Syllabus Project

DIVER-CIT-EAT

How ethnicity, culture and food influence culture and community

Spring 2020 Cross Culture and Global Studies

GENERAL INFORMATION:

Instructor information: Susann Glenn – [email protected]

Course description:

An academic approach to understanding culture by considering how the identity of a country and

its people identify and relate to food. This is accomplished by highlighting ethnic and cultural

diversity through numerous countries and the cuisine and customs they embrace.

Over the last decade, Houston, Texas has quietly become the most diverse city in the United

States. With over 3 million residents (and more on the way), there is no majority culture and

more than 130 different languages are spoken, with Spanish and Vietnamese being the most

overheard. Amongst these millions of people, are people who have deep history and customs

rooted within their cultures. Many of these customs are accompanied by or focus on food. Food

is the common bond that can unite all people because it is a basic need that must be met. It is

something that we all must do. An even more fascinating fact about our diverse city, is that there

are more than 10,000 restaurants in the Houston-area which feature cuisines from over 70

countries! Because the culinary scene in our town is so phenomenal, it’s no wonder that

Houstonians are reported to dine out more than other residents from any other city, over seven a

week! It’s also a wonderful way to understand and learn about the other cultures and countries

that are represented in one, big, little city.

This course focuses on roughly 15 countries and regions throughout the world that have

significant communities and populations within the Houston-Area. A major theme of the course

centers on how each culture identifies with food in its country of origin and how it may have

changed or accommodated food tastes, preferences, serving portions and pronunciations over

time as cultures have become more blended and globalization continues. Customs unique to

these countries that center on food will also be looked at and examined to understand how

cultural identity is strengthened.

The complimenting text, Food and Culture: A Reader by Carole Counihan, Penny Van Esterik.

Routledge, will accompany several work sessions within the class and will enable students to

look closely at different cultural phenomenon that impact how different cultures interact with

food. The work of the authors looks at holistically at the varying food-related phenomenon

within different cultures ranging from drought and ethnicity, eating disorders and fast food,

activism and politics. Counihan and Van Esterik contend that studying cultures through their

relationship with food offers up a powerful lens of analysis a range of compelling contemporary

issues; specifically, diaspora and immigration. And this is where the city of Houston comes in.

As immigrants from the numerous countries who have settled in our city share their food and

culture with all, Counihand and Van Esterik explain how food globalization draws our attention

to diasporic identities, authenticity, food nostalgia and power. This theme can be seen in

transnational instant foods, such as chutneys and spice powders, play interesting roles in the

construction of female Indian identity among middle class families in the two locations.

Important questions about the meaning of “authenticity” in food studies are raised and students

will closely examine what should be considered true, authentic traditional foods versus what is

fast or convenient, or for that matter, the notion of food fusion.

Each week, the class will reflect on a particular country, at times countries, and how food is

incorporated into their culture. This will look differently each week and students will be

expected to write a three to four page paper which dissects the readings, but which also includes

their understanding (before and after) of the culture and its cuisine. At the end of each three-

week unit, five units total for 15 weeks, there will be a course-sponsored “outing” to a local,

Houston-area restaurant to experience the culture and cuisine of one of the countries recently

studied.

Required materials/Text:

Food and Culture: A Reader. Carole Counihan, Penny Van Esterik. Routledge

Week 1: Introduction – Understanding the influence of culture on food

1. Halloran: The immigrant kitchen: food, ethnicity, and diaspora - Halloran, V. (2016).

The immigrant kitchen: food, ethnicity, and diaspora. Columbus: The Ohio State

University Press. – Chapter Chapter 2 Eating in Public AS PERFORMANCE OF

ASSIMILATION, DIASPORA, OR ETHNIC BELONGING (pp. 41-63)

2. Counihan, Van Esterik: Food and Culture: A Reader – Why Food? Why Culture? Why

Now? Introduction to the Third Edition – Carole Counihan and Penny Van Esterik -

Counihan, C., & Van Esterik, P. (2013). Food and culture a reader (3rd ed.). New York:

Routledge. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uhcl/reader.action?docID=1097808

3. Musca: Slow Food Revolution- Musca, C. (2002). Slow food revolution. New York, NY:

Filmakers Library.

