This course explores the theme of the supernatural in Japanese visual culture from the 12th century to the present. With origins in religion, folklore, and literature, otherworldly creatures and their powers have captured the imagination of the Japanese and consequently inspired creative visualizations of them. Students will not only analyze works ranging from traditional painting mediums to contemporary manga, as well as anime, but also will engage with texts that have supernatural worlds and beings as a central ¸»¶þ´úÊÓƵapp. Moreover, this course will ask students to place these exhilarating and cautionary tales in context: what do these narratives say about the societies that created them, believed in them, and produced visualizations of the supernatural creatures featured within them?