David Moerman

Great intro and in-depth class on pre-modern Japanese Buddhist visual culture (or art history you may say), combing with regular MET storage room visitings or exhibitions closely related to course materials and opportunities to talk to curators. Visual material-centered and no annoying identifications. Professor Moerman is very open up in conversations and your topic choices for your final projects.

Took it for global core requirement. Class was designed to be conversation-based and the list of reading is interesting. Moerman is laid back and supportive, but sometimes could be a little too laid back. The co instructor Eason is great. Approachable and excellent at asking thought-provoking questions.

Absolutely a gem. Compared to many other humanities seminars, this is by far the most relaxed seminar I’ve taken at Columbia. The course revolves entirely around the Lotus Sutra, requiring us to read all its chapters while also engaging in extended discussions about its related art and culture. Prof. Moerman is incredibly knowledgeable, approachable, and brings a rare sense of humor to the classroom that lightens the atmosphere. While he seldom interrupts—even when someone tends to ramble—he is very open to new perspectives. What stands out is how he incorporates interesting points from your weekly posts into the class discussions, encouraging you to expand on them further during the seminar. Even if you have no prior background in religious studies, this course offers an excellent opportunity to explore Buddhist knowledge in a low-pressure setting. If you’re curious about Buddhism and want a thoughtful yet approachable class experience, his seminar is definitely one of the best choices.

Professor Moerman's class isn't the most exciting or engaging because it's a lecture in an overheated room (which made it difficult to stay away at times). Still, if you want to fulfill your core requirement this is a relatively painless way to do it. It is a bit boring in the beginning, but about midway through the course the material becomes more interesting. Yes, there is an emphasis on Buddhism because it's Prof. Moerman's specialty, but I still found it fascinating. The reading is a bit much at times, but I got away with skimming through a lot of it. If you come to lecture and take good notes, you wont need to read too carefully. As for Prof. Moerman himself, he's a pretty laid back guy with a funny sense of humor. I didn't have a problem with him at all. The TAs in this class were pretty chill and not too demanding. Overall, I would recommend this class.

Professor Moerman has an incredible sense of humor, which is why I was so surprised to find that he has the personality of a rock as soon as class begins. He does not, I think, give a good outline of East Asian History. It is easy to get a good grade in the class without reading the texts. It is superfluous to ask to go over essays or exams with him, because he does not respond to e-mails. I can sympathize with the fact that he teaches a course which most students take to fulfill the core, but the class falls short so often when there's an opportunity to exceed expectation. For example, the samurai class was bland, and the course on sexuality was cancelled. Furthermore, I lost points on essays for using words that, it seemed, exceeded professor Moerman's vocabulary. I do not recommend this class.

Professor Moerman seems to be a really nice person. Some CULPA reviewers have mentioned that attendance at his lectures is very low. Perhaps Professor Moerman could alter the content of his lectures slightly--from devoting the bulk of the period to rambling exegesis to a lecture presentation more connected to the relevant socio-political-cultural-economic conditions that influenced the creation of the course's selected texts.

Class was interesting and good climate for discussion and conversation. Moerman is quite laid back in teaching, which has its merits and down sides. Eason was very helpful and approachable as a co-instructor. Great choice if you want to meet the global core requirement.

Professor Moerman is great. Some of his other reviews indicate he may not be a great lecturer, but in a seminar format he is very comfortable. He has a self-deprecating sense of humor, which I can appreciate. He's fairly relaxed and open to letting class discussions go wherever the class takes them. That said, this is graduate level class, so for the most part the discussion stayed on track. The class is firmly bedded in the Lotus Sutra. You're not going to get a survey of other related texts or general background on Buddhism in this class. Therefore it is helpful to bring a general understanding of Buddhism to the seminar. If you have no knowledge of the religion you might feel a bit lost. That's not to say you couldn't do it, just be prepared to do some extra reading to flesh out some of the more general points. I should add that Prof. Moerman was very open to anyone coming into the class. There were even a couple of freshmen in the mix who seemed to do just fine. About half the class were undergrads with varied majors, the other half were PhD or Masters students from the Religion or East Asian Studies Depts. Being a seminar there was quite a lot of reading each week with a short response required on Courseworks. Each week one person acted as the discussion leader and wrote a longer review of the readings, and posed some questions for discussion in class. At the end of the s…

Not intimidating by any means and always approachable. The day to day readings can be extensive, however, he spends every class summarizing all the readings due. A lot of people don't show up to class, however, I would advise against this. If you show up and take really good notes (force yourself to stay awake), you won't have to read ANYTHING. Just type word for word what he teaches and his take home midterm and final will be a sinch. The paper is of your choice and is easy to bullshit through. Difficulty in grading depends on your TA. Overall, a painless way to get rid of your major cultures requirement.

D. Max Moerman is a very nice guy...jokes around a bit, takes class very casually (ask to implement a "snack attack" system). The workload was pretty light, and I found working with the Barnard writing tutors helpful (which was required, to the dismay of a few students). However, I cannot say I learned very much. Moerman kept the discussion going about as well as your average professor, but did not often bring to light any wonderfully enlightening ideas. You get to watch some movies, and can probably pull off a good grade without too much trouble.