Foodways

Last updated

In social science, foodways are the cultural, social, and economic practices relating to the production and consumption of food. Foodways often refers to the intersection of food in culture, traditions, and history. [1] [2]

Contents

Etymology and historical overview

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines foodways as "the eating habits and culinary practices of a people, region, or historical period". [3]

The term ′foodways′ appears to have been coined in 1942 by three University of Chicago graduate students, John W. Bennett, Harvey L. Smith and Herbert Passin. [4] In the 1920s and 1930s, agricultural scientists and rural sociologists, usually under the auspices of the United States Department of Agriculture, had undertaken various studies of food habits of the rural poor, with the aim of improving them. With the advent of World War II, these efforts increased. Those with information to share about different food habits were encouraged to contact the cultural anthropologist Margaret Mead at the National Research Council.

It was in these circumstances that John W. Bennett and his companions went to study Anglo-Americans, German-Americans and African-Americans in the fertile but frequently flooded bottomlands of southern Illinois along the banks of the Mississippi River. All depended on white bread, pork, and potatoes. To the investigators these habits, particularly the spurning of plentiful, nutritious foods such as fish, seemed irrational. They argued "The illusion of an 'economic man,' searching out the most obscure foodstuffs from an unwilling Nature in the reasoned pursuit of complete fulfillment of his needs, must give way to the concept of a man conditioned by the preferences and prejudices of his neighbors, selecting only those foods sanctioned by the 'culture.'" [5] Presumably they chose the term foodways by analogy with the term folkways. This had gained currency in the United States following its adoption by Yale professor and pioneering social scientist William Graham Sumner. [6] Since folkways were established by use, not reason, they were resistant to change and not easily altered by government intervention. Similarly, Bennett et al. concluded, foodways were not likely to change simply because bureaucrats suggested that new ways had economic or nutritional benefits.

The term foodways was little used until late 1960s and early 1970s and the surge in folklife research, including the establishment of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in 1967. As the field of Foodways develops, scholars offer their own definitions:

Contemporary scholarship defines foodways as the study of what we eat, as well as how and why and under what circumstances we eat it. As folklorist Jay Anderson argued in a pioneering 1971 essay, foodways encompasses "the whole interrelated system of food conceptualization and evaluation, procurement, preservation, preparation, consumption and nutrition shared by all the members of a particular society. This broad definition embraces both historical and regional differences while simultaneously pointing to the importance of food events (barbecues, Brunswick stew suppers, oyster roasts), food processes (ham curing, snap-bean canning, friend apple pie making), and even the aesthetic realms that touch upon the world of food (country songs about food, quilts raffled at community fish fries, literary references to eating)."

—  John T. Edge [7]

Social science

Anthropologists, folklorists, sociologists, historians, and food scholars often use the term foodways to describe the study of why we eat what we eat and what it means. The term, therefore, looks at food consumption on a deeper than concrete level and includes, yet goes beyond, sustenance, recipes, and/or taste. According to Harris, Lyon and McLaughlin: "…everything about eating including what we consume, how we acquire it, who prepares it and who's at the table – is a form of communication rich with meaning. Our attitudes, practices and rituals around food are a window onto our most basic beliefs about the world and ourselves." [8] As one research team puts it,

We all eat, and associate different layers of cultural meaning to the food we consume. Explorations of food, then, can be an easy conduit into the complex world of intangible cultural heritage. [9]

Topics like social inclusion and exclusion, power, and sense making are explored under the umbrella term foodways. This is especially evident in political messaging that uses terms like "latte liberal" or "Joe Six Pack" to convey notions of class and community. Such framing is based on perceived consumption patterns and preferences of politicians and their constituents. This food/power dynamic is even present within the former Trump administration's position toward fast food, particularly when Trump offered hamburgers to guests in an implicit appeal to what the White House considered "quintessentially American" cuisine. [10] Furthermore, the ways in which food shapes and is shaped by social organization are essential to examination of foodways. Since consumption of food is socially constructed, cultural study is also incorporated in the term.[ citation needed ]

