The “Culture and Representation  Course ”，imported  from  Tokyo  University ，has  a  significant  influence  on  the teaching  of Japanese literature at Nanjing University． Based on the Chinese students ’acceptance of this course ，the problems the teachers encounter in their teaching ，and the changes in the learning methods and teaching objects ，this paper discusses the rela- tionship between quality-oriented education and knowledge-oriented education and points out that the teaching of Japanese litera- ture can benefit from the  “Culture and Representation ”course and broaden the students ’horizons ，train their ability to criticize ， and upgrade their  skills in comprehension and analysis．