December 23, 2021

Kurokawa Onsen is a hot springs village resort in Japan with more than twenty traditional inns, otherwise known as ryokan. In 𝗥𝘆𝗼𝗸𝗮𝗻: 𝗠𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗥𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗝𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗻, Associate Professor Chris McMorran (NUS Department of Japanese Studies) explores the ins and outs of ryokan work, explaining how Kurokawa’s ryokan serve as a form of rural escape from the otherwise globalised and fast-paced everyday life of the Japanese. These ryokan, which draw nearly a million tourists a year, have led village youth to take over their families’ ryokan businesses. The face of the ryokan are the nakai – hired female staff who welcome guests, serve meals, and clean rooms. 𝗥𝘆𝗼𝗸𝗮𝗻: 𝗠𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗥𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗝𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗻 focuses on the importance of both the generational work of ryokan owners as well as the daily work of their employees, while highlighting the differences in the work owners and employees do. Through A/P McMorran’s year-long ethnography in a ryokan, along with nearly two decades of research on ryokan in Kurokawa, he reveals that many nakai turned to employment in ryokan as a way out of their violent or unhappy marriages. Yet despite their numerous years of working in ryokan, many remain socially and economically vulnerable.

𝗥𝘆𝗼𝗸𝗮𝗻: 𝗠𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗥𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗝𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗻 will be published in April 2022 by University of Hawai’i Press. Pre-order the book here.

Stay tuned for the virtual book launch in 2022!