Course Syllabus

 

Anthropology of Food B

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Semester & Location:

Spring 2023 - DIS Copenhagen

Type & Credits:

Elective Course - 3 credits

Major Disciplines:

Anthropology, Environmental Studies, Food Politics

Faculty Members:

Camilla Hoff-Jørgensen - current students use the Canvas inbox

Time & Place:

Monday and Thursdays 13:15-14.35 in N7-B21

Description of Course

”You learn a lot about someone when you share a meal together.” Those were some of the words of the humble and proud chef, and food traveler Anthony Bourdain. Similar words had been said by the 19th-century epicure, politician, and gastronome, Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, when he said, “Tell me what you eat, and I’ll tell you who you are”. Bourdain’s food-filled journeys to cities with fabulous restaurants and street kitchens and rural exotic local treats showed the abundance of food cultures and ways of using food in a local context. 


Anthropologists explore how cultural identities are shaped and in Anthropology of Food, we focus on the human relations to and use of food. Eating is more than sustenance and enjoying the taste of it. When we buy food and eat it, we communicate meaning that creates identities, maintains social bonds, and sustains cultures. This makes eating not only a nutritional act but also a social and cultural act.


How can one’s educational level influence what you buy?  How is it that Thanksgiving is not the same without a turkey? Why do some see the friend-bonding qualities of eating an original burger, while others see climate crisis issues? And why do Michelin-starred restaurants in Copenhagen now flaunt their uses of sustainable, local, seasonal ingredients and organic natural wine? These are some of the questions you will get equipped to answer during the curse.


By focusing on food culture across the world, with most case studies from Europe and especially from Copenhagen, we will develop an intercultural understanding of other societies, as well as our own. 
During our classes, we’ll make the theoretical subject come to life by talking to Post-New Nordic chefs, farmers, public health officials, artisans, and food historians about what we eat, and what it reveals about their respective cultures. We will do fieldwork in food marked, classic bodegas, and Middle-Eastern Kebab restaurants, explore food and wine tastings and get a sense of the neighborhoods of Copenhagen.


Students will get acquainted with the anthropological perspectives on the topic of food, get immersed deeply into the Scandinavian eating culture, and the Nordic culinary revival, and investigate the role of the city in rethinking our food systems. 

 

Learning Objectives

The overall objective of the course is to enable students to understand the disparate social and cultural meanings of food. The course aims to endow them with a strong sense that food is more than what is served on a plate and provide them with a valuable toolkit filled with impressions, experiences, approaches, and concepts with which they would be able to better understand the practice of eating. 

By the end of the course, students should have:

  • developed a sense of the culinary cultures of Denmark and other countries and how these relate to broader cultures;
  • enhanced understanding of food culture in their home country and other countries after using Denmark as a case model
  • an understanding of how to analyze the role of food in forging an identity on an individual and collective levels;
  • developed a sense of how to think critically about food as a reflection of social, political, and economic phenomena;
  • enhanced their understanding of the evolving role of gastronomy and the role of culture in reshaping a cultural identity;
  • greater knowledge of the fields of anthropology and sociology and how these disciplines approach the study of food
  • the ability to use anthropological methods of inquiry to critically reflect on the role of food in culture in cultural practice;

 

Readings

There is no textbook for this course and most readings are found exclusively on Canvas.

Anthropological Theory

  • Ariel (2012). The Hummus Wars. Gastronomica: The Journal of Food and Culture. 12. 34-42. 
  • Bourdieu (1984). Distinction: A social critique of the judgement of taste. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
  • Swinbank  (2002). "The Sexual Politics of Cooking: A Feminist Analysis of Culinary Hierarchy", in Journal of Historical Sociology Vol. 15 No. 4 December 2002
  • Tjørnhøj-Thomsen and Ploug Hansen(2015). "Managing Uncertainties, Gaining Control: The Magic of Foods and Words" in Steffen, V., Jöhncke, S., & Raahauge, K. M. (red.) (2015). Between Magic and Rationality (eds. Jöhncke, Steffen, Vibeke Steffen & Kirsten Marie Raahauge): On the limits of reason in the modern world. (Critical Anthropology udg.) København: Museum Tusculanum. (Critical Anthropology, Vol. 4).

This is a selection of the course readings. The complete readings will be available on Canvas.

 

Field Studies

During the semester the two field studies will provide the possibility to explore and taste.

Guest Lectures

During the course, we will go out and visit locations or have speakers come and visit us. These will be announced during the semester.  

Expectations of the Students

I expect you to attend all class sessions unless prevented by an emergency. If you are not in class, you cannot participate. I expect you to complete all the assigned reading and come to class prepared to discuss it in depth. I expect you to turn in assignments on time.

