The Relationship Between Food & Politics
According to the Webster dictionary, politics can be defined as the art or science concerned with guiding or influencing governmental policy. The Webster dictionary defines food as something that nourishes, sustains, or supplies. On the issue of food and politics, they can be directly related. The definition of politics is the art/science of guiding/ influencing governmental policies, you can view the governmental policy as food. Food can be the governmental policy that politics is aimed towards because they both relate to the topics of gender but more specifically, class and power. Throughout politics, the idea of class is necessary for the beginning processes. Each class holds different amounts of power, which creates class differentiation which in return is essential to normality's in politics. Food relates in the same sense. Because of your class, your power is either limited or unlimited. In both food and politics, class and power are equally important and can equally correlate to one another.
According to Roland Barthes essay on Contemporary Food Consumption, he tries to objectify the issue of contemporary eating habits being in relations to class. Chombart de Lauve studied the behavior of French working-class families in their respect to food. M. Perrot wrote in her book, that she found economics and taste preferences were directly related (29). Depending on what class we come from in our society, our taste preferences differ. Take for instance; if you are from a lower class in society, you are less likely to get the luxury of fine dining. Barthes used the example of sugar in America. In current day America, sugar can be found in almost everything, like meat, fish, salads, and relishes. Sugar is so simple and inexpensive that we have put it into everything and now people are craving those same foods. Because sugar has become so available to almost every class, it has become a part of the American culture. French people, on the other hand, do not understand why one would want to consume so much sugar on a daily basis, but that is what is available to us. If you are not exposed to substance you would not eat it often. Which leads to the topic, "How can you want something that you have never had?". The same is true in the aspect of food. If you have never had fine and expensive food, and you are used to eating more plain foods and nothing out of the ordinary, which is the kind of food your taste acquires. The more money you have, the higher you are in class; the higher you are in class, the more able you are to spend money on more high-quality foods. When you are used to eating a certain kind of food, which is what you tend to prefer. This separation of society based on your status leads to idea of class differentiation.
According to Roland Barthes essay on Contemporary Food Consumption, he tries to objectify the issue of contemporary eating habits being in relations to class. Chombart de Lauve studied the behavior of French working-class families in their respect to food. M. Perrot wrote in her book, that she found economics and taste preferences were directly related (29). Depending on what class we come from in our society, our taste preferences differ. Take for instance; if you are from a lower class in society, you are less likely to get the luxury of fine dining. Barthes used the example of sugar in America. In current day America, sugar can be found in almost everything, like meat, fish, salads, and relishes. Sugar is so simple and inexpensive that we have put it into everything and now people are craving those same foods. Because sugar has become so available to almost every class, it has become a part of the American culture. French people, on the other hand, do not understand why one would want to consume so much sugar on a daily basis, but that is what is available to us. If you are not exposed to substance you would not eat it often. Which leads to the topic, "How can you want something that you have never had?". The same is true in the aspect of food. If you have never had fine and expensive food, and you are used to eating more plain foods and nothing out of the ordinary, which is the kind of food your taste acquires. The more money you have, the higher you are in class; the higher you are in class, the more able you are to spend money on more high-quality foods. When you are used to eating a certain kind of food, which is what you tend to prefer. This separation of society based on your status leads to idea of class differentiation.