Coffee Culture in Japan: A Historical and Anthropological Study

Extract

[...] To arrive at this conclusion, the researcher first looks at the history of the introduction of coffee in Japan, then at the places where this coffee culture is practiced, and particularly within the [...]

[...] The author Merry White, who has completed her entire academic training at Harvard University, holds a PhD in anthropology and specializes in Asian culinary anthropology, particularly in Japan. Among her most cited works, the book Coffee Life in Japan remains the most famous. This work is part of a myriad of Asia-focused research proposed by the researcher, such as the following works: Cooking for Crowds, 40th Anniversary Edition published by Princeton University Press in 2014 and Perfectly Japanese: Making Families in an Era of Upheaval published by University of California Press in 2003. [...]

[...] From then on, this part notes the appearance of coffee in Japan and its democratization. 2ème Part: the use of coffee by the Japanese compared to the Westerners During the second part of the work, centered around chapters four, five, and six, we find the more theoretical and scientific approach of the researcher regarding the use of coffee by the Japanese. This approach focuses on the relationship that the Japanese have with the beverage, but also its affirmation within the Japanese cultural spirit in general. [...]

[...] Merry White is also a professor of anthropology and gender studies within Boston University. b. Key words that define the work Her major work, Coffe Life in Japan, can be defined by several words: - Discovery - Cultural - Feminist - Historique - Engaged c. Definition of terms used by the author - Café: space of communion, place of exchange and life for the Japanese - Waitress (waitress: woman with a very high seduction capital - Kodawari : philosophical approach allowing to reach the perfection present within Japanese culture - Consumer: someone buying a good or service for its quality but also for what surrounds it, for example being comfortable in the café more than for the coffee itself - Symbol: means allowing to assert, in a substantial way, a concept or to attract an individual to submit to it. [...]

[...] 3second Part The cultural aspect of coffee in Japan Finally, a last part, consisting of chapters 7 and 8 of the book, account for the cultural aspect maintained by coffee in Japan. In fact, there is no single type of coffee shops in Japan: these latter ones perfectly fit into the Japanese cultures. From then on, we discover typical cafes in city centers that are relaxation places for workers within a noisy center. Other cafes are less conventional spaces in which a game is set up between the waitresses and the customers. [...]