Students are not allowed to use a laptop or smartphone in class. Considerations will, of course, be taken if you have special needs for a computer for note-taking. Please speak to the Office of Academic Support to request accommodations.

All students are expected to have completed the course readings before class so that we can discuss the material at the right level. It is important to be well prepared for class because I may randomly select students to give key points on the readings for that day.

Students are expected to participate actively in all classes and field studies and be open-minded to their fellow student’s contributions to the class. The aim is to establish an environment where we can learn from each other as well as from the texts and cases we engage with, and you are expected to actively support this approach.

 

Approach to Teaching

The methods used to cover class materials include lectures, videos, discussions, individual and group presentations, guest lectures, and field trips. Periodically we will split up into smaller groups to review and analyze the material more thoroughly. The course will have several out-of-the-classroom sessions on location to experience the different facets of food firsthand. Students are expected to be able to find and be at the external locations on time. The external locations will not be far from DIS's location and maps and addresses will be given in advance. Office hours are held after class or by appointment.

 

 

Faculty

Camilla Hoff-Jørgensen holds a BA. in Nutrition and Health (2006) and a BA. and cand.scient in Anthropology (2012). She worked as a cultural informant in Hiroshima, Japan educating and arranging events about Danish and Scandinavian food cultures, and developing comparative studies of the Danish (European) and Japanese food cultures. Camilla has also been a text-writer for a monthly article for the Japanese, SHUN magazine, about Danish eating culture and traditions. She moreover has international working experience in Bangkok and Barcelona where she lived and worked with food and culture. In Denmark, Camilla has done various research within the fields of medical anthropology and anthropology of food. She is currently working on  experience design studies, one covering restaurant NOMA's reaction to COVID19 and another covering the McDonald's Gourmet Burger. 

Office hours are held after class or by appointment.

Evaluation

Students will be evaluated on their ability to understand, discuss, and communicate theories within the Anthropology of Food as well as interpret them meaningfully. These skills will be the primary focus of evaluations. Group work in class and in the field as well as the student's ability to contribute to a group effort will be taken into account for the grade.

 

Grading

Your grade consists of the following four elements:

Assignment

Percent

Class Engagement (individual)

30%

Applied Theory in Practice (individual)

20%

Participant observation and Thick description (Group)

20%

Ethnographic interviews and Food Analysis (individual or pair)

30%

  •  Class engagement (30%). Engagement entails among others: active participation in class discussions, preparation for each class, reading of assigned texts, reflection on reading, and active participation in field studies.
  • Applied Theory in Practice (based on a social theory) (20%)  Food and the Capitals (Bourdieu), The paper should consist of an analysis where students apply a theory to a case about foods and food practices that you encounter (cuisine, ingredient, dish, cultural habit, taboo, etc). This demands that you go out and explore your community. Students are not required to buy expensive food goods, but through their daily meals and meeting with the food offered in their community (hot dog stand, café latte, products in the supermarket, delivery services), students are required to analyze on the cultural sense-making in a given context. Strong posts will not only describe those foods and practices, but analyze them, and the reflection itself will be evaluated for the quality of its insights, references to readings, interpretations, writing, and use of anthropological theories. You may include photos, videos, or any other media you see fit. (Theoretical assignments).
  • Participant observation and Thick description (Group) (20%). This assignment shows the student's ability to understand the methods of participant observation and the ability to describe and explain a Danish cultural phenomenon through photos and cultural analysis. (Methodological assignment)
  • Ethnographic interviews and Food Analysis (individual or in pair). (30%)  Students individually choose a topic of their own choice, based on the literature of this course. Students find a relevant informant whose narratives hopefully can uncover cultural interpretations about this topic. The analysis must include some quotes from the interview and a discussion using the chosen social theory. In some cases, students find readings or topics we haven't covered in class. Then I will help you find relevant social theories for the discussion. This is the last assignment of the semester. Throughout the semester, students will get trained in how to use social theories. The food analysis, however, is the only assignment that demands that students do an interview. (Methodological and theoretical assignment).

To be eligible for a passing grade in this class you must complete all of the assigned work.

More detailed assignment description can be found under Assignments.

 

 

Academic Regulations  

Use of Electronic Devices in the Classroom - Electronic devices such as laptop computers, tablet devices, etc. are only allowed in class for note-taking. Please be sure that all cell phones are put away and are set to “off” prior to the beginning of the class or a meeting. In some specific cases, you may be requested to use your computer or tablet for quick/ad-hoc research on the Internet. Any misuse of trust will be reflected in your engagement grade

Please make sure to read the Academic Regulations on the DIS website. There you will find regulations on: 

Students must always check canvas for changes, but here is a PDF of the syllabus

Course Summary:

Date Details Due