Response to Proust's Madeleine

One of my earliest childhood memories includes filling a volcano-shaped pile of mashed potatoes with buttered corn and peas at my grandmother's house, copying the technique from my dad. So far this week I have had corn pudding at a soul food theme lunch, corn in burrito at Chipotle, as well as high fructose corn syrup used in a majority of consumable products. I've read about the prized maize Belezians offer to John Lloyd Stephens on his expedition in my American Exploration class. Even from before the nineteenth-century rise of commodification and emergence of market culture, corn was a valuable asset to survival. There are many politics surrounding corn. I remember reading a newspaper article in high school about the skyrocketing prices of corn tortillas in Mexico due to the incrased shift in using corn for ethanol production. Corn permeates both our food-consumable world as well as many other aspects. I am particularly interested in genetically modified foods, as Monsanto's manipulation of corn is an interesting case.

In Michael Pollan's book The Omnivore's Dilemma, he discusses the "Pioneer Hi-Bred 34H31" (36). Genetically modified organisms have become favorable to farmers because they enable a higher yield, yet their cost is exponentially higher. The organisms planted are designed prominently to produce insecticidal properties internally. The production quantities are essential in a contemporary America as so many products and a growning population require more and more with the same area of land available which is not realistically feasible. Monsanto poses the question "How can we squeeze more food from a raindrop?" in an advertisement in The New Yorker (Nov. 9, 2009). First of all, I don't understand why this publication advertises Monsanto because Michael Pollan- an opponent of the company's practices- is a contributor to The New Yorker. This is yet another hypocracy of advertising culture. More importantly, in the ad the company asserts that their products yields more crop production while using "1/3 less water per unit produced" (3). This is superficially positive, as less water might be used, yet genetically modified organisms, in this case corn, produce insect repelling toxins. How can this be any better for human consumers, as well as the biosystems that these crops penetrate?

Corn is one of those "all-American food" sources that numerous American traditions are founded on. What sits between the stuffing and mashed potatoes at Thanksgiving? The corn, of course! In attempting to provide a consumer base as well as maintain an image of plenty and wholesomeness that is uniquely American, corn is becoming a toxic entity.

Let the feast begin!

After studying and over analyzing every interest in my life from music, to literature, to film, I have now begun to deconstruct the most necessary aspect of our existence: food. Being an American consumer (and college student) surrounded by McDonald's, microwavable hot pockets and Little Debbie cakes, I am interested in finding the minority artisanal focus on food in American culture and how other cultures values are transposed into American consumerism. I will be particularly looking at producers in Pittsburgh, with some pit stops at other cities throughout this semester as I go on other school-related trips.

As part of the school of sustainability at Chatham University, Dr. Alice Julier is laying the foundation for a food studies graduate program. I am participating in the class "Producing Food, Producing Difference" that views food production and culture through the lens of critical theory. In turn, food becomes more than just another meal, but a window into our own identity and heritage. By viewing food as a signifier of race, class and gender, identity becomes more complicated.

In essence, all of the participants in this class are becoming "Cuisine Connoisseurs." I refer to the definition of both of these words to justify the title of this blog (and thanks to my fellow connoisseur in all things techie Jenn Van Dam for the idea!): Cuisine, as a style or manner of cooking; and connoisseur, a person who is especially competent to pass critical judgments in matters to taste. Remember in the film "Ratatouille" when the title critter tells his brother to close his eyes and think about what he was eating, accompanied by blips of light and sounds? I want to think about food like that- from different perceptions and layers rather than just passively consuming it.

At the end of this class, I will be travelling to Rome as part of the Chatham Study Abroad program. The itinerary for this Roman holiday includes fisheries, wineries, visiting cheese makers among other artisan food producers. I hope this blog will help me to organize my thoughts and opinions on food, as well as get my readers to question and think about the origin of food and labor that goes into production.