Jennifer L. 安德森

Emeritus 教师, Anthropology

What teaching questions currently preoccupy you?

It is not very exciting, but I am most preoccupied with finding ways to improve student 写作. I am also always looking for new software or ways to use existing software that improves accessibility. My personal 研究 is directed toward underst和ing the varied functions of ritual 和 the technical aspects of making ceramics for the Japanese 茶道. Because of my book, Introduction to Japanese Tea Ritual, I get emails from all over the world with questions about Tea.

What personal factors contributed to your study of anthropology?

I can’t remember a time when I did not want to be anthropologist. 我特别 drawn to the rich 和 changing tapestry of human cultural experience. 人类学家 are never bored—wherever there are people, we see something to learn.

What has been most challenging in your teaching?

The most challenging aspect of teaching at San José State is class size 和 the varied levels of the students’ preparation for college.

How has your position in 菠菜网lol正规平台 contributed to your teaching?

I often tell my students that I am glad to teach at 菠菜网lol正规平台 because of the variety of their cultural experiences. 学生 have very varied backgrounds 和 they respond well to hearing about difference.

隐藏的才能:

My “not so hidden” talent is teaching Japanese tea ritual, which I have been doing for more than thirty years. I also make ceramics for the 茶道.

One book that changed your life 和 why:

The book that most changed my life was a cookbook. 它叫做 Kaiseki: Zen Taste in Japanese Cooking Kaichi Tsuji著. I had been studying nutritional anthropology of the China area at Stanford 和 doing 研究 in Taiwan. I was also teaching Chinese cooking, but I felt that it was too oily 和 did not include enough vegetables for a modern diet. The book Kaichi Tsuji著 presented the formal cooking associated with the Japanese 茶道. It was a revelation because it was both artistic 和 healthy. 我开始 studying tea ritual in the hope of learning kaiseki cooking. I ended up switching my area 和写作 my dissertation on tea ritual.

A website/journal/newspaper (in your field?) you follow without fail:

I teach Emerging Global Culture so I read BBClol菠菜网正规平台和美国国家公共电台每日lol菠菜网正规平台.

Advice you’d give to newer faculty or students:

要有创意. Don’t feel you have to follow a certain path because of other’s expectations. The size of 菠菜网lol正规平台 is an advantage. There is something for every一个. 你必须做你的研究.

RSCA 成就

“Kristen Surak, Making Tea, Making Japan: Cultural Nationalism in Japan,” 日本的研究 35(2) (September 2015): 262–264.
“Japanese Tea Ritual: ‘Ritual Play’ or ‘Play at Ritual’?” Proceedings of the Southwestern Anthropological Association, 7:47–50, 2013.