I’ve always heard the saying “you are what you eat” but
never quite grasped the complexity and truthfulness of such a statement. I like
to believe that I am not anything like the cow or chicken I just consumed for
lunch. However, after talking about cultural and emotional connections we have
to the foods we eat, the saying is starting to make a whole lot more sense.
Not only is the food that we put into our bodies obviously
affecting our physical make-up, it is also part of our identity and who we are
as individuals. Some of the most important events in our lives will be
celebrated with friends and family, most likely amongst our favorite dishes.
The menu for your wedding will be planned with precise and overwhelming detail,
the foods you choose to feed your children will have just as much a social impact as a physical one,
and your favorite type of food tells a lot about where you have been, where you
are from, and who you are.
After watching a documentary in class about the connection
between food and culture, it has become clear that the food we enjoy is another
piece of the puzzle that is our identity. One family will choose rice, while
the other chooses potatoes. One person will eat sushi once a week, while the
other gags at the thought of it. (cough cough.) One mother will choose to feed her child white bread because
buying breads with seeds in it is just “counter-culture hippies” trying to
force an unwanted co-op on the community. That same “counter-culture hippie”
will be mortified that a mother would feed her child “putty wonderbread”. The
foods that we eat tell a story about who we are as people, a community, and a
culture. What is your story?
It's very true that there's a huge connection between food and identity. Maybe next time we teach this class we should have students write their own memoirs or autobiographies through food. There is a whole genre of books out there that involve people telling their life stories through food.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great blog. I found it so interesting and have realized some of the same things. I was the same way with Sushi until recently. After Thursday I realized a lot of foods and veggies ( which we ate) that I thought were gross, were just not known to me. It does all depend on where you come from. When I was growing up we always ate white bread. After learning more about food as I got older and in the nutrition class here, I have passed on information to him. He had no idea white bread wasn't exactly the best choice in your diet. It seems like now I can affect his food choices the same way he affected mine when I was younger.
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