Anthropologist Mary Douglas, explains: "A very modest life of subsistence contrasts with our own use of goods, in for example, the use of food. How would we be able to say all of the things we want to say, even just to the members of our families, about different kinds of events and occasions and possibilities if we did not make any difference between breakfast and lunch and dinner and if we made no difference between Sunday and weekends, and never had a different kind of meal when friends came in, and if Christmas Day had also to be celebrated with the same kind of food?" [11]

While in fields like anthropology, the production, procurement, preparation, presentation, and consumption of foods have always been regarded as central in the study of cultures [12] the use of the term foodways in popular culture is used as an oriented way of looking at food practices. In this sense, the term is a consumer culture expression that encompasses, in popularly understandable and debatable formats, contemporaneous social practices related to foods as well as nutritional and culinary aspects of foods.

Regional aspects

The term foodways can be employed when referencing the "ways of food" of a region or location. For example:

Immigrant foodways are also featured prominently in America. For example, The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, located in Southeastern Massachusetts - which has a very large immigrant population from Cape Verde - describes Cape Verdean Foodways by publishing recipes from these southern Atlantic islands. [18]

Scholarly approaches

In contrast to the anthropological treatments of food, the term foodways aims at a highly cross-disciplinary approach to food and nutrition. For example, the refereed journal Food and Foodways, published by Taylor & Francis, is "devoted to publishing original scholarly articles on the history and culture of human nourishment. By reflecting on the role food plays in human relations, this unique journal explores the powerful but often subtle ways in which food has shaped, and shapes, our lives socially, economically, politically, mentally, nutritionally, and morally. Because food is a pervasive social phenomenon, it cannot be approached by any one discipline". [19]

In consumer culture research, contemporary and postmodern foodways are topics of interest. In an article in the journal Consumption Markets & Culture, from Taylor & Francis publications, Douglas Brownlie, Paul Hewer, and Suzanne Horne explore culinary consumptionscapes through a study of contemporary cookbooks, with chic recipes often turning intensely into a kind of "gastroporn", creating a "simulacrum of desire" as well as a "simulacrum of satisfaction." [20]

Historical studies of foodways help scientists, anthropologists, and scholars gain insight into past cultures.

Springer Publishing has released the book, Pre-Columbian Foodways, by John Staller and Michael Carrasco, which studies and examines "the symbolic complexity of food and its preparation, as well as the social importance of feasting in contemporary and historical societies." [21] Books like this help further the study of foodways and increase public awareness.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fusion cuisine</span> Food combining multiple culinary traditions

Fusion cuisine is a cuisine that combines elements of different culinary traditions that originate from different countries, regions, or cultures. Cuisines of this type are not categorized according to any one particular cuisine style and have played a part in many contemporary restaurant cuisines since the 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soul food</span> American style of cooking

Soul food is the ethnic cuisine of African Americans. It originated in the American South from the cuisines of enslaved Africans trafficked to the North American colonies through the Atlantic slave trade during the Antebellum period and is closely associated the cuisine of the American South. The expression "soul food" originated in the mid-1960s when "soul" was a common word used to describe African-American culture. Soul food uses cooking techniques and ingredients from West African, Central African, Western European, and Indigenous cuisine of the Americas.

Breakfast is the first meal of the day usually eaten in the morning. The word in English refers to breaking the fasting period of the previous night. Various "typical" or "traditional" breakfast menus exist, with food choices varying by regions and traditions worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fad diet</span> Popular diet with claims not supported by science

A fad diet is a diet that is popular, generally only for a short time, similar to fads in fashion, without being a standard scientific dietary recommendation, and often making unreasonable claims for fast weight loss or health improvements; as such it is often considered a type of pseudoscientific diet. Fad diets are usually not supported by clinical research and their health recommendations are not peer-reviewed, thus they often make unsubstantiated statements about health and disease.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gastronomy</span> Study of the relationship between food and culture

