cooking

cooking

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Food

Food can satisfy everyone in different levels. It can provide energy for our bodies to keep on living. Food is a comfort or a dislike to our stomach. People who love to cook can express themselves. They use their talent to enchant or make you sick. For centuries, families use their meal time as an opportunity for each member to communicate and share about their day. People can also be represented as a whole. For example, in different cultures, food can represent or symbolize a belief, celebration or any important occasion. In Mexico, El Dia de los Muertos or the Day of the Dead, people bake human shaped bread and cook other food to remember their beloved ones. This unique celebration reveals their beliefs about the dead.
In literature, food can represent different things .Laura Esquirel uses food to represent Tita’s feeling in the novel Like Water for Chocolate. Tita’s actions are controlled by her mother but in the kitchen, Tita is free. She is able to express her feeling in her cooking. The very first chapter of the book, Tita cooks Christmas rolls. In this occasion it represents the beginning of Tita’s and Pedro’s love. She expresses her love and desires in her cooking. Tita’s food is a way of communicating with Pedro since their love is forbidden.
In conclusion, everyone needs food to survive. We enjoy eating it and spending time with our family. At the same time, reading about food, we can learn about culture. In my opinion, food plays an important role in society and individually. It affects the way the world views our culture and how food makes us feel that day.

3 comments:

  1. I had no idea that on "El Dia de los Muertos" bread is baked in the shape of people! That's kind of like making gingerbread cookies !! I find it interesting how cultures around the world express themselves through food in similar ways :)

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  2. Mimi (is this Mirian? - I just want to be sure)
    I love that you brought in details from another culture - fascinating stuff!.

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