I am a cultural anthropologist who does research on Japan. I have two primary topics of research at two different sites. In the rural region of Kochi, I examine the formation of regional taste and cuisine. This project explores how food preferences are socially constructed through myth-making, regional identity and nationalism. In Osaka’s Koreatown, I investigate contemporary anti-Korean discrimination. Here, I argue that although the lives of the Korean minority has improved since colonialism, racism and discrimination still endure.
My most recent publications include:
Defying National Hegemony: Hidden Acts of Korean Resistance in Contemporary Japan
Seemingly trivial choices to dissimulate one’s identity, transmit cultural practices, and maintain historical memory constitute neglected forms of opposition that illustrate the contextual nature of Zainichi Korean resistance against marginalization and forced assimilation. These strategies offer a reservoir of resources that can be tapped into for collective political action, keeping the embers of resistance alive in between periods of open protest.
In Search of Umami: Product Rebranding and the Global Circulation of the Fifth Taste
This article examines how a Japanese food corporation used its vast resources to rehabilitate one of its products. In doing so, it helped promote the so-called fifth basic taste of umami as a natural taste rather than one that is extracted in its factories. Ultimately, umami’s public recognition in Japan and around the world forces us to rethink monolithic definitions of taste categories.
Diaspora, Exclusion and Appropriation: The Cuisine of the Korean Minority in Japan
This article examines the culinary appropriation of Zainichi Korean cuisine in Japan. While Koreans living in Japan are relegated to subaltern status, their food is expropriated and celebrated as part of Japanese society.
From Colonization to Zaitokukai: The Legacy of Racial Oppression in the Lives of Koreans in Japan
This article retraces the historical development of racism in Japan to reveal its continuing impact on the lives of Zainichi Koreans. It contends that the persistence of discriminations and inequalities are proof of the ongoing marginalization and of Koreans in Japan.
The Taste of Nostalgia: Vanishing Flavors from the Ancestral Japanese Village
This research article examines the importance of food memories. The preservation and revival of these disappearing flavors through heirloom vegetables and traditional cuisine are in fact effort to reconnect with a particular time and place that sometimes never was or that one never experienced.
Agriculture régionale et souveraineté alimentaire au Japon
This research article in French argues that to understand Japan’s low food self-sufficiency, one must not only examine changes in agricultural production but also changes in consumption in Japan.
The Construction of Regional Cuisine: Tosa Ryori In Kōchi Japan
This article proposes an anthropological investigation of the cuisine of the rural region of Kochi, Japan. What makes a regional cuisine? Is it particular dishes, ingredients or techniques? Or is it a flexible term that is used to express regional identity and create economic opportunities?
The Many Lives of Mustards: Journey of a Familiar Condiment
This paper takes the reader on a historical and global journey in search of mustard. Table mustard is part of a large family that also includes horseradish and wasabi. This burning sensation is at the heart of what unites all types of mustard users across time and space.
