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| The phrase "French cuisine" defines membership through expected eating behaviors. |
There's an individual and a collective scope to the
term. It can refer to a social category (for instance, they are Americans
denotes a category) as well as something regarding the construct of the self.
In the 1990's, Identity played a big role in the social sciences and
humanities. It was also important in management since Identity issues can play
a role in the success of an organization or a team.
Identity has something to do with what is done
differently, that sets something apart everything else but it's not the image
or self-image of it.
So, what is Identity?
Since you're reading this text on the web let's see what's
the definition on the Google Dictionary:
Identity
ʌɪˈdɛntɪti/
noun
noun: identity;
plural noun: identities; noun: identity operation;
plural noun: identity operations
1.
1.
the fact of being who or what
a person or thing is.
"he knows the identity of
the bombers"
sinónimos:
|
name; Mais
|
·
the
characteristics determining who or what a person or thing is.
"he wanted to develop a
more distinctive Scottish Tory identity"
sinónimos:
|
individuality, self, selfhood, ego, personality, character, originality, distinctiveness, distinction, singularity, peculiarity, uniqueness, differentness
"she was afraid of losing her identity if she became his wife"
|
·
(of an object)
serving to establish who the holder, owner, or wearer is by bearing their name
and often other details such as a signature or photograph.
modifier noun: identity
"an identity card"
2.
2.
a close similarity or
affinity.
"an identity between the
company's own interests and those of the local community"
sinónimos:
|
identicalness, sameness, selfsameness, oneness, congruity, congruence, indistinguishability, interchangeability; Mais
|
antónimos:
|
mismatch
|
Identity can refer to a label, a "social
category, defined by membership rules and allegedly characteristic attributes
or expected behaviors, or a socially distinguishing feature that a person takes
a special pride in or views as unchangeable but socially consequential"
(Fearon, Stanford University, 1999).
From local to global
It's easy to understand how food, food gathering, collecting, storage, processing, the ways of eating and drinking are a factor in the construction of Identity (both social and personal). Almost from birth, the way food is collected, prepared and ingested may distinguish a person or a group of persons from others. These domestic habits may be adopted by a wider range of people. If a community perceives added value on a habit to its survival it will adopt it.
Eventually it can get to the world and become a worldwide adopted custom. At this level food habits can get normalized, they may become a standard and thus lose their individual or regional identity function. Widely adopted they lose their marker function, they no longer distinguish but rather serve as common denominator.
For example, you cannot distinguish anyone or any country based on the consumption of french fries although the name of this side dish has a distinct national category associated with it. And a wrong one to make matters more complex. Most people can understand that the city of Hamburg probably had something to do with the hamburger but you cannot identify any person or region based on an habit of eating hamburger. The fact is there are too many different cultures and people consuming hamburgers. The same could be said of curry. Although most people think about India relating to curry it's a food habit already disseminated around the world and it even incorporates ingredients not found originally in India.
Food may distinguish a person, a people, region or country on the following aspects.
Geography
Eventually it can get to the world and become a worldwide adopted custom. At this level food habits can get normalized, they may become a standard and thus lose their individual or regional identity function. Widely adopted they lose their marker function, they no longer distinguish but rather serve as common denominator.
Food always relates to something
Food may distinguish a person, a people, region or country on the following aspects.
Geography
Climate, topography, distances. The available food may depend on geographic factors. On high mountains vegetable species are different from those at lower altitudes. Continental interior has abundance of ingredients different from coastal places. The presence of a river or a forest influence what is available for food. Mediterranean climates provide trees, gaming, fruits and fish that are not to be found in equatorial or very cold climates. Rain precipitation, or high temperatures are also factors that influence the way people eat. People that live near a port or a shore usually have a more diverse economic environment since is easier to keep trade on a regular basis.
The same can be said for those populations near important rivers. If a person eats chestnuts on a regular basis for a good part of the year there is a good probability that that person lives and works at a certain altitude, is exposed to a certain type of climate and may have a job from a limited set of options. The possibilities are not infinite.
Economy
Economy
Trade gives access to food products you couldn't get otherwise. It allows for a more diverse nutrition. If the economy is in good condition that means you can trade certain goods for others. You can sell what you have in excess and buy what you lack. Thus you have access to things you wouldn't otherwise. Several factors affect the way the economy behaves. War, diseases, international relations, politics and so on. If the economy is feeble (internal or external) food prices and sometimes even food availability suffer the impact. The way a country eats and drinks always gives you clues on how well their economy is doing. If a population usually eats excessively, has access to an abundance of food items at reasonable prices and has health concerns about food that means something about how their economy is doing.
Language
Food and language are interconnected wherever you are. Humans eat vegetables, animals, fungi, minerals. That wide range of products demands a broad scope of knowledge and the language to pass it from generation to generation. It also produces a very wide range of sensations and perceptions in all of our senses. It's not just taste perception. From harvest to chewing, from preparation to presentation, from trade to digestion our senses keep being activated. That demands vocabulary and grammar to describe those sensations and the techniques that come with them.
We also put some effort in naming and classification. It's not just the products or ingredients. Just think about terms such as "diet", "nutrition", "finger food", "fresh food", "industrial food", "frozen", "canned", "healthy food", "raw diet", "natural", "organic", "biological", "peasant food", "comfort food", "seasonal", "traditional", "whole food", "Mediterranean diet" and so on.
The language we use towards food shows to others what we do, our concerns, our social status, how much we know about a number of topics namely our own history and culture.
(to be continued)
Family or individual history: special recipes that go from one generation to another with little or no modification.
Community history: leitão à bairrada, sidoniozinhos, doces conventuais
The language we use towards food shows to others what we do, our concerns, our social status, how much we know about a number of topics namely our own history and culture.
(to be continued)
Family or individual history: special recipes that go from one generation to another with little or no modification.
Community history: leitão à bairrada, sidoniozinhos, doces conventuais
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