Week 2: Mexico – more than chips and queso

1. Long, Vargas: Food and Culture in Mexico – Chapter 1 Historical overview - Long, J.,

& Vargas, L. (2005). Food culture in Mexico. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press.

2. Pilcher: Food and Culture: A Reader, Chapter 29. Taco Bell, Maseca, and Slow Food: A

Postmodern Apocalypse for Mexico’s Peasant Cuisine? Jeffrey M. Pilcher C., & Van

Esterik, P. (2013). Food and culture a reader (3rd ed.). New York: Routledge.

https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uhcl/reader.action?docID=1097808

3. Steptoe: Steptoe, T. (2019). Mexican Americans and the Power of Culture in Houston.

Modern American History, 2(1), 65–69. https://doi.org/10.1017/mah.2018.35

Week 3: Central America; El Salvador and Guatemala – migration and identity

1. Batres, Jensen, Brester: Batres - Marquez, S., Jensen, H., & Brester, G. (n.d.).

Salvadoran Consumption of Ethnic Foods in the United States.

2. Roth, Hartnett: Roth, B., & Hartnett, C. (2018). Creating reasons to stay?

Unaccompanied youth migration, community-based programs, and the power of “push”

factors in El Salvador. Children and Youth Services Review, 92, 48–55.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.01.026

3. Friedrick: Friedrick, J. (2004). More avenues open for Central, South American cuisine.

Gourmet News, 11. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/224773823/

4. Counihan, Routledge: Chapter 26. “Real Belizean Food”: Building Local Identity in the

Transnational Caribbean Richard Wilk Food and Culture: A Reader, edited by Carole

Counihan, et al., Routledge, 2012. ProQuest Ebook Central,

http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uhcl/detail.action?docID=1097808

Unit One: Field Trip: Habañeros Restaurant in Friendswood, TX

Week 4: Brazil – science, class and food

1. Prado: Prado, S. (2010). Food and culture as a scientific field in Brazil. Physis, 20(2),

413–442. https://doi.org/10.1590/S0103-7331201000020000

2. Fajans: Chapter 7: The Chemistry of Identity: Cooking up a New View of a Nation.

Fajans, J. (2012). Brazilian food : race, class and identity in regional cuisines (English

edition.). London ;: Berg.

3. O’Meara, Charabati: O’Meara, M., & Charabati, T. (2007). Food safari. Series 2,

episode 11, Brazilian food safari. Sydney, New South Wales: Special Broadcasting

Service Corporation.

Week 5: Cuba and Puerto Rico – Social justice and

1. Bowenm, Devine: Bowen, R., & Devine, C. (2011). “Watching a person who knows how

to cook, you’ll learn a lot”. Linked lives, cultural transmission, and the food choices of

Puerto Rican girls. Appetite, 56(2), 290–298. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2010.12.015

2. NPR. (2018). Houston Public Media. Retrieved from Houston Public Media:

https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/2018/01/29/264455/many-puerto-

ricans-displaced-by-hurricane-maria-expect-to-settle-in-texas-in-the-next-year/

3. News Article: A New Location, Tropical Music, Authentic Food and Arts and an Exotic Car

Show will Headline Houston’s 10th Annual Puerto Rican and Cuban Festival. (2016, September

14). PR Newswire. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1825227316/

4. Dorsey: Dorsey, J. (2004). Identity, Rebellion, and Social Justice among Chinese

Contract Workers in Nineteenth-Century Cuba. Latin American Perspectives, 31(3), 18–

47. https://doi.org/10.1177/0094582X04264492

Week 6: China – identity beyond the Great Wall

1. Berry: Berry, C. (2003). Chinese Food Culture Today. Gastronomica, 3(4), 99–101.

https://doi.org/10.1525/gfc.2003.3.4.99

2. Guansheng: Guansheng Ma. (2015). Food, eating behavior, and culture in Chinese

society. Journal of Ethnic Foods, 2(4), 195–199. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jef.2015.11.004

3. Wu, Yang, Chiu: Wu, Y., Yang, Y., & Chiu, C. (2014). Responses to religious norm

defection: The case of Hui Chinese Muslims not following the halal diet. International

Journal of Intercultural Relations, 39(1), 1–8.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2013.08.008

Unit Two: Field Trip: Golden Dumpling House, Houston, Texas

Week 7: Vietnam – the other melting pot

1. Peters: Chapter 3: Rice, Pork and Power in the Vietnamese Village, 1774–1883 58 Erica

J. Peters; Banerjee-Dube, I. (2016). Cooking cultures : convergent histories of food and

feeling . Delhi, India ;: Cambridge University Press.

