Essay on 匠 (craftsperson) And New Thematic Explorations Essay Are Now Up

Two new publications today, plus six revisions!

Essay 1388 on 匠 (craftsperson, artisan; skill; idea) is now available for purchase. A preview:

See how marketers have coopted 匠, which conveys an impressive mastery of an art or craft. This kanji was originally associated with carpentry, which carries little prestige in the United States. To grasp how  it could be the opposite in Japan, I consulted Len Brackett, once a temple carpenter in Kyoto. His comments illuminate this essay, as do photos of his work.

On top of that, a new Thematic Explorations piece is up: "Oddball Additions to the Joyo Set." I wrote it to supplement Jim Breen's wonderful blog, which ran last week.

Finally, I added some terrific pictures to essays and uploaded new versions of the PDFs. If you go to the Table of Contents, you'll therefore see plenty of essays marked as revisions.