Gastronomy is the study of the relationship between food and culture, the art of preparing and serving rich or delicate and appetizing food, the cooking styles of particular regions, and the science of good eating. One who is well versed in gastronomy is called a gastronome, while a gastronomist is one who unites theory and practice in the study of gastronomy. Practical gastronomy is associated with the practice and study of the preparation, production, and service of the various foods and beverages, from countries around the world. Theoretical gastronomy supports practical gastronomy. It is related with a system and process approach, focused on recipes, techniques and cookery books. Food gastronomy is connected with food and beverages and their genesis. Technical gastronomy underpins practical gastronomy, introducing a rigorous approach to evaluation of gastronomic topics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duck as food</span> Meat from duck

In cooking and gastronomy, duck or duckling is the meat of several species of bird in the family Anatidae, found in both fresh and salt water. Duck is eaten in many cuisines around the world. It is a high-fat, high-protein meat rich in iron. Duckling nominally comes from a juvenile animal, but may be simply a menu name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Food reality television</span>

Food reality television is a genre of reality television programming that considers the production, consumption and/or sociocultural impact of food.

<i>Albions Seed</i> Book by David Hackett Fischer

Albion's Seed: Four British Folkways in America is a 1989 book by David Hackett Fischer that details the folkways of four groups of people who moved from distinct regions of Great Britain (Albion) to the United States. The argument is that the culture of each of the groups persisted, to provide the basis for the political culture of the modern United States. Fischer explains "the origins and stability of a social system which for two centuries has remained stubbornly democratic in its politics, capitalist in its economy, libertarian in its laws and individualist in its society and pluralistic in its culture."

The Center for Folklife & Cultural Heritage (CFCH) is one of three cultural centers within the Smithsonian Institution in the United States. Its motto is "culture of, by, and for the people", and it aims to encourage understanding and cultural sustainability through research, education, and community engagement. The CFCH contains (numerically) the largest collection in the Smithsonian, but is not fully open to the public. Its budget comes primarily from grants, trust monies, federal government appropriations, and gifts, with a small percentage coming from the main Smithsonian budget.

Food studies is the critical examination of food and its contexts within science, art, history, society, and other fields. It is distinctive from other food-related areas of study such as nutrition, agriculture, gastronomy, and culinary arts in that it tends to look beyond the consumption, production, and aesthetic appreciation of food and tries to illuminate food as it relates to a vast number of academic fields. It is thus a field that involves and attracts philosophers, historians, scientists, literary scholars, sociologists, art historians, anthropologists, and others.

Food history is an interdisciplinary field that examines the history and the cultural, economic, environmental, and sociological impacts of food and human nutrition. It is considered distinct from the more traditional field of culinary history, which focuses on the origin and recreation of specific recipes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern Food and Beverage Museum</span> Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.

The Southern Food & Beverage Museum is a non-profit museum based in New Orleans, Louisiana, with a mission to explore the culinary history of the American Southern states and to explain the roots of Southern food and drinks. Their exhibits focus on every aspect of food in the South, from the cultural traditions to the basic recipes and communities formed through food. The museum is located on the corner of O.C. Haley Boulevard and Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard in Central City, New Orleans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Non-vegetarian food in India</span> Non-vegetarian food and culture in India

Non-vegetarian food contains meat, and sometimes, eggs. The term is common in India, but not usual elsewhere. In the generally vegetarian environment of India, restaurants offering meat and fish usually have a "non-vegetarian" section of their menu, and may include the term in their name-boards and advertising. When describing people, non-vegetarians eat meat and/or eggs, as opposed to vegetarians. But in India, consumption of dairy foods is usual for both groups.

Migrants’ food consumption is the intake of food on a physical and symbolic level from a person or a group of people that moved from one place to another with the intention of settling, permanently in the new location. Food Consumption can provide insights into the complex experience of migration, because it plays a central role to the memory, comfort and all processes needed to adapt to a new country and environment and even to social relations within and beyond the family.

Anthropology of food is a sub-discipline of anthropology that connects an ethnographic and historical perspective with contemporary social issues in food production and consumption systems.

