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Publications [#366875] of Anne Allison

Published Articles

1. Allison, A, Japanese mothers and obentōs: The lunch-box as ideological state apparatus, in Food and Culture A Reader (January, 2012), pp. 154-172, ISBN 9780415521031 [doi]
   (last updated on 2026/01/21)

   Abstract:
   Japanese nursery school children, going off to school for the first time, carry with them a boxed lunch (obentō) prepared by their mothers at home. Customarily these obentōs are highly crafted elaborations of food: a multitude of miniature portions, artistically designed and precisely arranged, in a container that is sturdy and cute. Mothers tend to expend inordinate time and attention on these obentōs in efforts both to please their children and to affirm that they are good mothers. Children at nursery school are taught in turn that they must consume their entire meal according to school rituals.