2. Peters: Chapter 1: Vietnamese Culinary Imperialism - Peters, E. (2012). Appetites and

aspirations in Vietnam : food and drink in the long nineteenth century . Lanham, Md:

AltaMira Press.

3. Burnett: Burnett, J., & Npr. (2018, November 28). Decades After Clashing With The

Klan, A Thriving Vietnamese Community In Texas. Retrieved from

https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/2018/11/28/313247/decades-after-

clashing-with-the-klan-a-thriving-vietnamese-community-in-texas/.

4. Van Roy: Chapter 5 – Contending Identities: Muslim Minorities - Van Roy, E. (2017).

Siamese melting pot : ethnic minorities in the making of Bangkok . Singapore: ISEAS

Yusof Ishak Institute.

Week 8: Thailand – authenticity, traditions and spice

1. Yasmee: Chapter 22 Not “From Scratch”: Thai Food Systems and “Public Eating” Gisèle

Yasmee - Food and Culture: A Reader, edited by Carole Counihan, et al., Routledge,

2012. ProQuest Ebook Central,

http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uhcl/detail.action?docID=1097808 .

2. Kelly, Seubsman, Banwell, Dixon, Sleigh: Kelly, M., Seubsman, S., Banwell, C.,

Dixon, J., & Sleigh, A. (2015). Traditional, modern or mixed? Perspectives on social,

economic, and health impacts of evolving food retail in Thailand. Agriculture and Human

Values, 32(3), 445–460. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10460-014-9561-z

3. Seung: Seung, C., Lee, C., & Durst, I. (2008). Spicy Hot Chilies. Falls Church, VA:

Landmark Media.

4. Viggiano: Viggiano, B.(2018, August 11). Around the World in Houston: Discover

Thailand: 365 Houston. Retrieved from

https://365thingsinhouston.com/2017/09/21/around-the-world-in-houston-discovering-

thailand/.

Week 9- India – politics and careful cultivation

1. Sakar: Chapter 7: Diaspora Dish Cooking, Writing, and Creating Identities in Food-

blogs Sucharita Sarkar - Farm to Fingers: The Culture and Politics of Food in

Contemporary India, edited by Kiranmayi Bhushi, Cambridge University Press, 2018.

ProQuest Ebook Central,

http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uhcl/detail.action?docID=5330414.

2. Srinivas: Chapter 25. “As Mother Made It”: The Cosmopolitan Indian Family,

“Authentic” Food, and the Construction of Cultural Utopia Tulasi Srinivas - Food and

Culture: A Reader, edited by Carole Counihan, et al., Routledge, 2012. ProQuest Ebook

Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uhcl/detail.action?docID=1097808.

3. Madeleno: Madaleno, I. (2015). Growing Fruit Trees, Medicinal Plants nd Spices In The

State Of Goa, India. WIT Transactions on the Built Environment, 148, 223–233.

https://doi.org/10.2495/CC150191

Unit Three: Field Trip: Cali’s Sandwich and Pho

Week 10: Pakistan – culture and globalization

1. Petaluma: Pakistan society & culture (2nd ed.). (n.d.). Petaluma, Calif: World Trade

Press.

2. Qureshi: Muhammad Azeem Qureshi. (2010). Is inclusive government more humane?

Perspective on food availability in Pakistan. International Journal of Social Economics,

37(8), 562–573. https://doi.org/10.1108/03068291011060625

3. Goody: Chapter 7. Industrial Food: Towards the Development of a World Cuisine Jack

Goody- Food and Culture: A Reader, edited by Carole Counihan, et al., Routledge, 2012.

ProQuest Ebook Central,

http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uhcl/detail.action?docID=1097808.

Week 11: Syria and Iraq – food during conflict

1. Hyung: Hyung, K., Seung, C., Lee, C., & Durst, I. (2008). Food in the Muslim World .

Falls Church, VA: Landmark Media.

