天美影视

Think about "what it means to be human" and understand and explore "culture"

Aoyama will celebrate its 150th anniversary in November 2024. College of Literature was established in 1949 when Aoyama Gakuin University was launched as a new university under the new system. In addition, when Aoyama was approved under the Professional School Act in the Meiji period, the departments that would become the prototype of the current College of Literature were already in place. In this way, College of Literature exists on a long tradition.

Aoyama Gakuin University College of Literature, which started with the Department of Christian Studies and Department of English, has grown into a school with five departments today: Department of English, Department of French Language and Literature, Department of Japanese Language and Literature, Department of History, and Department of Comparative Arts. The School of College of Literature aims to study humanities, which is to say, to explore the questions that have existed since humanity first gained civilization, such as "the meaning of human existence" and "what is a human being?" This is a far-reaching theme, but in other words, it is about exploring the essence of "culture," which is unique to humanity.

In other words, College of Literature can be said to be an academic field that comprehensively understands human beings themselves and culture, which is the diverse social activities of human beings. Modern society is undergoing great change and fluidity due to the international environment in which conflict crises occur around the world while globalization progresses, and the rapid development of information technology. In such a modern society, academic studies that consider "what is a human being" are becoming increasingly important. In a society in which various connections with people all over the world are deepening, it is necessary to develop a humanistic perspective and the wisdom and insight to respond to modern society in order to work together while respecting others. This will also be important in forming each individual's personality, which cooperates with those around them but is not swayed by them.

College of Literature is made up of a variety of fields, including language and culture, history, and art. At Aoyama Gakuin University College of Literature, each department maintains its own uniqueness while valuing loose cooperation, complementing each other to achieve great results. The cultures of the world are vast and infinitely deep. What we think we know now may be very little, and we may only have a biased view of things.

College of Literature is waiting for those who have the enthusiasm to know themselves and others better, and to know more about the world. Just as past College of Literature graduates have done, I sincerely look forward to learning and conducting research together with you, who will learn about the rich culture accumulated by our predecessors and use that knowledge to play an active role in society.

——Dean General Manager the Faculty College of Literature
Kazuyuki Kobayashi

Philosophy of College of Literature

While society is becoming more advanced, information-based, and internationalized, the reality is that these trends are creating a crisis for human survival. In this day and age when the very weight of human existence is being questioned, College of Literature at our university, which is based on Christian faith, has a great role to play.

College of Literature currently has five departments and includes academic fields such as literature, linguistics, philosophy, history, art studies, and sociology. The existence of these fields greatly expands the possibilities for interdisciplinary research and allows for a variety of approaches to exploring the essence of human beings and culture. The Faculty of College of Literature is characterized by the fact that academic issues are explored through a rich curriculum that includes foreign language education, small-group seminars, and practical training.

The reality of the world teaches us that understanding one's own culture is deeply intertwined with a rich international understanding. This is because our lives are supported by multifaceted connections with people around the world. The purpose of university education, which aims to foster human social solidarity and develop people with a human perspective, is also related to this point. Within the university community, it is College of Literature that is involved in academic research and education that aims to provide a holistic understanding of human beings themselves and the diverse activities of human beings.

Educational and research objectives

Based on the university's philosophy of "free and wide-ranging academic research aimed at serving humanity," College of Literature of College of Literature sets goals based on the expertise of each of the five departments that make up the Faculty of Letters, with the historical achievements of the humanities as a common intellectual foundation. Each department has the educational goal of educating each student to understand the diverse activities of human beings and culture, and to develop the qualities necessary to do so, based on the characteristics of its academic field.

A faculty that inherits the history of Aoyama

When the university was founded in 1949 as a result of the educational reform, College of Literature was established with two departments, the Department of Christian Studies and Department of English. However, this was not a case of starting from a completely blank canvas. In 1883 (Meiji 16), the Tokyo English and Japanese School was opened in Aoyama, and in 1904, Aoyama opened the Faculty of Theology. Specialist departments were opened after that, but Aoyama has always based its education on Christian education and English language education. Given the university's long history and tradition, it is only natural that the Faculty College of Literature was established with the above two departments when the university was founded. After that, College of Literature gradually added more departments, and has now grown to its current structure of five departments.

Mid- to Long-Term Plan

College of Literature Graduate School of Literature Mid- to Long-Term Plan