Former Introduction

I'm an assistant professor in the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures at The George Washington University. I teach Modern and Classical Japanese Language, as well as Classical Japanese Literature.
My current duties as an instructor focus on enhancing the reading abilities of advanced students. This includes reading contemporary fiction that is relatively easy to comprehend: 村上春樹 Murakami Haruki, 星新一 Hoshi Shin'ichi, etc. I also encourage students to learn bungo, or classical Japanese; besides reading the Classics such as 伊勢物語 Ise
monogatari or 方丈記 Hojoki in the original, bungo is a must for those who want to conduct research in Japanese history, political science or economics using pre-World War II sources.
My research interests focus on the influence of texts and contexts on reading, particularly as they pertain to late Heian and early medieval Japanese court poetry.

Once upon a time at UCLA: Clockwise from back left, Hillary, Terry, Stephanie, Alan, Weiyon, Masaya, Roger Ebert, Kim, Yuka, Tsukasa, Yan, Yasuko, Ken and unidentified. (I can't remember her name. Can someone remind me?)

Brief Bio:

Born in Los Angeles, CA. Graduate of Loyola High School, East Los Angeles Community College (AA), UCLA (BA and MA), and Stanford University (PhD). First learned how to speak Japanese effectively at age 17 at Mikawaya, a Japanese confectionary in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles. Learned to read and write Japanese during college. Research interests include Late Heian poetics, renga linked poetry, and Japanese film and pop culture. See curriculum vitae for more detail.

More unnecessary information

There really isn't much more to know about me. But if you're interested in detail, take a look at my Curriculum Vitae, although there really isn't much to it. I also have a family homepage that I try to keep up. You can also email me at my school address, but know that you do so at your own risk; I am notoriously bad at answering my mail, as my students will gleefully attest.
Updated 2008.12.07