Dorinne Kondo facts for kids
Dorinne K. Kondo is a professor at the University of Southern California. She teaches about American studies, different ethnic groups, and Anthropology (the study of human societies and cultures).
Professor Kondo is a writer, a playwright (someone who writes plays), and has worked for over 20 years as a dramaturge. A dramaturge helps plays and performances be the best they can be, often by researching and advising on the story. Her work often explores how people from different races and backgrounds are sometimes treated unfairly in modern theater. She also writes about power, gender inequality, and racism in the fashion industry.
In 2018, Professor Kondo had open-heart surgery because one of her heart valves was leaking. This meant the launch of her book, Worldmaking: Race, Performance and the Work of Creativity, was delayed for three years.
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Learning and Degrees
Dorinne Kondo focused all her studies on Anthropology. She earned her first degree, a Bachelor of Anthropology, from Stanford University in 1975. She then continued her studies at Harvard University.
In 1978, she received her Master's degree in Anthropology from Harvard. She completed her Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy) in Anthropology from Harvard University in 1982. A Ph.D. is the highest degree you can earn in a field of study.
After getting her Ph.D., Professor Kondo continued her research and taught at Harvard University as an Assistant Professor of Anthropology starting in 1982. Her research looked into topics like race, power, and how culture shapes people's ideas.
Her Degrees
- Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy) in Anthropology, Harvard University, 1982
- M.A. (Master of Arts) in Anthropology, Harvard University, 1978
- B.A. (Bachelor of Arts) in Anthropology, Stanford University, 1975
Professor Kondo also had several special training programs after her Ph.D. from 1987 to 2002. These included:
- Fellow, University of California, Irvine Humanities Research Institute, Spring 2002
- Research Fellow, Getty Research Institute, 2000-2001
- Institute of American Cultures Postdoctoral Fellow, UCLA, 1993-1994
- Fellow, University of California, Irvine Humanities Research Institute, Fall 1993
- Rockefeller Fellow, Rice University, 1989-1990
- Rockefeller Fellow, The Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, NJ, 1987-1988
Her Career
Dorinne Kondo began her teaching career as an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Harvard University. She worked there for seven years, from 1982 to 1989. Later, she became a professor at Pomona College in 1997.
Since 1997, she has been a Professor of Anthropology and American Studies and Ethnicity at the University of Southern California.
Her career has largely focused on studying gender and different cultures. She uses her knowledge to show how discrimination and gender inequality appear in plays and other performances.
Books by Dorinne Kondo
In her book, Worldmaking: Race, Performance and the Work of Creativity, Professor Kondo explores how unfair racial ideas are built into theater and the arts. She uses her 20 years of experience as a dramaturge and writer to break down how creativity works in performance.
Her other book, About Face, looks at how Asian cultures are shown in media and how this affects people in Asia and Asian Americans. She uses examples from Japanese high fashion and Asian American theater to discuss important topics like pleasure, how racial identities are presented, and how art can challenge problems in society.
Another book, Crafting Selves: Power, Gender and Discourses of Identity in a Japanese Workplace, looks at how people create their identities in a Japanese workplace. An American anthropologist named Paul H. Noguchi praised this book. He said it was important for anyone interested in Japan, women's studies, or how people work.
Funded Research Projects
Dorinne Kondo has also worked on important research projects that received funding:
- Creative Differences; The Cultural Politics of Race in American Theater (Stanford Humanities Center), Dorinne Kondo, $60,000, 2013-2014
- Advancing Scholarship in the Humanities and Social Sciences Mentorship (University of Southern California), Dorinne Kondo, $1,000, 2012
Her Published Books
- Kondo, D. K. (2018). Worldmaking: Race, Performance and the Work of Creativity. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.
- Kondo, D. K. (1997). About face: performing race in fashion and theater, 1997.
- Kondo, D. K. (1990). Crafting Selves: Power, Gender and Discourses of Identity in a Japanese Workplace, 1990.]
