Abstract
This article explores a Japanese American family mortuary and its 100 years of service and involvement with the Japanese American community in Los Angeles through five generations of the Fukui family. The Fukui Mortuary is Los Angeles’s oldest Japanese American family mortuary and has provided the Japanese American community with services relating to death and bereavement for nearly a century. Through autoethnographic and ethnographic methods, this research examines a site within the Japanese American community after World War II where death, ethnicity, nationality and gender intersect. Studying the cultural and traditional options people have to negotiate, participate and engage in one’s cultural practices during a time of death allows us to investigate the structures of power, economics and institutions that are embedded in our histories and societies. Through the mobilization and service of cultural traditions related to death, the Fukui mortuary contributes to the story of Japanese Americans and how ideas of death, religion, gender and ethnicity are situated in community involvement and the genealogy of the Fukui family.
Highlights
Two years into my Communication doctoral degree, my father passed away unexpectedly just as the fall semester began
Americans to engage in their cultural customs and beliefs relating to death, a Japanese American family had to create their own mortuary in Los Angeles, California, to serve the needs of their community
For Japanese Americans who were in the World War II internment camps, many of them were challenged with issues of racism in their everyday lives and worked hard to persevere through difficult times to establish opportunities for their future generations (Yamaguchi 2014)
Summary
Two years into my Communication doctoral degree, my father passed away unexpectedly just as the fall semester began. Transforming one’s identity into a hybrid of both cultures creates an ultra-high context culture where the individuals are expected to adhere to the various cultural norms at different times and bounce back and forth between direct and in-direct communication from two very distinctly different cultures In this case of my father passing away, my mother decided not to have a funeral or memorial service (a surprise to all of our family!), due to some of the high-context cultural expectations of Japanese and Japanese. Americans to engage in their cultural customs and beliefs relating to death, a Japanese American family had to create their own mortuary in Los Angeles, California, to serve the needs of their community. “Funeral directors typically advise families to spend less money on the coffin and more on the altar (Shinya 2004, p. 28)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
