Gender, Food and the

Body

Reeves-Sanday reading

pulling train in college fraternities

Reinforces

cultural values of patriarchy

Creates solidarity between fraternity members
Rite of passage into manhood communitas
A behavior that is not acceptable by society.

Disordered Eating

Reinforces the thin body ideal, in Western cultures,

especially for women.
Perceived as primarily a female problem, related to
female identity.
A form of solidarity between women.

Is a resistance to the role of social reproduction

through the control of consumption of food.

1993 Canadian study of adolescent women

Refusing food breaks down social relationships, especially the

family

It reflects the control of food as power.

Role of Food and Eating

Are of interest to anthropologists regarding the

role they play in systems of subsistence,
exchange, ritual and the negotiation of social
relationships.
Important means through which human beings
construct reality.
Reflect social concerns.
Instrumental in the construction of gender
identity.

The Power of Food

A primary resource for human biological survival

Integral part of forming social relations

Kinship
Gender
Alliances between individuals, families, states
Creates inequalities
Enables humans to adapt to their environment
A tool to transmit culture

The Canada Food Guide

Food and Gender

Division of Labor

Historically, women have been assigned the role of

social reproduction, which includes both the
production of social relations and biological
reproduction.

Procreation and nurturance of future generation.

Food preparation, family nutrition.
Subordinate status private or domestic realm.

Historically, men have been assigned the role of

provider and protector.

A position of power.
Dominant status - public realm.

Stereotypical Gendered Roles

Gender and Food

Women and men are associated with

different types of foods and portion sizes:

Men heavy foods like meat and potatoes;

large portions
man-sized meals
Foods that stick to your ribs

Women light foods like chicken and salads;

small portions; sweets
Dainty
Creative and intricate preparation and presentation

Food Across Cultures

Is coded as feminine
Women associated with the preparation and
serving of food.
Men associated with the eating of food that
others have prepared
Creates a gender hierarchy
Socialization of gender roles associated with
food

American example (Roos, 1995)

Gurage example (Shack, 1997)

Socialization of Gender Roles

3rd World Market Women

Life Cycle Rituals

Enforce and reinforce gender status

Rites of passage
Involves exchange of food
Production and reproduction of culture
Not static, varies across families, societies,
and cultures.

The Body, Food and Gender

Food and eating habits as the

embodiment of social issues.

Disordered eating

Anorexia
Bulimia
Obesity
Type 2 diabetes
Heart disease
Hypertension

The Body as Historical

The body is a symbol social meanings

are inscribed on the body.

Social roles and statuses attached to

maleness and femaleness.
Changes in size and shape over time,
especially for women.

Victorian Women

Modern women and pop icons:

Mid-1900s Betty Grable, and Marilyn
Monroe

Late 1900s: Twiggy and Cindy

Crawford

Early 2000: Britney Spears and

Gwen Stefani

Body Shape Across Cultures

The thin body ideal does not hold across

cultures
Samoa, Fiji, Rural Jamaica
Sociocentric
Egocentric

Recap

Western cultures are patriarchal with capitalist

economies based on production, consumption, and
profit.
Food is a pawn in the political and economic strategies
of states and households.
Food creates solidarity but also inequalities and subject
positions.

In industrial societies, there is a problematic link between food

and body image.

Issues such as fraternity gang rape and disordered

eating are embedded in gender identity and thus
socially constructed.
Gender and food are sources of inequality and power