EVENT DETAILS

[Book Talk Series] Japan on American TV by Alisa Freedman

Book Talk Series
Japan on American TV by Alisa Freedman
with UCI Host, Margherita Long, Associate Professor in Japanese Literature

Monday, November 22, 2021 at 4:00 pm
Zoom Webinar Registration Link:
https://uci.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_0mIMkQ0CRwu7UfzhTG88SA

Japan on American TV explores political, economic, and cultural issues underlying depictions of Japan on US television comedies and the programs they inspired. Since the 1950s, US television programs have taken the role of "curators" of Japan, displaying and explaining selected aspects for viewers. Beliefs in US hegemony over Japan underpin this curation process. 

Japan on American TV takes a historical perspective to understand the diversity of Japan parodies. These programs show changing patterns of cultural globalization and perpetuate national stereotypes while verifying Japan's international influence. Television presents an alternative history of American fascinations with and fears of Japan. 

Written in an accessible style that will appeal to scholars, teachers, students, and anyone with an interest in Japan and popular culture, as well as an ideal text for classroom use, Japan on American TV offers a gentle means to approach racism, cultural essentialism, cultural appropriation, and issues otherwise difficult to discuss and models new ways to apply knowledge of Asian Studies.

Alisa Freedman is a Professor of Japanese Literature, Cultural Studies, and Gender at the University of Oregon and the Editor-in-Chief of the U.S.–Japan Women's Journal. Her books include Japan on American TV: Screaming Samurai Form Anime Clubs in the Land of the Lost, Tokyo in Transit: Japanese Culture on the Rails and Road, an annotated translation of Kawabata Yasunari's The Scarlet Gang of Asakusa, and co-edited volumes on Modern Girls on the Go: Gender, Mobility, and Labor in Japan and Introducing Japanese Popular Culture.