Camila Madeo
Cultural Anthropology 207
August 28,2015

Neighborhood Tokyo Exercise

1. What does the Anthropologist do? What are two methods he uses in his research? Anthropologist Theodor C. Bestor immerses himself into the culture and community within the neighborhood of Miyamoto in order to learn through them. Bestor conducts fieldwork and participant observation. In doing so Theodor Bestor learns the local habits, custom and even the language of the people of Miyamoto to become fully involved. Bestor visits Miyamoto almost routinely and engages with all aspects that belong to the people of Miyamoto, which include participating in festivals, contributing to neighborhood market shops and even making good friends with the people of the neighborhood. 2. The Miyamoto neighborhood has both physical and spiritual boundaries. How are those boundaries marked? The area of local business and shops, far from the greater global market force, marks some of the physical boundaries of Miyamoto. The shops in Miyamoto deal mainly with daily goods. Another physical boundary is that of the houses and apartments marked by close and narrow passageways inaccessible by car and fire equipment. A spiritual boundary of Miyamoto is marked my sacred shrines important throughout festivals and parades specific to celebrations. 3. People of Miyamoto celebrate several rituals over the course of the year. What’s one of those rituals? What happens during the ritual? One of the many rituals celebrated by the people of Miyamoto is New Years that marks the end of the old year and the beginning of a new. It is a celebration to allow all people to become renewed. During this time there is a pause in business. The people of Miyamoto gather at shrines to offer prayers and good comings for the New Year. Many people bring belongings to be burned when a drumbeat struck midnight to symbolize a clean and new start to the year. And, in the final events of the New Years celebration many assemble at the shrines January 2nd to receive blessings of the priest. 4. What threatens the identity of the neighborhood? How are people trying to preserve it? Big globalized markets are the cause of local shops and restaurants in Miyamoto disappearing. There are fewer and fewer shops every year as they lose customers to the global market. The fact that there are more single people in Miyamoto means that there are fewer community ties, which also threatens the identity of Miyamoto. Another threat is that the next generation of kids belonging to shop owners are becoming less likely to take over their parents business and way of life. The people of Miyamoto try to preserve their identity by having their kids to work along side their business and to help out at an early age.