent, some are more ancient than Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales — but they have in common the notion that our everyday world is “haunted.” (I put haunted in quotation marks because — as we’ll see over the course of this unit — hauntings can take many forms.)

WHAT YOU’LL FIND INSIDE:
Files: Unit Study Guide, How to Read a Book, Writing a Compare/Contrast Essay
13+-week unit study plan with readings, discussion questions, and activities
Yokai project guide
Kafka on the Shore project guide
Final project guide
Resources for further study

WHAT YOU’LL NEED TO PROVIDE:
Book: Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami
Movies: Spirited Away (2001)
Credit recommendation: 0.5 literature credit
Placement recommendation: This is a high school level unit, designed for students who are already familiar with the basic elements of literature (plot, character, theme, setting, etc.) and who are comfortable applying those skills to texts. Like most high school level curricula, it includes works that could be rated M for Mature. If mature content is a concern for you with your student, I encourage you to preview texts to asses your personal comfort level. (I read these texts with my own high school student and teach them in high school classes, but comfort levels can be very personal things.) This is a completely secular program.

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All curriculum materials are digital and downloadable. Because of this, all sales are final. If you have questions, please ask before you buy.