Culinary Taste Is a Social Construct, Not an Expression Individually

“Under “Eat food”, the writer proposes some practical ways to separate, and defend, real food from the cascade of food like products that now surround and confound us, especially in the supermarket. Under “Not too much” the focus shifts from the foods themselves to the question of how to eat them, the manners, mores, and habits that go into creating a healthy, and pleasing, culture of eating. Lastly under “Mostly plants” he dwells more specifically, and affirmatively, on the best types of foods (not nutrients) to eat” (Pollan,

This essay is going to describe how the society has an influence on food choice. Food is very important to the human body since it has the right nutrients for a balanced diet in order to enable good health and growth. However people depend on food, as people need food throughout, for the body to constantly work. However this essay is going to explore how food choice has influenced the internal and external factors that may actually have a little to do with the food itself, and in order to give a clear concept this essay will therefore explore the social factors of what one has to eat.

The way that Burger King and other fast food restaurant chains do business and markets their products to consumers is due to the change in our society to where the consumer wants the biggest, fastest, and best product they can get for their money. This change in society can be attributed to a process known as McDonaldization. Although McDonaldization can be applied to many other parts of our society, this paper will focus on its impact on Burger King and Taco Bell restaurants. My belief is that the process of McDonaldization has lead our generations toward a more a much more efficient lifestyle, with much less quality. From my observations and studies of these fast food resturants, several themes have become

The essay “Eat Food: Food Defined,” from Michael Pollan’s 2008 book In Defense of Food was written to address the American general public about the food industry. Pollan focuses on relatable topics as examples, such as family, common food items, and common belief that everyone wants to be healthy. The essay brings across Pollan’s point by establishing his credibility, explaining why this is important to us, and telling us how to react to the given facts. Pollan makes the readers inquire how we define food by drawing our attention to the importance of examining our food before eating it.

Sociology is the study of society and people. Food and food ways are often elements associated with particular societies and therefore, studying such a topic can offer valuable insight into the ways of that society and the people who live in it. Although eating is a vital part of survival, with whom, how and where we eat are not. Studying such ways can illustrate and represent the identity of a person or group. The nature of people and their beliefs can be indicated when analysing their food habits. Who individuals eat with is a particularly revealing factor into gaining an understanding of their identity, culture and society (Scholliers P 2001). For this reason commensality is a term frequently used in sociological research concerning

Understanding different cultures: talk about how cuisines related to culture. What’s the most popular dessert in Europe, and particularly in Italy? Which countries are affected by Europe?

The New York Times bestseller Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal is one of the most riveting books to come out about fast food restaurants to date (Schlosser, 2004). Fast food consumption has become a way of life for many in the United States as well as many other countries in the world. The author Eric Schlosser an investigative reporter whose impeccable researching and bold interviewing captures the true essence of the immense impact that fast food restaurants are having in America (2004). Beginning with McDonald’s, the first fast food restaurant, which opened on April 15, 1955 in Des Plaines, Illinois to current trends of making fast food a global realization McDonald’s has paved the way for many fast food

Bourdieu argues that different tastes are encourage or discouraged within different classes, the tastes you have then is dependent on the class that you belong. It is important to note that Bourdieu’s work is written sixty years later than Veblen, although initially agreeing with Veblen’s views and approaches to consumption patterns establishing status distinctions, Bourdieu recognised that there was more needed in order to understand and explain the social positions and distinctions within society. taste is an important aspect – individually peoples tastes vary and across classes, this is important when grasping… According to Bourdieu social classes express different patterns of taste and consumption in both material and cultural ways, (ref) depending on the amount of economic capital you might have, your taste is adjusted correspondingly. For example if you have higher economic capital, then you are more likely to desire upmarket high-end restaurants rather than lower-end restaurants such as MacDonald’s.

This paper will discuss the multifaceted relationships among food, and culture. I will be looking at the relationships people have with food, and explore how this relationship reveals information about them. Their food choices of individuals and groups, can reveal their ideals, likes and dislikes. Food choices tell the stories of where people have travelled and who they have met along the way.

My understanding of this quote by the French Philosopher Pierre Bourdieu, is that taste has been pre determined for us as individuals, and that our preferences in taste are not our own, but instead have been influenced by the opinions that we acquire from being surrounded by the thoughts held collectively by the people within our social classes or social backgrounds. I agree with Bourdieu’s concept of taste, and believe that it has proven itself to be true in many different ways throughout time, furthermore I would say that this concept can certainly be applied to today’s modern society. “Taste, however, is not simply a matter of individual interpretation. Rather, taste is informed by experiences relating to one’s class, cultural background, education, and other aspects of identity” In other words, taste can truly not be a matter of individual interpretation due to the fact that the individual is at the core, strongly connected to both a social class and also to a society. After reading Bourdieu’s work and research, I would agree with parts of his argument.

Eating food is essential for all of us, it keep us alive and also gives us enjoyment at the same time. Food can be defined as any substance that can be metabolized by an animal to give energy and build tissue. (ilearn) In ancient time, when people feel hungry, they eat. However, as human history keep developing and evolving, we have a higher standard on choosing food that we like to eat nowadays. In this paper, we are going to evaluate factors that are influencing our food habits and food culture. Those factors can be divided into two main categories, internal factors (individual preference and values) and external factors (geographical, religion, social, economic and political).

George Ritzer 's book The McDonaldization of Society opened and exposed one of what can be considered societies major flaws: McDonaldization. Ritzer suggests that in the late 20th century the socially structured form of the fast-food restaurant has become the organizational force representing and pushing rationalization further into everyday lives and individual identity. Henry Ford was the first McDonaldization pioneer with his vision of an assembly line for improving the production of automobiles. His revolutionary idea dramatically changed how many automobiles could be produced and was very efficient.

. Through his research which states that by simply neglecting the variety and diversity of consumer practices in different regions and parts of the world and the various uses to which consumers can put McDonaldization, using its products and procedures to serve their own needs. There are many ways Mcdonaldization can be resisted in: social institution, education, the economy, family, as well as religion and military that our society can reverse the effects on the way we live.

Burning sherbets, instantly frozen ice cream, pasta made out of jelly or vegetables, edible menus, kitchens with sonicators, pH meters, liquid nitrogen, which can flash freeze almost anything, makes it feel almost like magic or something out of a fantasy or science fiction novel. But it is not, in fact it is part of culinary arts, where innovation has taken wings, and revolutionized the art and science of cooking. Terms like culinary science, culinology and molecular gastronomy have become part of the innovative culinary world. Innovation is communicated and translated into culinary arts, especially by chefs and others involved in the industry through creative adaptations, like molecular gastronomy, culinology, fusions, transformations, co-creation etc. Innovation spans through different areas of the culinary world and is not only limited to the process of cooking, but also to understand the consumers, as well as to develop different utensils and incorporate other means of technology. (Várela, 2013)

In this essay we will analyze and comment on how an individual develops his culinary taste through the various impacts from our social construct and that it is not just a matter of personal choice. While discussing the evolving taste of an individual, we are going to interpret the seminal works of the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu and relate to the social construction of taste. Alternative explanations to Bourdieu, like the post-modernist view will also be explained and the various impacts of the contemporary influences from our society like standardization, fashion, media, culinary tourism which affects our culinary taste will also be explicated.