We ARE what we eat: "Direct Quote" Article Reflection

“Food through Identity” is such a broad topic to make an inquiry because it encompasses so many experiences and phenomena. All of the students in WRT 104 have been able to share their definitions of "Food through Identity" and recipes with the rest of us. With that being said, we have yet to do our own exploring outside of the classroom on how others view the topic. I have selected two different articles that relate and expand on our course inquiry, one about how food and identity intertwine and the second about how food is the single great unifier across cultures. Article one goes over food, self, and identity and the social sciences behind it. French author Claude Fischler expands on how food has to do with identity and self, saying that it "central to our sense of identity." The article focuses on how the kind of food you eat and what you eat categorizes your social position and status. He goes on to add that there is a kind of "oneness" and "otherness" to each individuals eating habits and cultural foods. He also recognizes the complexity that humans of different backgrounds have difficult or complex relationship with food because of their psychological and social circumstances. This relates to the second article that elaborates as to why it is so important for Americans to learn about the variation of cultural food that exists. Author Amy S. Choi shares her perspective as a first gen Korean-American on how she feels there are many aspects that shape and determine a countries diet. Choi goes on to break down how food has to do with things like "survival", "status" and "pleasure". All these aspects then go on to influence the kinds of foods different nations eat, and how and when they eat certain food items. As the author previously mentions she identifies as 1st gen Korean-American and shares with us how she associates "kimchi, white rice, and fried Spam" as  "comfort food." Throughout the article Choi reaffirms how preferences such as these are "personally meaningful — and also culturally meaningful." Both articles come to the agreement that food and self identity go hand in hand to create a beautifully complex relationship that helps to learn and understand our cultures and others, besides, we are what we eat. 

Citations: 

Choi, A. S. (2022, October 16). What Americans can learn from other food cultures. ideas.ted.com. https://ideas.ted.com/what-americans-can-learn-from-other-food-cultures/

Fischler, C. (1988). Food, self and identity. Social Science Information, 27(2), 275–292. https://doi.org/10.1177/053901888027002005