Amy Bentley is Professor of Food Studies in the Department of Nutrition and Food Studies at New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, and is co-founder of the NYU Urban Farm Lab and the Experimental Cuisine Collective.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dude food</span> Food trend

Dude food is a 21st century food trend largely consisting of heavy, meaty dishes that are thought to appeal to men or express masculinity. Dishes such as hamburgers, hot dogs, or barbecue ribs may also be considered dude food, though dude food versions of these dishes often distinguish themselves with exaggerated use of specific ingredients such as whiskey, barbecue sauce, bacon, or cheese.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soul food health trends</span>

Soul food is a kind of African American cuisine that encompasses a variety of fried, roasted, and boiled food dishes consisting of chicken and pork meats, sweet potatoes, corn, leafy greens and other vegetables. Soul food has long been embedded in African American culture, but pushes towards healthy eating habits, for both physical and mental health, have adapted soul food cuisine to fit within health trends. This article will describe modifications of traditional soul food within health trends, including soul food with low carb, soul food with low sugar, soul food with low fat, soul food for vegan and soul food in gluten-free.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Foodgasm</span> Pleasurable satisfaction from eating

Foodgasm is a neologism that indicates a pleasurable and euphoric feeling of satisfaction that occurs during the consumption of particularly amazing and delicious foods: this pleasure is sometimes accompanied by vocal noises and a variety of facial expressions.

<i>The Virginia House-Wife</i> 1824 cookbook by Mary Randolph

The Virginia House-Wife is an 1824 housekeeping manual and cookbook by Mary Randolph. In addition to recipes it gave instructions for making soap, starch, blacking and cologne.

References

  1. ↑ Darnton, Julia (12 December 2012). "Foodways: When food meets culture and history". Michigan State University Extension. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  2. ↑ "Foodways". Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture.
  3. ↑ "foodways". Archived from the original on 2000-10-18..
  4. ↑ "Foodways and Ways of Talking about Food"..
  5. ↑ Bennett, John; Smith, Harvey L. & Passin, Herbert (October 1942). "Food and Culture in Southern Illinois–A Preliminary Report". American Sociological Review . 7 (5): 645–660. doi:10.2307/2085690. JSTOR   2085690..
  6. ↑ Folkways: A Study of the Sociological Importance of Usages, Manners, Customs, Mores, and Morals (1906).
  7. ↑ John Egerton, and Ann Bleidt Egerton. Southern Food: At Home, on the Road, in History. New York: Knopf :, 1987.
  8. ↑ Harris, Patricia; Lyon, David; McLaughlin, Sue (2005). The Meaning of Food. CT: The Globe Pequot Press. pp. VIII–IX.
  9. ↑ Jarvis, Dale Gilbert; Barrett, Terra M. (2019). Falk, Eivind; Park, Seong-Yong (eds.). "Foodways and Folklife: Experiences from the Newfoundland and Labrador Intangible Cultural Heritage Office". Living Heritage Series. Traditional Food Sharing Experiences from the Field: 83–99.
  10. ↑ Bock, Sheila (2021). "Fast food and the white house: Performing foodways, class, and American identity". Western Folklore. 80: 15–43.
  11. ↑ Douglas, Mary (1992). Hargreaves, Shaun; Ross, Agus (eds.). "Why Do People Want Goods?". Understanding the Enterprise Culture. Edinburgh University Press: 23.
  12. ↑
  13. ↑ Department of Popular Culture at Bowling Green State University (8 February 2021). Digest: An Interdisciplinary Study of Food and Foodways. American Folklore Society: Foodways Section.
  14. ↑ "Michigan Foodways". MichiganFoodways.org.
  15. ↑ Mystic Seaport Museum. Saltwater Foodways. CT.
  16. ↑ "Food". History.org. Autumn 2004.
  17. ↑ "Southern Foodways Alliance". SouthernFoodways.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-23. Retrieved 2007-05-09.
  18. ↑ "Cape Verdean Recipes". University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth. Archived from the original on 2007-05-09. Retrieved 2007-05-09.
  19. ↑ Food and Foodways.{{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  20. ↑ Brownlie, Douglas; Hewer, Paul; Horne, Suzanne (March 2005). "Culinary Tourism: An Exploratory Reading of Contemporary Representations of Cooking". Consumption Markets & Culture. 8: 7–26. doi:10.1080/10253860500068937. S2CID   55486792.
  21. ↑ Staller, John; Carrasco, Michael (2010). Pre-Columbian Foodways. Springer. ISBN   9781441904706.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.