2. Scagliusi, Porreca, Ulian, Sato, Unsain: Scagliusi, F., Porreca, F., Ulian, M., de Morais

Sato, P., & Unsain, R. (2018). Representations of Syrian food by Syrian refugees in the

city of São Paulo, Brazil: An ethnographic study. Appetite, 129, 236–244.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2018.07.014

3. Chandeasekaran: MUNTHER CANNOT COOK YOUR TURKEY ~ IRAQ ~ RAJIV

CHANDRASEKARAN Eating Mud Crabs in Kandahar: Stories of Food During

Wartime by the World's Leading Correspondents, edited by Matt McAllester, University

of California Press, 2011. ProQuest Ebook Central,

http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uhcl/detail.action?docID=743997.

Week 12: Turkey – how deep cultural roots impact migration

1. Batu, Heysem: Ali Batu, & Heysem S. Batu. (2018). Historical background of Turkish

gastronomy from ancient times until today. Journal of Ethnic Foods, 5(2), 76–82.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jef.2018.05.002

2. Nicolaou, Doak, Dam, Brug, Stronks, Seidell: Nicolaou, M., Doak, C. M., Dam, R. M.

V., Brug, J., Stronks, K., & Seidell, J. C. (2009). Cultural and Social Influences on Food

Consumption in Dutch Residents of Turkish and Moroccan Origin: A Qualitative Study.

Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 41(4), 232–241. doi:

10.1016/j.jneb.2008.05.011

3. Kilic: Kilic, B. (2009). Current trends in traditional Turkish meat products and cuisine.

LWT - Food Science and Technology, 42(10), 1581–1589. doi: 10.1016/j.lwt.2009.05.016

Unit Four: Field Trip: Avesta Persian Grill, Houston, Texas

Week 13: Africa/Ethiopia – the impact of climate on food, migration and culture

1. Crenn, Delavigne, Techoeyres: Chantal Crenn, Anne-Elène Delavigne, & Isabelle

Techoueyres. (2011). Migrants’ food habits when returning home (in Bamako, Mali, and

Dakar, Senegal). Anthropology of Food, 7.

2. Mohammed, Bonnefille: Chapter 6: Late Holocene Climatic Fluctuations and Historical

Records of Famine in Ethiopia M. U. Mohammed and R. Bonnefille 65 - Droughts,

Food, and Culture: Ecological Change and Food Security in Africa's Later Prehistory,

edited by Fekri A. Hassan, Kluwer Academic Publishers, 2002. ProQuest Ebook Central,

http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uhcl/detail.action?docID=3035628.

3. Ethiopia women in culture, business, & travel (2nd ed.). (n.d.). Petaluma, Calif: World

Trade Press.

Week 14: Africa/Morocco – ancient culture and collaboration

1. O’Mera, Charabati: O’Meara, M., & Charabati, T. (2006). Food safari. Series 1,

episode 1, Moroccan food safari. Sydney, New South Wales: Special Broadcasting

Service Corporation.

2. Duruz: Chapter 10. Ras el Hanout and Preserved Lemons: Memories, 201 Markets and

the Scent of Borrowed Traditions Jean Duruz - Banerjee-Dube, I. (2016). Cooking

cultures convergent histories of food and feeling. Delhi, India ;: Cambridge University

Press.

3. Rguibi, Belahsen: Rguibi, M., & Belahsen, R. (2006). Fattening practices among

Moroccan Saharawi women. (Clinical report). Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal,

12(5), 619–624.

Week 15 – Culture Considered and Devoured

1. Barthes: Chapter 2 Toward a Psychosociology of Contemporary Food Consumption

Roland Barthes - Food and Culture: A Reader, edited by Carole Counihan, et al.,

Routledge, 2012. ProQuest Ebook Central,

http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uhcl/detail.action?docID=1097808.

2. Halloran: The immigrant kitchen: food, ethnicity, and diaspora - Halloran, V. (2016).

The immigrant kitchen: food, ethnicity, and diaspora. Columbus: The Ohio State

University Press. – Chapter 5 Diasporic Inventions: Reclaiming Family Culinary

Traditions (pp. 109-127)

3. Flitsch: Flitsch, M. (2011). Hesitant hands on changing tables: Negotiating dining

patterns in diaspora food culture transfer.

Unit Five: Field Trip: Food Truck Park, Downtown Houston