Are we what we eat? : food and identity in late twentieth-century American ethnic literature / William R. Dalessio.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Dalessio, William R.

Contributor:

Class of 1932 Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

American literature--20th century--History and criticism.

American literature.

Cultural pluralism in literature.

Food in literature.

American literature--Minority authors--History and criticism.

American literature--Minority authors.

Immigrants in literature.

Group identity in literature.

Physical Description:

203 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Amherst, N.Y. : Cambria Press, [2012]

Summary:

Delassio (English, Bryant U.) analyzes the significance of food-preparation and consumption for identity formation in examples from ethnic American fiction and autobiography of the last forty years. He draws heavily on Roland Barthe's essay, "Toward a Psychosociology of Food Consumption," and the idea advanced there that food itself signifies meanings. The four chapters examine two works each from Cuban-, Chinese-, Italian-, Armenian-, Dominican Republican-, Vietnamese-, and Jewish-American authors. Dalessio considers how food mediates processes of assimilation and alienation, connecting to and preserving the past, and the construction of pluralistic identities. Annotation ©2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Class of 1932 Fund.

ISBN:

1604978015

9781604978018

OCLC:

772593149

Publisher Number:

99948067472