The Edible South : The Power Of Food And The Making Of An American Region Essay

This paper looks to define and explore three books which are a crux to various food histories which in the last decade has become a scholarly journey as food history is becoming increasingly studied as a scholarly endeavor by historians where previously it was not seen in such a scholarly light. The three texts which are going to be examined are: Planet Taco: A Global History of Mexican Food by Jeffery M. Pilcher, The Invention of the Restaurant: Paris and Modern Gastronomic Culture by Rebecca L. Spang, and lastly To Live and Dine in Dixie: The Evolution of Urban Food Culture in the Jim Crow South by Angela Jill Cooley. Each of these books seek to redefine how people see their perspective topics whether it be Mexican identity rooted in cuisine, the evolution of southern food in a racially divided south, or even the concept of the restaurant emerging from a revolutionary culture. These texts bring awareness to various topics which have both social, cultural, and economic stigmas associated with them.

In Jessica Harris’s “The Culinary Season of my Childhood” she peels away at the layers of how food and a food based atmosphere affected her life in a positive way. Food to her represented an extension of culture along with gatherings of family which built the basis for her cultural identity throughout her life. Harris shares various anecdotes that exemplify how certain memories regarding food as well as the varied characteristics of her cultures’ cuisine left a lasting imprint on how she began to view food and continued to proceeding forward. she stats “My family, like many others long separated from the south, raised me in ways that continued their eating traditions, so now I can head south and sop biscuits in gravy, suck chewy bits of fat from a pigs foot spattered with hot sauce, and yes’m and no’m with the best of ‘em,.” (Pg. 109 Para). Similarly, since I am Jamaican, food remains something that holds high importance in my life due to how my family prepared, flavored, and built a food-based atmosphere. They extended the same traditions from their country of origin within the new society they were thrusted into. The impact of food and how it has factors to comfort, heal, and bring people together holds high relevance in how my self-identity was shaped regarding food.

Jessica B. Harris is the author of The Culinary Seasons of My Childhood in which she documents the transition of the culture and food she experienced throughout her childhood. Her biggest influence of food was from the 1950’s and 1960’s where the culinary traditions of the middle-class African Americans began.

McCorcle, Jill. “Her Chee-to Heart.” Food Matters: a Bedford Spotlight Reader. Boston and NY: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2014, pp.31-36.

From emancipation leading all the way to the 20th century, African American women struggled to find better opportunities outside of their agricultural laborer and domestic servant roles. In Cooking in Other Women’s Kitchens: Domestic Workers in the South, 1865-1960, author Rebecca Sharpless illustrates how African American women in the American South used domestic work, such as cooking, as a stepping stone from their old lives to the start of their new ones. Throughout the text, Sharpless is set out to focus on the way African American women used cooking to bridge slavery and them finding their own employment, explore how these women could function in a world of low wages, demanding work, and omnipresent racial strife, and refute stereotypes about these cooks. With the use of cookbooks, interviews, autobiographies, and letters from the women, Sharpless guides readers to examine the personal lives and cooking profession of these African American women and their ambition to support themselves and their families.

Fast food restaurants exude bright colors, distribute meals with toys, and create a sense of happiness, but what truly goes on behind the scenes of this magical industry? In Eric Schlosser’s Fast Food Nation and Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle, the authors use similar rhetorical strategies to reveal the motives and unconventional practices of the food industry. Schlosser conveys his purpose through the utilization of pathos, ethos, anecdotes and imagery as compared to Sinclair who uses historical references and figurative language as well as imagery and pathos.

Because Americans did not have royalty and a “stoic, utilitarian sensibility” (Rosengarten 216), it hindered the development of a fine cuisine during the country’s early decades. “Adoption and adaptation” (Rosengarten 216) of courses added on to the new waves of immigrants created a richness and diversity for American dinner tables. People who look at America from a distance might think American food is just hamburgers, hotdogs, and fries. The “typical perspective overseas” (Rosengarten 216) about the foods Americans consume is not wrong but

For centuries, industrialization, food production, and innovation have motivated humans to revolutionize the world and reach new heights through trial and error efforts, conflict, and expanding on past endeavors. In An Edible History of Humanity by Tom Standage, the author explores the connection between food and historical events that have heavily influenced people with both positive and negative aspects. Over the course of history, food and its prominence have shaped modern day society with shifts that evolved civilization from simple agriculture to industrialization, the transitions of food throughout the global food pot with the advancement of transportation, and eventful influences that aimed to justify slavery’s place in historical society

Acclaimed food writer and cultural historian John T. Edge conjures nostalgia by revealing portions of our history through our most cherished foods. Donuts is the cap on a scrumptious series toting comfort food, belying calorie-counting, and embracing those cornerstone, iconic dishes that have come to define American cuisine and customs over the years. In Donuts, Edge walks us though the donut's inception as Dutch fare, the Salvation Army's wartime donuts, the invention of the donut machine, the 1950s donut-shop craze, the Krispy Kreme revolution, the appropriation by other ethnicities, and the fanatical chefs that take donuts to a new art form. Nothing encourages our sweet-tooth cravings like the donut. It is honest. It is satisfying. It is

Meanwhile, the youngest daughter is working at a very western fast food chain, Wendy’s, food is made quickly and mass-produced. The way that the father cooks and presents food is meant to given appreciation to presentation and tastes, but with the westernization of food and fast food that appreciation is getting lost along with tradition (Awalt, 2004). In another scene, the daughters are seen packing up all the left over food from dinner very carefully to be

In the beginning of civilization, the world was a hunter gatherer society, the means of food was for survival and that’s all that it was considered. As time went on more of a cultural essences surrounded the consumption of food. In the Far East thousands of years ago there became two types of main cuisine, Temple and Palace. Temple being the food of those of religion and self-discipline and Palace being those of the rich and powerful. (Lecture, Jan. 25th) This had become the first time in history that the consumption of food had a meaningful esthetic and identity. Regions and nationalities as a whole began to have these identities and it is directly tied into the roots of their culture. The United States, only being 200 odd years old, is different.

The Mintz, Fantasia, and Brant readings assigned for class provided several interesting discussions of the relationship between political economy and culinary practices and food culture. While each of the authors offered a very distinctive point of analysis, all three of the readings provided a critical overview of the impact and effect of political economy on culinary culture and the individuals laborers and consumers involved in an emerging food culture. The authors all arguing that the emerging food trend, sugar for Mintz and Fast food for Fantasia and Brant, can be directly linked to cheap labor costs and flexibility.

As a chef, I realized that I have learned many things while cooking foods. However, I did not know history and culture of other countries foods before I do this essay. Through the essay I was able to pay attention to many countries foods.

As a chef, I realized that I have learned many things while cooking foods. However, I did not know history and culture of other countries foods before I do this essay. Through the essay I was able to pay attention to many countries foods.

Nick the cook sat at the booth opposite the room from him, reading a newspaper and smoking a cigar. Nick wasn't a small man by any means, but he was a piglet to Dorothy's mother sow. The acrid smoke from his cigar said it was a Carajo, a cheap brand. His grizzled face, squinted eyes, and balding head made him look a lot older than he knew him to be. Nick's pale t-shirt and threadbare, faded jeans looked like they were present at the same food explosion Dorothy must have survived, but neither one seemed to notice. People came here to eat cheap food and try to escape their problems, not admire the view. Nick mopped sweat from his brow with his greasy shirt sleeve, and turned the page.