The Taste of American Place A Reader on Regional and Ethnic Foods

by Shortridge, Barbara G.; Shortridge, James R.; de Wit, Cary W.; Frenkel, Stephen; Hoover, Marjorie A.; Hoy, James F.; Ireland, Lynne M.; Isern, Thomas D.; Kaplan, Anne R.; Kelly, James L.; Kovacik, Charles F.; Levine, Harry Gene; Lewis, George H.; Lloyd, T

• ISBN13: 9780847685073
• ISBN10: 0847685071
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-09-01
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Summary

Tracing the intertwined roles of food, ethnicity, and regionalism in the construction of American identity, this textbook examines the central role food plays in our lives. Drawing on a range of disciplines_including sociology, anthropology, folklore, geography, history, and nutrition_the editors have selected a group of engaging essays to help students explore the idea of food as a window into American culture. The editors' general introductory essay offers an overview of current scholarship, and part introductions contextualize the readings within each section. This lively reader will be a valuable supplement for courses on American culture across the social sciences.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations
Introduction: Food and American Culture	p. 1
Pasties in Michigan's Upper Peninsula: Foodways, Interethnic Relations, and Regionalism	p. 21
Rocky Mountain Oysters	p. 37
Loco Moco: A Folk Dish in the Making	p. 39
The Cincinnati Chili Culinary Complex	p. 45
A Pound of Kenya, Please or a Single Short Skinny Mocha	p. 57
The Maine Lobster as Regional Icon: Competing Images over Time and Social Class	p. 65
Patterns of American Rice Consumption 1955 and 1980	p. 85
Food-Place Associations on American Product Labels	p. 101
The Compiled Cookbook as Foodways Autobiography	p. 111
Introduction: On Ethnic Foodways	p. 121
Bierocks and Back for More Bierocks	p. 135
Cajuns and Crawfish	p. 139
Playing with Food: The Negotiation of Identity in the Ethnic Display Event by Italian Americans in Clinton, Indiana	p. 145
New York Jews and Chinese Food: The Social Construction of an Ethnic Pattern	p. 163
Eating Out in South Carolina's Cities: The Last Fifty Years	p. 187
The Geography of Food in Eastern Oklahoma: A Small Restaurant Study	p. 201
From Pushcart to Modular Restaurant: The Diner on the Landscape	p. 215
Fast Foods: American Food Regions	p. 227
You Are Where You Eat	p. 243
100 Quickies - Foods	p. 251
100 Quickies - Restaurants	p. 254
Maps of Restaurants	p. 257
Bibliography	p. 263
Index	p. 289
About the Contributors	p. 293
About the Editors	p. 297
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.