Valerie J. Matsumoto
Autore di Farming the Home Place: A Japanese American Community in California, 1919-1982
Sull'Autore
Opere di Valerie J. Matsumoto
Opere correlate
Unequal Sisters: A Multicultural Reader in U.S. Women's History [1st edition] (1990) — Collaboratore — 291 copie
Making Waves: An Anthology of Writings By and About Asian American Women (1989) — Collaboratore — 144 copie
Etichette
Informazioni generali
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Autori correlati
Statistiche
- Opere
- 3
- Opere correlate
- 5
- Utenti
- 62
- Popolarità
- #271,094
- Voto
- 3.9
- Recensioni
- 2
- ISBN
- 12
While many books have been written with a focus on ethnic community studies, Matsumoto’s book concentrates its efforts on the study of small rural ethnic communities rather than large metropolitan centers such as Seattle or Los Angeles. By highlighting life within a small ethnic enclave such as Cortez, the “dynamics of gender-role negotiation” as well as the strengthening of community ties through social and cultural organizations become more apparent and display more meaning.
Successive generations of Cortez Japanese Americans clearly demonstrate the evolution of changing gender roles on the farm as well as in the home. An example of such change can be seen in the inheritance of farmland by the Sansei. As the older generation approaches retirement age, the “Home Place” is usually taken over by the oldest son and his family. If no sons exist to take over the farm, the land is likely to be sold to another male family member such as a nephew or uncle. However, a generational shift occurs with the Sansei in that female family members are now given the opportunity to take over the family farm if they so chose whereas, in previous generations, they were limited to mostly domestic chores. Although the subject of intergenerational studies and changing gender roles may also be examined within the context of urban Japanese American households, by studying these changes on a much smaller scale, the reader becomes more sentimentally involved with the people interviewed in Matsumoto’s book.
Matsumoto’s approach to researching the community of Cortez included the close examination of such primary sources as community records, local newspapers and WWII concentration camp publications. However, it was the taped interviews of eighty three Issei, Nisei and Sansei that contributed to the bulk of the information contained within this book. By utilizing oral history as the primary method of her research, Matsumoto is able to bring forth a more personal relationship between researcher and subject. A list of actual questions asked of the interviewees is included in the appendix and act as a guide for those who may consider using oral history interviews to conduct social and cultural historical research of their own.
Although the sense of community and culture within the Japanese American population in Cortez would have likely continued to strengthen had it not been for the internment, this moment in history significantly influenced much of the changes in gender roles and intergenerational relations. As the Issei grow older and pass on, it seems as though much of the culture they brought with them from Japan dies along with them. However, by reading Matsumoto’s book, one discovers that future generations of Japanese Americans are growing considerably more interested in learning about their unique culture through other means such as Japanese language lessons as well as the practice of Japanese arts such as dance and cooking. Cortez continues to act as the “home base” for many of the Sansei and Yonsei who have drifted far from home in pursuit of careers or other opportunities. This is perhaps what sets Cortez apart from larger enclaves in urban areas. The younger generation has a much stronger tie to the “Home Place” that their elders helped build and this will continue to be the case with future generations as well.… (altro)