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Summary Sweetness and Power; goal to excavate main arguments of rise of sugar commodity; fundamental of

capitalist society can be seen in sugar; prototype of modern factory, rise of world systemhuman, sugar,

manufactured goods criss cross, dev of new regimes of morality global regulation of markets; transformation of

taste (preservation, emulation); tropical products in exploitation of workers

3 processes by which tastes change

Broadening and deepening the diffusion of certain types of taste (sugar broadensreaches new categories ofpeople and deepens b/c meanings reinforced)

Wider transformations in cultural language (conceptualize/talk Socializing next generation to value certain tastes

2 basic periods

1750sweetened tea and trickle popular 1850mass consumption of sugar rose sharply when cost low During 1700s sugar moved from rare commodity to daily basis food; from 1850 suddenly became large part

of peoples diets

What it means to eat sugarneed to see what uses

5 principle uses before commodity: medicine, spice, decorative material, preservative, sweetnerMintz arguessymbolic significance declined as consumption increases *cheaper, everyday basis, symbolic value of

social class distinction declined)

Mintz emphasizes 2 processes in symbolic reinvestment of sugar

1. Extensificationmore people become familiar w/ product and endow w/ new ritual meanings2. Intensificationnot mutually exclusive; meaning of sugar diffused/broadened and deepened

a. Emulation ,preserve continuity of meaningsb.

Mintz argues one of ways meaning spreads/diffuse in societythrough intensification, mimic upper classesbut

doesnt pay attention ot processes by which new meanings of sugar were spread to consumers

Sahlins

System of meaningswhy we value one food more than other Need is not given/biological/precultural; need cultural meanings to grasp human existence ((acknowledge

limited by needs)

Divisions and taboos; edibility inversely related to distance to humansDouglas

Social relations expressed through food a code[ intimate family dinner, etc Start with peoples categories Food patterned in day and week Two categories: food versus drink ; socially constructed differencesmeals rank higher than drinks (meal

sequential but not drink; first course etc)

Structure of mealminimum (a +2b)differs around world Argues meaning of meal is found in system of repeated analogiesdistinguish order from disorder, alow limited

structures, rank scale in repeated structures,

Summary

Mintz: Extensification/intensification; language; new gen

Sahlins: Symbolic mediationneither production/consumption thru needs, but seen cultural meaningful activity

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Douglas: Highly structured Repeated analogies and highly repetitive structures

All three approach w/ binary distinctions (ext/inten; ordinary/grand; closeness/distance from humans)

Binaries: Mintz: extensification & intensification Douglas: ordinary & grand meal Sahlins: closeness to, or distance from, humans determines which animals are considered edible

Ochs How Ethnic and National Identity is Constructed Through Food 1) By what one eats 2) By how one eats 3) By when one eats and with whom

Mintz vs bestor

Mintz: Very little about chains of distribution Explains why/how new commodity becomes central Denaturalizes demand

Bestor: Examines intermediaries, focuses on one site Fish has always been central to consumption in Japan Denaturalizes the market

Bestor vs Sahlins and

Bestor provides structural analysis of dolphin vs. carpBUT

Rejects idea that meaning of food is derived from pre-existing cultural system Examines system of meaning within marketplace, not just in consumption

(reproduction of system of meanings?)

Ethhnography Vivid descriptions of places and people Use of archives, interviews Clear set of questions to guide research Validation of data